Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 64
new-zealand-labour-party
Thu Jun 23 2011 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 64
Thursday, 23 June 2011, 1:04 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Labour Party
Christchurch
LABOUR MPs
23 June 2011 MEDIA STATEMENT
Christchurch Earthquake bulletin edition 64
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: The feedback we’ve been getting since yesterday’s announcement that some people would learn the fate of their quake-damaged properties today, is that after nine months they are expecting some definitive and detailed information. They don’t want more delays and they don’t want the sort of fly- in-fly -out press conferences the Prime Minister has become so adept at. While it is still not clear exactly what relief this afternoon’s announcement might bring for tired and stressed constituents, most of it is out there already, thanks to various ‘strategic leaks’. I am presuming John Key’s appearance finally means the Government plans to make a comprehensive announcement. One concern, however, is that if some affected homeowners are informed of the fate of their properties but their neighbours aren’t, more distress is likely. No one should be left hanging again - they need to know anything so they can get on with their lives. John Key said after the first earthquake in September that no one in Canterbury would be left worse off than they were at that time. Today’s announcement will be a measure of that commitment. I am waiting in anticipation. Another concern is those areas that are left out, and in particular Kaiapoi, which is in my patch. It was one of the most affected areas post the September 4 quake and has been hit hard in subsequent events. The only difference between it and central Christchurch is that Kaiapoi has water and sewage; its residents, howoever, are having it just as tough as everyone else. Yet Brownlee’s instructions to the Waimakariri Council now is that Kaiapoi’s rebuild is being put on hold. He has offered few reasons why, aside from saying that things have changed since the last big shake on June 13. Having spoken to Waimakariri’s mayor, I know this is not the case. But it is being used as an excuse – Brownlee has known about the geological issues surrounding the rebuilt of Kaiapoi for months because I have told him about it, as has the mayor and others. I hope Kaiapoi won’t be forgotten, but my fear is that it may well be.
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RUTH DYSON: The generosity of New Zealanders is quite overwhelming. Car loads of farmers have appeared around the electorate over the last few days giving their time – not to mention enormous amounts of energy – to help those unable to shovel away the silt. It is just so uplifting for those people who have been left despondently watching the earth spew great mounds of silt everywhere. A huge thanks to the farmers. You have been wonderful. I’ve also heard that a group of students from Victoria University in Wellington are heading down over the weekend to lend a hand as well. We are so pleased to have this support - it really makes the hard times a lot easier. Some people are confused about the two sorts of rates ‘help’ available to us in Canterbury. One is the usual rates rebate, for low/middle income earners and which is available every year. This is the rebate that closes on June 30. The other is a 40 per cent rates remission, being offered by Christchurch City Council to those who are unable to live in their own homes, but still have to pay their rates. I have the forms for both these grants and am happy to send them out to anyone who might be eligible. I met a woman today who is the victim of hard financial times. She has raised two fantastic children on her own, both of whom are now hard working, bright young adults. As a result of a significant illness she had to give up a good job some years ago. She is now financially dependent on the invalid’s benefit. Eighteen months ago, after paying insurance on her home and contents for more than 27 years, she found herself without enough money to pay all her bills and let the payments lapse. Then we had the big earthquakes. She has urgent repairs that need to be made to her home, but because she has no insurance, is left with no cover. Hers is an awful example of what choices people are forced into making as a result of the financial pressures people are under, and the really awful situations that can arise as a result of that pressure. I hope that I am able to work out some solutions for her…And now we wait for the land report….
LIANNE DALZIEL: I know many of my constituents did not sleep so well as their minds ran over the news the Government leaked to the media; is it quotable value or the value our rates were based on ( meaning they are 4 years old). I cannot for the life of me understand why this incomplete information was deliberately planted – the announcement of the announcement heightened expectations and then the 6pm news created a flurry of commentary from people in the affected suburbs. I have received many messages asking what this might mean. All I can say is that I will know some of the answers this afternoon. The MPs and media are being briefed at 12.30pm, while details will be made public at 130pm; so much for the concept of a cross-party forum. The Government, in its leak to the media, has made it clear today’s announcement is just for the worst affected suburbs, but what about the others? What about Brooklands and Spencerville which remain on tenterhooks from September? This has been extremely badly mishandled. Information should have been released on a regular basis so that a picture could be built up over time and those affected would have had time to take it in. What’s happened to our land is an important part of the total picture but it is not the only part of the decisions being announced today. Flood risk is a critical factor in all of the areas the government will include in the announcement as they are all within Flood Management Areas of the City Plan. This raises issues about the future insurable interest in property, which has to be part of the conclusions the Government has reached. As a group of MPs we have constantly advised the government about how to communicate with our constituents. They have consistently refused to listen. Instead we have leaks to the media ahead of a media event. Once again I am left asking ‘what about the people?’
BRENDON BURNS: Being stuck in a Beehive lift for half an hour yesterday may have given Gerry Brownlee a modicum of grief, but it’s nothing compared to that suffered by people in my electorate who have been stuck in limbo for nine months. It will be ‘blindingly obvious’ after today’s release of details surrounding the state of land here whether or not he’s listened to those people. I trust he, and the Prime Minister, who some sources suggest is actually calling the shots on this, will not dash their hopes. Tensions are mounting ahead of the announcement. Already we’ve had a man in tears phoning the electorate office this morning, fearful what the news will mean for him. Matters are not helped that he is reduced to sitting with a blanket around him trying to stay warm with a fan heater. We’ve been able to refer that to Fletchers who’ve undertaken to visit this afternoon and hopefully organise an urgent heating installation. We are also trying to help a very frustrated and already stretched small business owner who was booked to fly to Auckland on Jetstar today for an important business meeting. The cancellation of the flight – and delays in getting a refund – are just too much for him. We are dealing with Air NZ and hoping to assist. This morning I visited Shirley Boys High School and was given a tour by its remarkably upbeat principal, John Laurenson. The school was set to reopen on August 1. The June 13 shakes have set that back by three weeks, meaning boys will have to continue bussing to Papanui High and doing classwork by rotation with Papanui’s pupils. There’s more liquefaction through Shirley High’s buildings, new cracks, more damage. What John, his teachers and board are working to achieve is to do sufficient repairs to make the school safe and warm enough to operate again while longer-term decisions are made about rebuilding, whether on the site or not. I’ve been advised MSD will be providing some counselling and that churches have been alerted to the possibility their help will also be needed. Hopefully the news this afternoon will raise the spirits, rather than leave us feeling that it might not have been so bad being stuck in a lift with Brownlee after all.
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