Boat people will receive red carpet treatment

By Suzanne McFadden

Cup news

These boat people will be met with red carpet when they arrive in New Zealand, not red tape.

Life is being made easier for the America's Cup challengers and their families when they move to Auckland over the next three months.

New Zealand's government agencies have joined forces to help the syndicates to ship in their belongings, put their children into schools and get short-term residency while they sail in the cup regatta.

Italian syndicate Prada first raised the question of who to go to to sort out their housekeeping.

The Minister of Sport, Murray McCully, convened a meeting with 15 government agencies who could offer their services to the challengers.

Those departments have now prepared briefings for all the challenging syndicates to make the trek to New Zealand smoother.

The secretary of Internal Affairs, Roger Blakeley, has overseen the mutual project.

"It's the first time I know of anything like this happening," he said. "It's a good example of how departments can work together to provide a good service to our customers.

"It's important to the Government to make this a well-organised event. We're able to showcase the country to the world through the America's Cup."

Every syndicate has been given a list of people based in Auckland who can help them.

Customs has created an innovative deal for the challengers in the form of a temporary importation agreement. It allows syndicates to bring their boats and other equipment into the country without paying duty, GST or a customs bond, as long as they take everything home with them.

From immigration, sailors and their families who stay for longer than 12 months will need to get short-term residency.

The Ministry of Education has helped to advise families on where to send their children to school, while the Ministry of Health has explained the local health system and where hospitals are.

The police, and Maritime and Land Transport Safety Authorities have hit home their message to the visitors concerning drink-driving - on the road and the water.

Dyer Jones, head of the America's Cup Challenger Association, said one of the main questions from the syndicates was whether the sailors' partners could get jobs in New Zealand during the cup.

"It's one of the most difficult parts of moving to a new country for the cup. Life can get boring for spouses left at home all day, so it helps if they can get a temporary job," he said.

While the challengers did not always like the responses from the agencies, Jones said the group approach was very much appreciated.

"The laws of New Zealand are the laws of New Zealand - that won't change for us. They might not like paying taxes or having to get visas, but they have to realise that it is much easier to come to New Zealand than most countries around the world.

"The challengers certainly don't feel like they are being ignored, or that the Government doesn't care."