Nurses striking for better pay and conditions in Christchurch. Photo / Pierre Nixon
Nurses striking for better pay and conditions in Christchurch. Photo / Pierre Nixon
Opinion
Moved by death of great QEII Much to my surprise, the death of our Queen has moved me deeply. She became Queen the year I was born, and I have never thought she was a part of my life. Her sudden absence has made me realise she was somuch more than a tiny presence at the back of my mind. She was not only a great queen, but also an extraordinary person. In an era of great change and increasing violence, she was fulfilled the role she saw as her own — service to others. When she was 21, she promised he would spend her life serving her country, her Commonwealth and, indeed, the world. She kept that promise until she died. How many of us would be capable of doing that? Gerry Beckingsale, Stanmore Bay.
Shining example Queen Elizabeth II was the shining example for seven decades of the advantages of a person born and raised to serve as opposed to an elected leader. She lived to see the coming and going of multiple presidents, prime ministers and world leaders of vastly varying quality while demonstrating that the monarchy transcends politics. A legacy to be greatly admired and a lesson to be learned. Lloyd McIntosh, West Harbour.
Need for monarch Any talk of a republic was seldom on the table while Queen Elizabeth was on the throne but that conversation will come. The question is what attracts us most? Is it continuity or change or is it pomp and ceremony? We become attached to the Royal family because they are always with us and as a result we easily identify ourselves with them. On the other hand, we have a Governor-General as our head of state who, with respect, is not often seen and is only with us for five years which means relationships are quickly lost. Māori understand this and that is why they have a monarch. A great deal of thought is required before we rush into a decision which could change what we stand for. Reg Dempster, Albany.
Senior moments Your 'We Say" column in the Weekend Herald (September 10) made me choke with laughter at the line "only the very elderly would remember King George Vl". That puts all of us over the age of 75 in the very elderly bracket. We are elderly but we would not describe ourselves as very elderly. One can assume the writer was very young. Patricia Guptill, Wattle Downs.
Marae solution Motel residents in Rotorua do not seem to have any respect for authority or for their provided accommodation, causing damage and inflicting abuse on other residents and visitors. Perhaps the only people who would be respected and instil some order and better behaviour are kaumātua. Marae have so many times shown heartwarming hospitality to people made homeless in natural disasters over many years. Would the many marae around the country perhaps be prepared to host a few each of these problem people under the authority of the kaumātua, of course with the financial support of the Government, perhaps also providing some local employment and instilling some pride and purpose into troubled lives? Vince West, Milford.
KiwiSaver changes It's a shame National's changes to KiwiSaver years ago haven't been recalled properly. It was done so after the GFC and earthquakes. They increased the rate of employers' and employees' contributions, which more than compensated for the halving of government contributions. People now have more, not less, savings because of this. Interesting that Labour didn't reverse this in 2017 if it was so terrible. Jol Clark, Napier.
Traffic light review The editorial "An open road, or are we stuck at traffic lights?" (Weekend Herald, September 10) was a well-considered, unbiased summary of what has been required of us under the traffic light regime so far. It also stated: "There must be a full and transparent review — our traffic light system should be included." It is important this is achieved given some of the disclosures revealed in the past week. Lorraine Kidd, Warkworth.
A red traffic light outside the Beehive after it was announced the country will move to red traffic light setting, at the start of this year. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Lockdown review Everybody is calling for an inquiry into the handling of the Covid lockdown. National says it will hold one within 100 days if it gets elected. Isn't the election over a year away? What earthly good will be achieved other than spending a lot of money on an inquiry that will only play pin the tail on the donkey. Let's just accept that the whole Covid response was a disaster and get on with life. Nothing constructive will be achieved. Jock Mac Vicar, Hauraki.
Pay the nurses In the last few weeks, I was twice admitted to the Waikato Hospital. The treatment and care I got was incredible, can't laud the staff more. I noticed a high percentage of the nurses were from India and other parts of Asia, even among the doctors. It got me thinking — if they would all leave, the Government would have to close all the hospitals down. Aren't we lucky they are willing to work here? Neither can you fault the food, lots of choices, beautifully presented, tasty and free! So please Mr Little, stop fluffing about, and give the nurses their due. Verena Steiner, Cambridge.
Ballooning civil service Numbers released indicate a major increase of those in public service employment. State departments pressured to increase staff levels due to Government's policy objectives are offering inflated remuneration which is impacting the private sector. The rapid expansion of centralised bureaucracy and the burgeoning cost proves inflationary and threatens Government's fiscal stability. Current inflation is impacting the lives of our beneficiaries, pensioners and low wage earners, not those comfortably entrenched in the capital's civil service, content in the knowledge of assured substantive income and guaranteed job security. The "state knows best" is not the solution to our problems, an expanded government is the problem. P.J.Edmondson, Tauranga.
Tram-free folly John Roughan (Weekend Herald, September 10) seems to think all Aucklanders live in houses with lovely views near beaches and boat ramps. Mind you, only living here for 50 years means he can claim not to have been part of the mistake made around 60 years ago to remove the light rail down several of Auckland's arterial routes (called trams) which many other cities sensibly retained. This of course was done in the name of reducing congestion. It may have done so for a couple of years before the need for everyone to have one or two cars to get to work has produced the congestion that is now complained about. So what is Roughan's solution to that? More cars, albeit of the electric variety, so he can stay connected to his public transport free utopia. Neil Anderson, Algies Bay.
Cars here to stay John Roughan earns top marks for his agreement with mayoral candidate Wayne Brown that Auckland Transport should understand it is there to serve Aucklanders' wishes, rather than trying to change the way we live. Both voice the opinion that cars are not ever going away, especially with a move to electric. With our variable weather, hilly terrain, large distances, and a smaller population unable to afford the infrastructure necessary for an adequate public transport system, Auckland will always depend on motorised personal transport. Roughan says for half a century, planners have been designing a city that reflects their outmoded beliefs in public transport, rather than people being given the opportunity to travel the way they wish, as efficiently and safely as possible, on better roads and motorways. The "we know best" social control attitude, of an overpowering Auckland Transport has to be stopped forthwith by the next mayor. The waste of billions of dollars on useless infrastructure and controls has to be replaced with sensible decision-making that the majority of people want. Hylton Le Grice, Remuera.
Speed up anthem The original handwritten copy of Thomas Bracken's national anthem God Defend New Zealand clearly shows the recommended tempo as Di Marcia — a brisk marching speed. We are hearing it sung at events at an almost dirge-like dead slow marching speed, which makes it sound dull and uninspiring. Performed with an upward key change between the Māori and English portions and at the correct tempo, it becomes uplifting and inspiring. Hugh Aitchison, Whangamatā.
Short & sweet
On the Queen She was a class act — respectful, humble and dignified, all characteristics non-existent in many of our younger generation. Dave Miller, Tauranga.
To those who want to end our constitutional monarchy, which transition did you prefer: Queen Elizabeth to King Charles, or Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Keith Berman, Remuera.
Like the shock demise of JFK, the demise of QEII may move the world equally. The sadness will linger for decades. S Mohanakrishnan, Mt Roskill.
On youth crime The youngest convictions for murder or manslaughter in NZ are for 12 and 13- year-old boys. Surely it is possible to also convict children of similar age for crimes while ram-raiding? Paul Gillespie, North Shore.
On state housing Mark Young is correct that the Labour government sold 105 houses to tenants. The National government sold them to investors, which allowed the tenants to move out and live in their automobiles. Big difference. J McCormick, Gisborne.
On Russia Why does New Zealand allow the Russian Embassy to remain open in New Zealand? Russia's despicable actions in Ukraine are beyond belief. Graham Whiteman, Ōrākei.
You can't get staff if you don't/ can't pay them a competitive wage. You sure can't keep savvy staff without adequate financial compensation. Wages have to be an incentive — otherwise we risk large numbers headed on to welfare. Ali J.
Firstly, it isn't a company's responsibility to give increases because the Government's incessant spending has seen inflation sky rocket and secondly, if companies give pay rises of 10 per cent, watch prices go up which in turn cancels out the pay rise. Mark Y.
Yes. Let's have wage push inflation. Great idea. Marcus A.
People complain about the cost of almost everything today. Are they really so financially naive as to not realise the costs involved in production always find their way into the cost of the final product? Just imagine if tradespeople got a well-deserved 15 per cent pay rise ... people would start complaining about the cost of housing. Geoff B.
Not all companies can raise their prices to meet pay increase demands. Fixed pricing for contracts for example. Your suggestion to "demand" an increase also helps fuel inflation so it's not as simple as plucking money out of the air as most unionists think is possible. John H.
While the exec pay gets bigger, they aren't keen on pay rises for anyone else. Kathy A.
