Dear John

How about that weather in Wellington and the Hutt over the last couple of days?! The universe must be telling us something because the big weather bomb coincided with the official opening of the new Eastern Bays Shared Path on Saturday morning, forcing the opening to be moved to the Pelorus Trust House in Seaview rather than on the path itself at Whiorau Reserve.

It’s so fantastic to see the Shared Path now complete and being well utilised. I was very proud to attend the opening as the Minister of Transport and local MP, and of course I should declare an interest as we live in Days Bay! When I first became a candidate for Parliament in 2014, it was very clear that the Shared Path was a top priority of Eastbourne and Bays residents. It was also clear that it made a huge amount of sense. I’ve pushed for it ever since, as both as a list and electorate MP, and now it is a reality.

It’s been a long road getting to this point, with a huge amount of consultation, the resource consent process, sorting the funding, and so on. A large number of people have helped make this a reality – thank you to everyone who has worked on it over the years. And if you think the Eastern Bays path is cool, wait until you see the Petone to Ngauranga Seawall and shared path – I got a sneak peak on Friday. It’s going to blow you away 😊

Newsletter: If you live in the Hutt then you should be getting a Bishop Beacon community newsletter in your letterbox in the next couple of weeks. Please watch out for it! I do this newsletter every year reporting on progress over the last year. As I put it together I was reminded that despite our challenges (which are many), there’s lots of exciting things happening – Melling and RiverLink are now well underway, the Sir Mark Dunajtschik Mental Health facility is being built, the new Lower Hutt After Hours is going great guns, new school classrooms are being built, we’re investing in much-needed maintenance and upgrades to our rail network… the list goes on. I’d love your feedback (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Feedback)

It's probably worth noting that all the newsletters are delivered by hard-working volunteers who are keen to help me out – with the price of mail these days, it’s just infeasible to deliver newsletters through the post. If you fancy helping me out by delivering newsletters like this, then please send me an email! (mailto:[email protected]?subject=I'm%20keen%20to%20help) There’s lots of activity planned for the next few months obviously.

Policy Happenings: Parliament's been in recess for the last couple of weeks so I’ve been head-down working hard on a range of issues, with a bit of travel thrown in too. Three things I'll draw your attention to.

First, did you see our reforms to WOFs and COFs? ([link removed]) Compared to other countries, New Zealand has very frequent inspections for light vehicles. The Government’s changes mean that most light vehicles under 14 years old will move to two-yearly WoF inspections (up from yearly), and new vehicles will go four years before their second WoF. The cost-benefit analysis shows the changes are expected to deliver between $2.6 billion and $4.1 billion in net benefits over 30 years through reduced inspection fees, less time spent on compliance, and fewer unnecessary repairs.

Second, I was in Auckland a couple of Fridays ago with the Prime Minister and Wayne Brown to announce the government’s first “City Deal”, a long-term partnership between the government and Auckland Council focused on economic growth and higher living standards. There's a lot in the agreement itself, including working together on an additional Waitemata Harbour crossing, declaring Eden Park as NZ's National Stadium, establishing a coordinated 30-year transport strategy for Auckland, and developing a destination and major events strategy to grow tourism, events, and hospitality.

Third, I was in Hamilton on Wednesday to mark the start of the new Te Awa Lakes development. This is a 2500 new housing development - which is large - but the really exciting thing is that this is the first time an Infrastructure Funding and Financing Act levy will be used for new greenfields housing. Parliament passed this back in 2020 (work started under National in 2016) and it allows new infrastructure for housing to be funded and financed separately from council balance sheets. The model works by establishing a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for a project. The SPV then repays any finance raised by charging a levy to homeowners and landowners who benefit from the infrastructure. We're also making the IFF Act more viable and flexible so developers, councils, and other infrastructure providers can get on with building the infrastructure our growing communities need. We expect to pass this Bill into law before the election.

What else is happening? Some other things you might be interested in:
* Some great health news: ([link removed]) from June, community pharmacists will be able to play a bigger role in treating a range of common conditions, making it easier and more affordable for families to get the care they need close to home.
* More people off benefits: ([link removed]) 5,580 more people left the benefit for work during the year ending March 2026 compared to the same period the year before.
* Two more Fast Track projects have received approval - Ayrburn will be a screen hub ([link removed]) , a full-service film and television production and 201 accommodation units in Queenstown. The Waitaha.Hydro project ([link removed]) is a 23MW hydro scheme in the Waitaha Valley which will power around 12,000 homes each year. Westpower has been working for 20 years to get there!

Have a great week.

Chris

P.S I hope to see you at one of the Hutt Anzac services this year. Check out the list here. ([link removed])

P.P.S Chris Hipkins tried a "gotcha" on me this week on Breakfast - didn't really work... ([link removed])
Q & A

Had some good feedback on my Q and A interview ([link removed]) on Sunday - check it out here. ([link removed])
Delivering my 2026 Community Newsletter

Lots of volunteers delivering these all over the Hutt. If you'd like to sign up to help deliver these in the future then please flick me an email. (mailto:[email protected]?subject=I'm%20keen%20to%20help)
Eastern Bays Shared Path Opening

A huge pleasure to officially open the new Eastern Bays Shared Path (Tupua Horo Nuku) on Saturday morning. The project has a long history going all the way back to the early 2000s. I have been pushing for this since I was elected in 2014 and it is just fantastic to see it finally done. A lot of people have played their part in making this happen. Thank you
Poppy Day Collection
Collecting for the Lower Hutt Memorial RSA at Queensgate on Friday afternoon.
The Angus is being redeveloped

The Angus Inn in the Hutt is iconic, but I think we all know that in recent years it was definitely showing its age.

Here's some fantastic news. The Angus has reopened under new ownership and there's a multimillion dollar refurbishment underway. The hotel will operate as the Carnmore Hotel Lower Hutt as part of the Carnmore Hotel Collection. 75 rooms are being upgraded to four-star standard and there are upgraded event spaces as well as the restaurant (known as The Angus) and two bars.
Halberg Games

Such a privilege to again attend the opening ceremony of the Halberg Games last week in Auckland. The Games are a fantastic festival open exclusively to young athletes aged 8-21 with a physical disability or visual impairment.

A big thank you to the Halberg Foundation, the sponsors and ParaFed network of sporting organisations around the country who help make this happen every year. It's an incredible event and I feel honoured to be part of it. Looking forward to next year!

From 1 November this year, most light vehicles under 14 years old will move from WoFs every year to every two years. New cars will go four years before their second WoF. Older vehicles, where the safety risk is higher, will still be checked more regularly.

This is a practical, common-sense change that focuses inspections where they matter most.
The benefits are significant:
⏱️ Fewer inspection fees and less time spent on compliance
🚙 Less unnecessary hassle for everyday motorists
💰 Between $2.6 billion and $4.1 billion in net benefits over 30 years
Semi-regular Ladyhawke Photo

By popular request :)
The things you miss when you're on Q and A
Ram Navami

Chris Hipkins tried (and failed) to get a story up last week in advance of his weekly media interviews, with his office claiming to TVNZ that we had failed to respond to a Labour MP’s concerns about the Waioweka Gorge. Check out the actual facts here. ([link removed])
Really Duncan?

Labour MP Duncan Webb visits a prison and moans about the lack of space for prisoners. Good grief.
Not long to go now

A project the community has fought for 20 years on the Coast - done by Fast Track in around six months.

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