Prime Minister Boris Johnson sought a December 12 election to break the parliamentary deadlock over Brexit. AP Photo / Alberto Pezzali
Your editorial (NZ Herald, November 18) on the upcoming election in UK makes interesting reading. Although polls show the Conservatives well ahead, this does not necessarily convert into a win.
The election is all about Brexit and constituents could use their vote tactically depending on their view of
Brexit rather than the party they support.
A recent poll determined that twice as many people believed there should never have been a Brexit vote.
It would appear that the deal Johnson has on the table does not appeal to the majority so even if the Conservatives are returned to power they may not be any further ahead. Considering that the vote on Brexit was questionable and people are now more educated on the results of an EU leave it could mean a second vote would seem to be sensible.
The EU will always make it difficult to leave which means life will not be easy for some time after departure. It would seem that regardless of the election result, there will be no real winners.
Reg Dempster, Albany.
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When northern invaders minister Shane Jones and entrepreneur Wayne Brown have completely nobbled the business of Ports of Auckland on the basis the dividend returned to Auckland Council is inadequate, how would "freeing up the land for Aucklanders" produce a better return?
Intensive high-rise private developments shutting Aucklanders out of that area? Thousands of (mainly elderly) seasonal cruise ship tourists walking long distances through pedestrianised Quay St to attractions in the Wynyard Quarter?
A few promenades and a bit of green space, a capital return do not make. We could do a lot worse than retaining a reduced port operation serving the needs of Auckland without car imports cluttering the wharves.
Coralie van Camp, Remuera.
Being accused of having consensual sex with a 17-year-old is not a crime in my eyes.
What is unforgivable is to use a young girl who had been carefully groomed by the paedophile Epstein with money and introductions to the international elite to give sex.
To be part of that pack of wolves is unforgivable.
David Tolmie, Mt Eden.
How dismissive of your correspondent Shaun Perry to label objectors to the imminent removal of trees on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert as "living in privileged prisons" (NZ Herald, November 18).
Contrast this view with the piece by author and historian Mary Tallon in the same paper. Like her, I lived in the shadow of the maunga. Rather than instilling in me a sense of entitlement, my late parents taught me to have a deep respect for the maunga, and to revere its history and it's potential to pleasure the senses and the mind. I suspect they are turning in their graves at the accusations of "cultural insensitivity".
Glennys Adams, Waiheke Island.
As a Pākehā striving to come to terms with the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, I welcomed your correspondent Mary Tallon's piece entitled "Rich heritage in exotics too" (NZ Herald, November 18).
I particularly identified with the sentence: "It is not just Māori who value the spiritual, cultural and historical dimensions of the maunga." It makes sense that we should all reflect on this.
John Walsh, Green Bay.
What a refreshing, common sense article (NZ Herald, November 18) regarding the tree saga. Mary is right.
It is known that the settlers planted the mountains with trees after finding them denuded by Māori fortifications.
I would like to see some respect from Tūpuna Maunga Authority towards those ancestors of Europeans who loved and planted those trees about to be culled solely because they are "foreign".
Māori and European culture are both capable of spiritual, cultural and historical appreciation. No one culture more than the other. Anyone who has travelled to historic spots in Europe will understand this.
Dianne Mackenzie, Onehunga.
One has to question Ngahuia Owena Hawke's knowledge of the history of the Ōwairaka area when she has stated (NZ Herald, November 12) that it is a slap in the face to Māori that they were never consulted about mining on the mountain.
Almost all of the Waiohua tribe were massacred in the 1700s when attacked by Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara. The few who survived fled to Waikato.
Samuel Marsden climbed Ōwairaka in 1820 with paramount chief Apihai Te Kawau, and noted that there had been no occupation of the area for over 100 years. The central isthmus, including Ōwairaka remained unpopulated owing to a tapu placed on the land after successive massacres in the 1700s.
In 1835, Thomas Mitchell purchased the area for 160 pounds plus other goods, from Apihai Kawau, so the land passed into pakeha ownership well before the Treaty of Waitangi, and well before the mining of the mountain in the 1870s.
In 1850, my great grandfather Allan Kerr-Taylor purchased hundreds of acres for farming purposes. The nearest Māori lived several miles away at the mouth of the Whau River and they numbered less than 10.
Because of the continuing tapu on his land, he failed to encourage any of them to work for him, despite his close friendship with the Kaipara chieftain at the time.
We need to remember this land was not "taken" from Māori, but willingly sold.
Vivienne Wilson (nee Kerr-Taylor), Orakei
Re: Simon Wilson's article about Amanda Eason's move to enhance and improve our boring roads, I both congratulate her and sympathise with her over AT's non acceptance of her attempt to beautify our city.
It appears that AT has a rule for ratepayers and a rule for themselves.
Through their badly thought-out plantings next to two stop/speed bump areas at the intersection of Mt Roskill Rd and Memorial Ave, visibility either way along Memorial Ave is dangerously inadequate.
The main body of the plantings is 1.4m high with overgrowth reaching 1.8m, which is not setting a good example.
Keep up the good work Amanda,
Adrian Ironside, Mt Roskill
It is alarming that armed police patrols are being trialled in this country. It is very alarming that some of these patrols are being introduced into areas with high Māori and Pacific populations.
Could we not learn from numerous examples from USA, where predominantly black, unarmed people have been killed by armed police? In many of these situations it appears that police have assumed, possibly on the basis of skin colour, that people have been armed and threatening where, in fact, they have been neither.
This seems a dangerous way for New Zealand police to go.
Caroline Miller, Birkenhead.
The changes to tenancy law have been proudly defended by the Green Party, claiming "it shifts a power imbalance from the landlord to tenants". These sentiments will return to haunt them as the availability of rental stock tightens further depriving so many aspiring tenants of securing a "roof over their heads".
These added impositions will ensure many owners capitulate and seek alternate investment, deciding to bow to further regulation, rigid compliance and escape the exposure to the threat of unexpected anxiety stemming from tenancy issues.
Initially, leasing residential property out in the 60s, a time when common sense and mutual respect prevailed, social change since then has ensured the rental market has become a minefield.
Often forgotten is the very character of residential property, the ongoing need for maintenance and enhancement and, if assuming personal responsibility, continuous physical endeavour. Not an easy game as many will discover, why bother?
P J Edmondson, Tauranga.
Thanks for the interview (NZ Herald, November 18) with the great Mark Graham that brought back memories of joy.
In the 80s, when league wasn't shown on TV, the kind proprietor at the Prince Albert pub let us fanatics watch tapes from the ARL previous week competitions.
Mark was the gutsiest player this fan ever witnessed.
Rex Head, Papatoetoe.
On Trump
There is a line in Shakespeare's play Hamlet which, with slight alteration, reads: "He protests too much, me thinks". The next time Donald Trump sends out tweets, he would do well to reflect on this. Tony Sullivan, St Heliers.
The only reliable revelations so far in the US impeachment hearings is the Republicans hate the Democrats, the Democrats hate the Republicans; and Potus hates anyone who won't fall at his feet in slavish adoration. Mary Hearn, Glendowie.
On judges
Diversity by all means (excepting quotas), but never at the expense of merit, especially within the judiciary. John Hampson, Meadowbank.
On trees
Do we really want a 200-year-old kauri chopped down by a future descendant of those who currently feel aggrieved? You don't balance scales by putting a dead weight on one end. Kent Millar, Blockhouse Bay.
On traffic
Quentin Miller, commenting on unnecessary holdups and that the Nelson St lanes are coned off, needs to remember that AT has a continuing program of discouraging car use. Looking from this perspective, most of what happens to roading makes sense. Neville Cameron, Coromandel.
On sugar
The government should simply legislate the maximum allowable amount of sugar per 100ml and sugar content should be stated in teaspoons, not grams. Chris Elias, Mission Bay.
On Folau
Israel Folau is entitled to an opinion as much as anyone else, but why are his opinions printed and seemingly valued? John Ford, Taradale.
On Peters
Hey Winston, it might be time for you to brush the cobwebs off that "NO" sign. Pat Taylor, Tauranga.
Napier’s New Year’s Eve fireworks still on despite regional firework ban.