Stop Dilly-Dallying And Declare Drought

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Tue Feb 03 2015 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Stop Dilly-Dallying And Declare Drought

Tuesday, 3 February 2015, 2:37 pm
Press Release: New Zealand First Party

New Zealand First is lending its support to Otago Regional Council and will support drought declarations in regions affected by an increasingly worrisome adverse event.

“It was time to declare drought on January 15 when we last made that call and in the intervening weeks the situation has only deteriorated,” says New Zealand First’s Primary Industries Spokesperson Richard Prosser.

“Soils are increasingly hydrophobic so weeks of drizzle are needed as opposed to one deluge which will only run off. Even if it rained steadily the damage to winter feed crops and pasture has been done.

“I need to stress that farmers are not seeking handouts but an adverse event declaration will free up funding to the Rural Support Trusts. This means the trusts will be able to offer counselling and advisory services to those farmers and farming families who need it.

“We know the Minister came, he saw the South Island but then said he’d think about it. That thinking time has well and truly expired so why the delay?

“The call by Otago Regional Council for a drought declaration makes such a declaration an absolute must. You have to wonder if the Minster for Primary Industries is under direction from the Minister of Finance not to spend a cent because of the government’s budget deficit.

“This is not a time to be misers. The financial burden caused by events such as droughts and floods is high for farmers but affects farm service businesses, their communities and the national economy.

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“It is about helping to keep farmers on the land by delivering advice and more importantly support. The long term solution is clearly water storage, although we have no legislative detail on the government’s RMA reform plan to facilitate it.

“More immediately New Zealand First will back the Minister for Primary Industries to do the right thing and that is to declare a medium scale adverse event in regions affected by drought,” says Mr Prosser.

ENDS

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