Midday Report

David Tamihere will not face a retrial over the 1989 murders of two Swedish backpackers. Our reporter Finn Blackwell was at court. RNZ deputy political editor Craig McCulloch had the latest from the campaign trail. And we continued our series on how our politicians view AI with NZ First spokesman David Wilson.

Midday Sports News for 7 October 2026.

This year, Artificial intelligence is shaping up as a key election issue, and on Midday Report we've been hearing from political parties on how they use AI and how they think it should be regulated. New Zealand First tech spokesperson David Wilson spoke to Guyon Espiner.

The latest news from Australia with correspondent Amanda Copp in Canberra.

News from the rural farming sector.

News from the business sector.

National has announced a 47-point Small Business Plan it says will make it easier for SMEs to do business. And, Labour has rolled out the latest in its series of consumer based policies - this time it's banking. RNZ deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Guyon Espiner.

A huge vegetation fire on the southern shores of Lake Wakatipu has grown overnight, and is likely to increase further due to weather conditions. RNZ reporter Katie Todd is at the scene and spoke to Guyon Espiner.

David Tamihere appeared in the Auckland High Court this morning, where Crown prosecutors said they would not retry him for the murders of Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen. Reporter Finn Blackwell spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Simeon Brown on shifting aid funding to health treatment; Craig McCulloch discusses RNZ's latest political poll; World Vision responds to Nationals' foreign aid announcement.

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.

The National Party wants to redirect foreign aid money into funding for new medicines, if it leads the next government. World Vision is a charity organisation that works in the Pacific, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Its Head of Advocacy and Justice, Rebekah Armstrong spoke to Guyon Espiner.

The latest news from the United States with Nine News reporter Lauren Tomasi in Washington DC.

An update on the latest news from RNZ's rural team.

The latest news from RNZ's business team.

RNZ deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Guyon Espiner about RNZ's latest political poll.

Simeon Brown discusses National's new policy to cut international aid spending, and divert that money to health treatment. He spoke to Guyon Espiner.

National campaigning on building new roads Labour on the cost of filling up the car and repairing it. Arena Williams tells us about Labour's plan for a right to repair law requiring car makers to give local mechanics the manuals software and tools to fix modern cars at cheaper prices. And it's cyber security awareness week ... The Cyber Security agency are asking us to be vigilant:But how prepared are they? We ask the country's top cyber security official if it would even know if AI bots hacked into a public health data base as happened in Australia recently: stick...

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.

An update on the latest news from RNZ's rural team.

In an interview with Midday Report, one of the country's chief cyber officials has admitted the agency has no independent way of detecting an AI agent inside a hospital system, saying it would depend on the AI company or the victim owning up. Catriona Robinson of the National Cyber Security Centre spoke to Guyon Espiner.

The latest news from Australia with correspondent Amanda Copp in Canberra.

The latest news from RNZ's business team.

Three people have been taken to hospital, two in a critical condition after a stabbing in west Auckland. Reporter Jessica Hopkins spoke to Guyon Espiner from the scene.

Labour has announced a policy it says would make car repairs cheaper and bring more competition to the petrol pump. The party's consumer affairs spokesperson Arena Williams spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Seymour reveals AI used in government problem-solving trial; Simeon Brown discusses National's nine-point energy policy; Political chat with Patrick Gower and Guyon Espiner.

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.

Patrick Gower and Guyon Espiner discuss the week in poltiics.

An update on the latest news from RNZ's rural team.

The latest news from RNZ's business team.

National says the policy will deliver more supply, more competition and more choice for households and businesses. National's energy spokesman, and campaign chair Simeon Brown spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has revealed to Midday Report that the government has used AI in a dummy run to solve complex government problems. Speaking as part of a Midday Report series into party positions on AI, Seymour also said he thought it would be acceptable for AI to write Cabinet papers as long as there was a human in the loop. He spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Labour is promising a Fair Go Law it says will end consumer rip offs like hidden fees on tickets or gym subscriptions which are impossible to cancel. Cash is still king - according to the Reserve Bank who are with us live to reveal what New Zealanders told them about the access they want to real money. And we continue our series on AI policy: today it's Opportunity Party leader Quilae Wong.

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.

What should a small country like New Zealand do with the rapidly developing technology of AI? Opportunity Party leader Qiulae Wong spoke to Guyon Espiner for Midday Report's election interview series on AI.

The latest news from the United States with Nine News reporter Lauren Tomasi in Washington DC.

An update on the latest news from RNZ's rural team.

The latest news from RNZ's business team.

Kiwis are still keen for cash, according to the latest report from the Reserve Bank. Of the 6,000 New Zealanders the RBNZ heard from, more than half said they were not satisfied with access to cash services. More than half of adults aged 18 to 29 use cash to pay for everyday things. Karen Silk, Assistant Governor for Money at the Reserve Bank spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Labour promises its proposed Fair Go Law will end consumer rip offs like hidden fees on tickets or gym subscription which are impossible to cancel. Labour's spokesperson for Consumer Affairs Arena Williams spoke to Guyon Espiner.