Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 34
new-zealand-labour-party
Mon May 02 2011 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 34
Monday, 2 May 2011, 12:39 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
Christchurch
LABOUR MPs
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 34
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: Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee’s denial that the Government will bring pressure on the Christchurch City Council to sell locally-owned assets is hardly reassuring. Remember that Mr Brownlee turned down Labour’s amendment to the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority legislation that would have precluded the full or partial sale of assets. Basically Mr Brownlee has three positions on the issue. His first position is that he rejects the idea. His second position is that the reason he trashed Labour’s amendment is that it was important to cover off all bases in case of unforeseen circumstances. His third position is that CERA can suggest to the Christchurch City --- and presumably other Canterbury local authorities --- that it might need to sell something. So what is the real story? Why does Gerry Brownlee need to cover off all the bases if he rejects the idea of forcing the council to sell assets in the first place? Why trash Labour’s amendment when it seems to support his ‘first’ position? Why give CERA the heavy power to suggest to local authorities that they might have to think about selling something that belongs to Canterbury people? Toss in the fact that Mr Brownlee has confirmed that the Government (through Treasury) has had a close look at the city council’s balance sheet because of the need to take a great deal of debt on to the government’s balance sheet, and it is easy to understand why Cantabrians are worried that assets they have spent years building up may be stripped from them. Controlling stakes in assets like the Orion power network, Port Lyttleton and Christchurch Airport are an important part of the lifeblood of the Christchurch community, and the other two local authorities have assets (land etc) that are fundamental to those communities as well. I want Gerry Brownlee to develop a fourth position! He needs to give an absolute guarantee that Canterbury people, who have already lost so much, won’t lose their precious council-owned assets as well. If he won’t give such a guarantee, then Canterbury people are justified in being afraid.
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RUTH DYSON: This morning I have been in a community forum for the Hagley-Ferrymead ward. Community organisations from Sumner to Linwood were in attendance and are struggling to grapple with the announcement that this Wednesday is the deadline for appointing community representatives to Gerry’s ‘hand-picked’ community board. It remains beyond belief that a twenty person board can be representative of the region. My main focus is, and will continue to be, ensuring that these representatives actually link back up with their communities. School is back today after the holidays, and progress has been made with some of the key bus routes. Bus services are back up and running across the Ferrymead Bridge— which comes as a relief to students used to crossing it on foot in the cold. The official state of emergency was lifted on Saturday. Many people don’t know what that will mean in days and weeks ahead. There needs to be a clarification of roles. Port Hills constituents have been told issues relating to their area will be managed by the city council and CERA, which is not clear; people need to know exactly who is in charge. The Government, CERA and the council need to be clearly publicly accountable.
LIANNE DALZIEL: This morning I was interviewed by CTV for a programme airing tomorrow morning updating Cantabrians on the situation in the eastern suburbs. It was quite moving to see the team back in action. There is an enormous gratitude to Mainland Press and Māori Television, who have enabled the station to get back on its feet more quickly than might have been anticipated. We traversed a range of issues, with the top priority for many in the east being preparation for winter, including urgent repairs to their homes. This priority is underscored by the need for a verdict on the future of their land. Following concerns about 350 campervans which have been sitting empty at the A&P showground’s since March, I was able to raise some basic issues we have around temporary housing. I have consistently been raising with the authorities the need to know where people are in order to assess wider need. Who has stayed put? What are their needs? Who has left and why? Will they return? These are basic and critical measures to assess the needs of our suburbs. Until the Government and its various agencies have a clear picture of what is going on it is impossible for them to get a handle on what is required. This is how we end up with the ridiculous situation of hundreds of empty campervans. It is not rocket science; it is just basic information gathering, assessment and impact analysis. I don’t mean to be critical, but this Government has missed the boat, leaving the taxpayer to play catch up, at a cost. I also raised concerns that city-wide statistics were not necessarily representative of Christchurch East. For example, where some statistics state that only nine per cent of school children remain un-enrolled, in the eastern suburbs this figure is up to 30 per cent. We need to more accurately cater solutions to the varying needs of suburbs and situations in Christchurch.
BRENDON BURNS: While Labour’s concerns about the possible forced sale of city council-owned assets in the future are being brushed off by some as a beat-up, it is important to remember that Gerry Brownlee has a history of scoffing at claims like this (witness the sale of Meridian) only for the claims to become the unpalatable truth in a very short space of time. Let’s look at some of the undeniable facts. To all intents and purposes Mr Brownlee is the boss of CERA, and, as Mr Brownlee admits, CERA has wide-ranging powers to amend, add to, change or delete aspects of any recovery plan. There is no question that if Mr Brownlee wished to at any stage, he could require the city council to sell ratepayer-owned assets. Under the legislations these assets can be sold down the track if Mr Brownlee and CERA decide that’s necessary, and not too far down the track either. As far as Christchurch City Council is concerned, I don’t think a majority of the existing councillors would have a bar of selling off assets at the moment, but under CERA’s sweeping powers pressure can be brought to bear on them. Treasury and Finance Minister Bill English will have a view on this which could also influence the final call. These assets sales must not be used to reduce debt and crown liability. The assets deliver a strong income stream to ratepayers, keeping down rates by about 15 per cent a year. Selling the assets would provide a short-term gain for a long-term cost. Tonight I will hold a public meeting at the Christchurch Bowling Club on Worcester St from 7pm. This meeting is for central city residents and businesses. Insurance representatives and Fletcher’s will also answer questions
ends
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