Winston Peters' pledge on Cathedral rebuild: 'it's time to play ball'

The partially collapsed Christ Church Cathedral on the evening of the February 22 2011 Christchurch earthquake. Photograph / Mark Mitchell

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has pledged to get a project to rebuild Christ Church Cathedral started after the election, if no action is taken before then.

"The government has the ball in its hands. It has been sitting there for a long time," Peters said in a speech at Cathedral Square today.

"It's time to play ball. And you have my personal undertaking that if the government doesn't start now we will start this project after the next election."

Peters said Christchurch locals were right to call the building "our Cathedral", given the number of events held there, including many non-religious events.

"It has been six years. We know the cathedral is legally owned by the Anglican Church. So, some heat must go there for its inability to resolve its own problem," Peters said.

New Zealand First Party leader Winston Peters. New Zealand Herald Photograph by Dean Purcell.

Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Nicky Wagner needed to tell the Church to accept a programme to restore the Cathedral and keep its gothic style and heritage "as far as is practical".

This month Bishop Victoria Mathews announced it would be at least September before the Anglican Church in Christchurch makes its decision on the future of the Cathedral.

Mathews said the decision will no longer be in the hands of the Church Property Trustees.

Instead, the members of the Synod will decide the future of the cathedral when they meet in September.

Trustees had been considering a Government offer to restore the cathedral, which involved most of the $104m cost being funded by the Anglican Church's $42m insurance payout, a $10m government grant and $15m loan, and $15m from the Great Christchurch Buildings Trust.

Today, Peters said the Government's offer was not nearly enough.

"There's some economic debate, but the tax take from the Christchurch rebuild sits between $7 billion and $11 billion. A bonanza from your catastrophe. Don't you think you should get some of it back?

"Here's one project that just needs a tiny ounce of that quake gold. That contribution would rule out asking Christchurch and the rest of New Zealand to fill the donation buckets."

Wagner has called the delay in a decision on the cathedral "deeply disappointing", after hopes for a breakthrough.