Letters to the editor: No reason cruise ship tours should not be restarted

The Holland America Line cruise ship MS Noordam at Port of Tauranga last year. Photo / File

Elizabeth Anderson's letter in your Travel magazine in last Tuesday's paper about commencing bubble cruise ship tours around New Zealand is right on the mark.

I can see no insurmountable reason why such cruise ship tours should not be happening now.

There are lots of New Zealanders with travel money burning a hole in their pockets. New Zealanders cruising around NZ would get a break from cooking meals, making beds and cleaning, and meet new people, see new places and by doing so stimulate the services of travel agents, cruise-related tour companies, tourist attractions and local businesses.

Activity would be increased outside the school holiday periods also.

Our NZ cruise hierarchy has the contacts and would know the ship size and numbers that would fit this market.

Once things are up and running it would make a far easier transition into the Australian and Pacific Island bubbles.

There is too much sitting around and we need to get on with it.

Doug Morris
Tauranga

The potential effects of legalising cannabis

Propaganda surrounding the forthcoming referendum about legalising cannabis for recreational use raised a few questions in my mind.

How can harm to people and communities be reduced by decriminalising use of a harmful substance? If it's going to be more freely available I expect the potential for it to cause greater harm to be significantly raised.

Why is it necessary to legalise cannabis use in order to raise awareness of associated health risks? Surely that sort of public education should be constant regardless of the law.

We have about as much hope of restricting young people's access to cannabis by legalising its use as we had of stopping young people from binge drinking by lowering the drinking age, and we all know how well that worked, don't we?

The intention to improve access to health and social services and provide other kinds of support to families and whanau doesn't bode well.

Obviously greater social problems are expected as a result of the legalisation of cannabis use.

Ian Young
Pāpāmoa

Dismay at Pilot Bay re-design

I wish to register my dismay that the proposed re-design of the road at Pilot Bay is again being considered.

The needs of the elderly, people with mobility issues and parents with children have been overlooked.

Imagine trying to load and unload the car with children and all the paraphernalia that goes with a day at the beach, straight on to a cycle track.

It's an accident waiting to happen.

There are already hundreds of kilometres of cycle tracks around the BOP which cyclists can enjoy.

Why take away other people's pleasure in accessing the beach and boardwalk just so cyclists can take over yet another part of the road, not to mention the removal of some car parks?

Please, Tauranga City Council, reconsider and ditch this idiotic idea.

Linda Collicott
Welcome Bay

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