A Kiwi soldier on Provincial Reconstruction Team rotation in Afghanistan. Defence Minister Andrew Little has signaled a shift from a humanitarian focus to combat-ready for New Zealand military personnel. Photo / NZ Defence Force
Gunning for trouble
Public disappointment has been expressed in hugely diminished Government spending to replace houses devastated by climate impacts. Meanwhile, an enormous military spending increases to transform New Zealand’s “passive, humanitarian” defence force into an “offensive, combat-ready” one, adding to $20 billion committed earlier to become inter-operational with the United States. Paul Little dismissed peace views as “old left-wing rhetoric from a long, long time ago”, an offensive comment to those of all political colours who supported nuclear-free NZ from the 1980s on. It’s Little whose views are dated and irrelevant to human security. Willingness has been expressed to join the US in the South China Sea if conflict breaks out there. Did New Zealand learn nothing from Vietnam? This war would be far more dangerous internationally. How can adding fuel to fires help “resolve” provocative conflict near China? As one commentator noted, an alternative is diplomatic de-escalation - in line with NZ’s peace-oriented reputation. We will lose this potential, and our reputation, if Little’s plans go ahead. We’ll also diminish the capacity to support crucial domestic needs. Frances Palmer, Titirangi.
Mere chattels
On the front page (NZ Herald, August 4), you report that the sportsman aspiring to represent New Zealand at the Olympic Games who sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl was not only discharged without conviction but also granted permanent name suppression. Judge Bruce Davidson reasoned that the gravity of the offending was relatively low but the consequences of conviction for the athlete were out of all proportion to the offending. On page seven of that newspaper, we read that a serial shoplifter who assaulted store staff as she took goods from “big name stores” was sentenced to 11 months in jail. Davidson’s rationale is unfathomable. Abused persons face a life-long struggle to overcome their sense of shame that they have become someone else’s property. We are reminded that chattels have more value than life. Elisabeth Garrett, St Heliers.
Crime prevention
I would like to congratulate Derek Cheng on his excellent article, researching youth crime (NZ Herald, August). The last four paragraphs where he talks about what can be done about it should be compulsory reading for all politicians and the subject of a cross-party accord. Chris Chrystall, Epsom.
Open wide
I worked for 30 years as a general dentist and a specialist in the UK and was involved in negotiating the “new contract” when Tony Blair was the PM. As such, I feel qualified to express the following opinions on the Greens’ so-called “free dental care” proposal (NZ Herald, August 7). The first and obvious point they have overlooked is that there are not nearly enough dentists, dental surgeries, and staff. Then there is the model of delivery. The UK modified the system of delivery many times to try and deliver value for taxpayers, and high-quality care for patients, not to mention over- or under-treatment. An army of compliance officers do random checks on outcomes and potential fraud. Dentistry includes orthodontics and, today, implants, expensive ceramic crowns. The list goes on. Will patients covered be means-tested or asked for a co-payment as happened in the UK (except for children and beneficiaries)? Every UK government has attempted to withdraw from dental care since the 1970s. The Greens need to go back and do more reading. If they like, they can call me and I will tell them how “free” dental care unfolds in the real world. Dr Alan Papert, Queenstown.
Pipe dreams
What is it with these politicians and these brazen announcements on major roading projects pre-election? John Key did the same thing back in June 2013 and promised the world - including a second Waitematā Harbour Crossing. Where did that get us? He even had the chance to tell “Alice” to carry on from the Waterview Tunnel across the harbour, but no. Ten years on and billions more in cost. Thanks. Instead of building more roads (and tunnels), perhaps the Government should be looking at further climate change initiatives - like a two-lane tunnel for buses only. Couple that with an inner city congestion charge and there won’t be half the number of cars coming into the city and needing more roads. I suggest that the PM and Minister of Transport read Auckland Council’s longer-term strategy to see what they think the future outcome should be. Steve Jardine, Glendowie.
Saviour fare
Much of the discussion around harbour crossings in the last few days has been taken up by talk about congestion. This generally occurs at quite specific times from 6.30am to 9am and 4.30pm to 6.30pm. So why not make all public transport in those times free? The cost of all the road and tunnel building would more than cover the cost of this for many years to come. Those that don’t avail themselves of the free service can sit in their cars bleating about the congested roads. Gil Laurenson, Eastern Beach.
Current needs
Traffic-locked Aucklanders are desperate for solutions now, starting with fixing the sinkhole in College Hill and the storm-torn Waitākere Ranges roads. Instead, Labour insults us with a fantasy island North Shore crossing plan that the Prime Minister says will be “multi-generational” and take many many decades. Days after laughing at National’s sensible motorway fix-up plan by questioning its cost analysis, Labour’s Sunday morning media stand-up couldn’t even start to guess where the many billions for their plan would come from- “maybe tolls,” said Hipkins. Labour has spent six years dreaming up nonsense from KiwiBuild to Auckland’s light rail and delivered nothing. Stick to the bread and butter, Chris. That is what we need right now. Bill Evans, Freemans Bay.
Political test
As the Rugby World Cup and election are taking place at the same time, it would be interesting if Herald political commentators could swap places with those from the sport desk. What we would see is the sports desk writing on the merits of the party, its strengths and weaknesses and whether, based on past and current performance, it had a chance of beating the opposition The role of the leaders, though important, would assume less importance as the ability of those around them to perform at the highest level would assume precedence. Switch to the political commentators and most would struggle to recognise that, in order to win, a team requires a competent, well-selected and led group displaying a winning combination of competence and unity. There would be much emphasis on the popularity of the captain rather than whether they can ensure the members can stick to the game plan and ensure indiscipline was not a hallmark of the team’s performance. Gavin Baker, Glendowie.
Vanity basin
Wayne Brown was elected to be Mayor to sort out the mess at Auckland Council. He was going to get rid of waste in the council, reduce the number of council employees and concentrate on core services. Instead, he is promoting a vanity project on our wharves. He wants a huge saltwater pool, an amphitheatre, and an exhibition centre. All of which we don’t need. Even if construction work is years away, huge sums of money will immediately be spent on architects, engineers, financial advisers and other consultants. Not to mention a new council department to oversee these people. All of this is when he should be concentrating on upgrading the city’s stormwater system so that parts of Auckland don’t get flooded when we get heavy rain. There is also the urgent need for new drains in existing suburbs with the intensification of housing. He will also be aware of the need for a new stormwater system in older parts of Auckland that have a one-pipe drainage system with both stormwater and sewage being fed into the same pipe which, of course, overflows every time it rains and pollutes our beaches. Bryan Airey, Waiake.
Port agenda
It has always seemed apparent that the main reason Wayne Brown contested the Auckland Mayoralty was to get rid of the Ports of Auckland and get the main port shifted to Northland. We all know that will never happen now because of the impact of weather events on the road and rail infrastructure. However, he has still seen fit to spend a huge amount of money to get Panuku to put forward plans to turn our port area into some kind of Disney playground. Auckland must keep its port. It is an essential lifeline for our biggest city and for so many of the businesses within. Brown spoke of Panuku with disdain when he was electioneering. Now he sees a way to use it to further his cause in destroying our port. As we have seen, Panuku is a law unto itself, with little consultation with the public. Cruise ships as well as freighters are necessary both for revenue and as supply chain providers for Auckland. Anyone who has cruised into Auckland from overseas will tell you how beautiful it is. In fact, Auckland Port compares very favourably with other popular major ports around the world. Ann Smith, Milford.
Dotty lines
Potholes aren’t the only problem on Auckland’s roads. In many places, road markings have faded to the point of invisibility, and I don’t recall seeing anyone on the job since before the pandemic. Another issue is the Royal Oak roundabout which has long been recognised as very dangerous and which, in my opinion, requires traffic lights. Instead, AT has been peppering (at great expense) Pah Rd with humps and traffic lights where they are not essential. It seems to me that AT’s management needs to concentrate on basic safety issues at known danger spots and make changes that help rather than hinder traffic flow. Ian Dally, Royal Oak.
On floods
Congratulations to the Hawke’s Bay councils who have reached an agreement on voluntary buyouts for homes destroyed by Cyclone Gabrielle. If only Auckland Council would do the same instead of having flooded homeowners completing ridiculous questionnaires. Pauline Murray, Henderson.
On crossing
I have another option that is fiscally neutral for crossing the Auckland Harbour: Heaps of Aucklanders leave Auckland to live in the provinces. Way fewer people means way fewer cars. No need for more bridges, or any tunnels. A simple solution from a simple mind. Steve Horne, Raglan.
The cheapest supplementary harbour crossing would be a six-lane bridge built right alongside the existing one. One bridge to go north, the other to go south. Only minor modifications would need to be made to SH1, at each end. Too easy? Arch Thomson, Mt Wellington.
Three Tunnels? Really? We don’t want one, office and school glide time will reduce traffic by 30 per cent. Stagger start and finish times. Gary Carter, Gulf Harbour.
On recycling
For those like myself who compost their food scraps, the bins provided by Auckland Council can easily hold six stubbies of beer and a decent amount of ice. L. Mallon, Te Atatū.
On Orange Guy
I’ve just seen the Electoral Commission’s ads featuring Orange Guy. Was the voting age reduced to 8 while I wasn’t paying attention? Chris Elias, Mission Bay.
On Trump
Like many others l have been fascinated by the Trump saga. But enjoyed a moment of light relief when an American reporter, quoting from the Seinfeld show, said, “It’s not a lie if you believe it.” John Norris, Whangamatā.
Liam Dann: Holy guacamole - How bad are Crown accounts?
The “hole” joke may have provided some laughs and well-needed relief but the reality is far from comical. This situation is beyond dire and beyond reprehensible. New Zealand needs to wake up. We are in serious financial, societal, and administrational trouble. The real worry is October may be far too late to reverse the rot and the widespread collateral damage. Mark C.
Come on Liam, 60 days out from an election Grant has a sudden epiphany that he needs to finally show some fiscal restraint? He’s had six years to demonstrate this and chosen the exact opposite, which has led us to the position we are in. Emma C.
Regardless of who is right, the issue is we now have too much debt. And the payments (our taxes) required for interest alone, let alone repayment of debt, means we don’t have the money for the core infrastructure requirements. Kathy A.
If does matter who is wrong or right, massive overspending has got us into this mess, and Labour must not be given the chance to do it again. That’s why it matters. Paul E.
NZ has absolutely no reserve at all now when it comes to infrastructure. We are completely dependent on a few base hospitals and very low-quality road infrastructure. In an earthquake or other natural disaster not only will our already stretched hospitals not be able to cope but, in all likelihood, the critically injured will have no way of getting there. I don’t get any sense that any political party understands this and it won’t matter even if you are a billionaire living in Queenstown - money will not save you. Andrew M.
My take on this fiscal hole story is that Labour leaked it themselves with the farcical $20b number so when it comes in at circa $5b we will all be relieved and think that’s not so bad. Neil B.
Detectives flew to Victoria, NSW and Queensland as part of the investigation.