Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition nine
new-zealand-labour-party
Tue Mar 22 2011 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition nine
Tuesday, 22 March 2011, 11:39 am
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
Christchurch
LABOUR MPs
Tuesday, 22 March 2011 MEDIA STATEMENT
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition nine
The Labour Party’s Christchurch electorate MPs, Clayton Cosgrove (Waimakariri), Ruth Dyson (Port Hills), Lianne Dalziel (Christchurch East) and Brendon Burns (Christchurch Central) have started a regular bulletin to keep people in their electorates and media informed about what is happening at grass roots level.
CLAYTON COSGROVE: Yesterday’s protests by CBD businesses should never have got to the stage that they did. I wrote to Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee and Civil Defence Minister John Carter last week about the concerns of business owners wanting to access their businesses, and still haven’t had a reply. I have been putting their concerns to Civil Defence controller John Hamilton for quite a long while, but the message hasn’t been heeded. It’s not good enough to say that they can’t contact individual tenants in buildings, because no attempt has actually been made to set up a register of business tenants. They could have all their contact details recorded, but it hasn’t been done. The frustration of business people is growing all the time. Someone could have got injured in yesterday’s protest. At today’s 11.30am briefing with John Hamilton I am going to be asking him the tough questions that Gerry Brownlee and John Carter don’t seem capable of asking him. If businesses can’t plan for their future, then their livelihoods will be in jeopardy, and the jobs of those they employ will be in jeopardy as well. If Gerry Brownlee and John Carter had heeded calls from businesses earlier, yesterday’s stand-off could have been avoided. Businesses represent the future of Christchurch They are not impeding progress by wanting to get on with their livelihoods. On the contrary, they are the face of progress. Today I will be signing the ‘pledge’ to stay in Christchurch and work for Canterbury’s recovery. The more people who sign it the better. I will also be attending the first of a series of zone meetings in Kaiapoi to brief quake-affected residents on the plans for recovery.
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BRENDON BURNS: I was encouraged by yesterday’s visit to Napier that Christchurch CBD can be rebuilt efficiently and effectively. There was early debate in Napier after the 1931 quake about moving the CBD, similar to some of the nonsense we are now hearing about Christchurch. But Napier rapidly and correctly decided that it would rebuild the city centre where it had fallen. As with Napier, most Christchurch CBD businesses survive on cash flow. Many of ours were tested by recession and then the September 4 and Boxing Day quakes. The earlier they reopen the more jobs can be saved. We need to ensure that the speed of rescue of businesses is maintained throughout the period of recovery. In Napier Historian Robert McGregor says that within two years most of Napier’s CBD was rebuilt and his advice to Christchurch is---less haste, more speed. We have a long road ahead in Christchurch. Napier provides our closest parallel and they are very willing to share their experience. Today I will hold a street meeting at the corner of Pattern St and Retreat Rd in Avonside at the request of the community to update them on essential services. This afternoon I will attend the Civil Defence community meeting at Richmond Park and hold a caravan meeting at the corner of Marshland Rd and Hammersley Ave. At 6pm this evening I will chair the fourth public meeting of the Property Owners and Central Christchurch Business Association.
RUTH DYSON: Today, exactly one month one from the quake, my colleagues and I are pleased to attend the public signing of the Christchurch Pledge outside the museum. The Pledge is an initiative started by Garth Gallaway, a partner at Duncan Cotterill Law, which offers the opportunity for Cantabrians to commit emotionally and physically to the rebuild of their city. By signing the pledge we commit to staying in Christchurch and commit to rebuilding our city. Sue Spigel, who was miraculously rescued from the crumbling Cathedral, will be the first to sign the pledge. It is hoped that the pledge will be an on-going reminder of the strength and commitment of the people of Canterbury. This afternoon I will also attend the next round of community briefings led by Mayor Bob Parker. These meetings offer generic information but importantly give communities the opportunity to directly liaise with EQC, water utility representatives and education representatives about the issues they are facing. Yesterday I attended the latest Lyttelton Business Association meeting which had over 60 people in attendance. The meeting was a success with Chris Kerr the Corporate Support Manager from Christchurch City Council providing a clear timetable for inspection, demolition and access for Lyttelton business owners. The business community in Lyttelton was particularly hard-hit, even now only four businesses in the CBD are operational. Feedback from the meeting showed that this kind of consultation and feedback is exactly what business owners are seeking.
LIANNE DALZIEL: My colleagues and I remain deeply concerned about the Government’s continued reference to a new government department for Christchurch. Christchurch doesn’t need a government department. It needs an active government willing to consult with residents and businesses and support recovery. I do not want to see the people of Christchurch positioned as the scapegoat for government budget cuts. It is completely unfair to put the people of Christchurch in a position of blame on top of the pressure they already face. Government should be more responsible than that. National should know better than that. The people of Christchurch need to be allowed to engage and talk to government about ways in which to grow the economy rather than focus on cuts. Is it really right to force more middle and low income earners into unemployment? Instead of keeping communities afloat this government could bring them down. There are opportunities in recovery that this government must grasp. What happened to being ambitious for New Zealand? What happened to ambition for Christchurch? I find it condescending to say the least that this government is willing to talk down expectations of recovery and economic growth when Cantabrians are consistently going the extra mile and are willing to work hand in hand with the rest of the country to rebuild our economy. Today along with my colleagues I am signing a pledge to remain in Christchurch.
ENDS
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