The rural areas in particular know the postcode lotteries that affect health and education. Photo / Dave Murdoch
Time to resolve postcode lotteries
Media commentators are splurging out their opinions in the wake of the recent election landslide and minor parties’ wins.
A common theme is the Labour Government was out of touch with ordinary people. True. But so too were the media.
Government press releases were often reported almost verbatim and little investigation was made of how policies were affecting the ordinary person in our society.
The poorer regions and rural areas in particular know that the postcode lotteries which affect health and education have left a vast gulf between them and the Wellington/Auckland politicians’ circle.
This week I have heard of treatments available in Auckland not happening as they should in Hawke’s Bay.
In Wairoa we can’t get quality teachers and so have teacher aides in front of some classes almost permanently.
This is not the New Zealand we want.
Whatever other issues contributed to the electoral results, what was missing in the debates was that education and health systems matter too and will have longer term consequences for us all.
The two major parties don’t understand that voters don’t want ideological chopping and changing on these two key social goods. We want the best education and healthcare possible.
But sadly rural areas are not even getting education and healthcare comparable to that on offer in urban postcodes, and that is wrong.
The politicians have not been listening to this issue and the media have failed to investigate and inform them.
Let’s hope the rural regions can now get some traction on these postcode problems.
Judy Bogaard, Wairoa
Driver’s jail exit hard for families
The ongoing grief of the parents of the five young teenagers killed by Tyreese Fleming when he crashed his car into a concrete pole will have been compounded hearing that he is free after serving only 16 months of his two-and-a-half-year prison sentence. They have every right to feel justice has not been served.
Lorraine Kidd, Warkworth
Teal Government
With the Greens out of Government, New Zealand is now in need of a new political direction that embraces what is best for our New Zealand environment, encompassing marine and land best policies. Can the new National, Act and NZ First Government develop a shade of teal to achieve this need in their policies? We want to see 100 per cent of the Hauraki Gulf seafloor protected from destructive, mobile fishing methods including bottom trawling, Danish seining and dredging. We want to see Gisborne and the Hawke’s Bay flood damage cleaned upnow — bring in the Army — what elsecould they be doing that is moreimportant? We want to see forestry slash clean-up made the financial responsibility of the forestry companies and keep charging them daily until the clean-up is complete. These three environmental actions will help get our country back on track, Christopher Luxon.
Gary Carter, Gulf Harbour
Harbour Bridge in crisis
What will happen to Auckland when our ageing harbour bridge finally fails? It is already 64 years old and in a decrepit state. It has had four more lanes added to its original framework, which has added strain to the structure. They have had to reinforce the clip-ons because of the flexing and heavy traffic is requested to use the centre lanes to reduce the load. The powers that be have been discussing another bridge/tunnel for as long as I can remember and the only thing that has happened is a lot of consultants have become very rich from the public purse. It will take decades to build the bridge/tunnel after they have decided what to build. This is the major transport issue facing the country. It is time to stop waffling and get on with building a new crossing.
Jock MacVicar, Hauraki
Sewerage disgrace
According to Watercare’s unofficial estimates, for over three weeks more than 8.64 million litres of raw sewage per day has been flowing into the Waitematā Harbour at Parnell due to the collapse of a sewerage line. This gives a total of around 181 million litres.
This is a damning indictment of the lack of a co-operative agreement and action between local and central government for more than 100 years to upgrade a broken sewerage infrastructure. Would this have been fixed any quicker if had occurred at Takapuna Beach?
Bruce Tubb, Devonport
Israel-Palestine solution
Let’s suppose, just for a moment, that during the latter phase of the struggle to end apartheid in South Africa the leaders of the African National Congress, and the Pan-Africanist Congress, had instructed their followers to sneak out at night, armed with AK47s, then break into private houses and murder every white South African man, woman and child, they encounter? Where do you think the struggle to end apartheid and create a one person-one vote democratic system in South Africa would be today? I think I know the answer to that question. Nowhere!
Now is perhaps the best time for Israel and the Palestinian Authority to restart serious negotiations (with help from Israel’s new best friends in the Arab Gulf,) to revive the two-state peace process, and end this deadly impasse, once and for all. Because, it is plainly obvious that the status quo cannot be sustained, for either side! That the extremists on both sides of this conflict are equally guilty in this appalling state of affairs is obvious!
John Watkins, Greenlane East
Motorsport fuel use
Whilst correspondents Smith and Coleman seek to jump on motorsport as excessive users of fuel, maybe they’d like to consider the fuel used by the All Blacks and their massive entourage (100+?) and their supporters as they travel across the world to play a game that does nothing to enhance our knowledge of technology.
The same could be applied to all international sports teams — and all pop concerts arriving on our shores with dozens of containers carrying their gear.
The fact is that there are also several ‘E’ races in motorsport that will inevitably lead to better battery technology. Not so long ago, before F1 developed into massive teams of personnel and a bigger race programme, it is said that one jumbo jet flying from London to New Zealand and back used more fuel than the whole of the F1 circus in a season.
Ray Green, Birkenhead
Dumb Green strategy
Amid the self congratulations of the Green Party they are too dumb to realise that by taking votes from their partners, the Labour Party, they are in effect voting themselves out of the new Government.
A far better strategy for the Greens would be to tone down their rhetoric with National, do a deal to work together and get some Green policies passed which would grow their party and its membership and its relevance to the average voter. This party is tone deaf to common sense as nothing they say in this term will affect our policies, while National is a leader.
Bruce Woodley, Birkenhead
Compulsory voting
Regarding Jeremy Coleman’s letter (Herald October 20) on compulsory voting in a general election, it should be remembered that a vote is not only a right and privilege but also a responsibility; a responsibility not to be taken lightly.
Whilst it is possible to make voting compulsory, as in Australia, I am unaware of any way of making people vote responsibly. But there are many ways to make your vote void, even if compulsory, so that it won’t count anyway.
I have counted in past elections; quite a few voting papers are deliberately mutilated or “destroyed” by the voter, for some obscure reason, even when voting isn’t compulsory. But over-riding all this is the fact that if a person lacks enough motivation, or desire, to vote without being at least cajoled, or worse still compelled, then in all reality their vote will not be a considered, or responsible, one.
Philip Lenton, Somerville
