Letters: Airport upgrade unnecessary

I have been flying into Rotorua Airport for more than 15 years from England and Australia and can see no reason to upgrade at a cost of $4.9 million.

The airport was completely updated when it became an international airport in 2011 and that only lasted four years before flights from Sydney were terminated. According to your newspaper reports there were no profits from this venture and left a large, still unpaid debt. The terminal is in excellent condition and needs no improvement for domestic flights.

There may be a need for the fire station and rescue operations to be modernised. How much of the $4.9 million would be needed for this? More information is needed to see who would really use the airport regularly, before large sums are invested, on the assumption they will be used when plans are completed.

I am sure this money could be better spent on more social issues. Where will the funds come from to pay for this venture? The local taxpayer? My husband and l really enjoy our visits to New Zealand and our base near Rotorua. We find the flights to and from Auckland very convenient.
JEAN FARLEY
Dartmouth, England

[Saturday's] headlines in the Rotorua Daily Post are obscene, just think of the message this gives to any young couple wishing to climb on the housing ladder - struggling to find enough to even rent a house - let alone buy one!

Just what is this government thinking about? Are they so blind that they cannot see the state of the housing crisis in New Zealand? Or is it rather that the government ministers are themselves so wrapped up with making money that they fail to see the plight of the homeless and the struggling renters?

In an ideal world no MP should be allowed to participate in any endeavour that would jeopardise the welfare of the people they represent. I reiterate - a house is a home - not a commodity; if we are to have a stable and capable workforce then they must be housed -cheaply and comfortably - or the government is failing in the duty to which they were duly elected; and the Prime Minister should be impeached.
JIM ADAMS
Rotorua