Dear John,
I hope you've had a great summer and a wonderful start to 2021. Let's make this year better than last! It's hard to believe it's nearly the end of January, which means school going back, work starting in earnest for most, and of course for me, Parliament nearly back in session.
After a big 2020, Jenna and I enjoyed relaxing over summer, with a bit of a classic Kiwi roadtrip in both the north and south islands. My new COVID-19 Response responsibilities did mean I was on the phone a reasonable amount and I will confess to an amusing TV interview in shorts, jandals and a business shirt (see below)! But as I said a few times, the virus doesn't take holidays. However we did manage to get some good reading and relaxing in too, which I definitely needed.
Before I go on, a quick plug for my summer survey which I'd love for you to fill out to help me be a better advocate for you in 2021 and beyond. It asks about a few important Hutt issues and just takes a couple of minutes. Would love the feedback. Click here to fill it out. In a couple of weeks I'll share the results in my next Bulletin.
The big story of the last week or so has been the three new COVID-19 cases which have come from the Pullman Hotel. This is obviously very concerning - the whole point of MIQ is that you don’t catch Covid-19 there. It’s now critical that everyone who was at the Pullman Hotel at the same time as these latest cases get tested, and it is worrying that the Health Ministry has still not been able to contact some of these people.
I have been concerned for some time about the laxity of MIQ and the potential for people to catch COVID-19 there. Some of the stories coming out of the facilities have been very troubling. For example, there is still evidence of cohort mingling in MIQ facilities, where recent arrivals are able to mix and mingle with people coming towards the end of their stay. That doesn’t make sense. The Government should be adopt a risk-based approach in our MIQ facilities. This means segmenting arrivals depending on where they have come from, placing arrivals from high-risk areas, such as the UK, US and South Africa, into their own dedicated hotels.
A major focus for me this year will be the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines. I worry about how it will go. First, despite the government saying in November we were at the "front of the queue", that is demonstrably not the case now, with scores of other countries underway while we wait for the vaccines to arrive. Second, the debacle of the flu and measles vaccines in recent years should give us cause for concern. It is a moral and economic imperative that our border and MIQ workers are vaccinated ASAP. Singapore aimed to vaccinate 17,000 border workers this week alone and is aiming to vaccinate the entire Singapore population by mid year.
Locally, my focus will be on the two big issues facing the Hutt: our housing crisis and our congested city. Housing is at crisis levels in the Hutt, with big rent increases, a record social housing waitlist, and unprecedented levels of spending on emergency housing (putting people in motels). Sadly the Hutt doesn't seem to be a focus for the government, with the "big winners" of their recent public housing announcement being Northland, Hamilton, Gisborne and lots of other towns.... but not the Hutt. In her state of the nation speech this week, Judith Collins reached out to the government, suggesting major temporary and urgent law changes to speed up building.
Getting our city moving is critical and you can expect me to push hard to make sure progress is made on the new Melling Interchange (the consents should be lodged soon) and keep pushing hard for projects like the Cross Valley Link, Petone to Grenada, a second Wainuiomata access road, extending the Melling train line, and more. Also, did you see over the break that NZTA is going to consult on new speed limits on SH2? More news as I get it.... it was slipped out on December 21.
Finally in closing this first Bulletin of the year, a special tribute to Hutt legend Bill Sheat who passed away over summer. His funeral - more a celebration really - was yesterday at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington. It was a highly appropriate venue because alongside the Opera House down the road, Bill fought to save both cultural institutions in Wellington. He really was "Mr Arts" in Wellington - setting up the Film Commission, chairing the Arts Council, directing, writing, producing, and so much more. I got to know him through the National Party and our shared Rotary club. A life well lived and someone who will be sadly missed.
Have a great weekend.
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Something has gone wrong here.
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Did you know that the NZ Transport Agency is going to consult on lower speed limits on SH2 through the Hutt this year?
NZTA announced on 21 December 2020 that there will be an "initial round of community feedback in the first half of 2021".
They say that they have been "working on a technical assessment of safety on SH2 through the Hutt Valley" (I've asked for this) and alongside possible speed changes, will also "investigate and plan other safety upgrades, such as barriers and intersection changes."
What do you think?
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Holocaust Remembrance Day
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Laying a memorial stone on Wednesday afternoon at the Jewish Cemetery in Makara to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day.
It is 76 years since 27 January 1945 when Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration and death camp, was liberated by the Red Army. The German and Israeli Ambassadors to New Zealand laid a stone together.
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Celebrating with friends in our local Tamil community at Avalon Park, celebrating Pongal. A fantastic event to mark the Pongal festival and the beginning of the harvest season.The pongal dish itself is a sweetened rice dish with rice, milk and jaggery (sugarcane). It was pretty special to see 21 women from many different cultures and backgrounds make the pongal - and it was delicious!
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Out on community patrol just before Christmas in Wainuiomata. Unsung heroes of our community. Go Paul, Tracey and team. Thanks for all you do. Frozen coke from Maccas now traditional when I go out on patrol. A treat. 
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Clint has just set up a takeaway coffee shop next to my office in Wainuiomata! Open during the week from 6.30am to 1pm. He’ll be doing coffees in the morning and tattoos in the afternoon
A great addition to Homedale Village.
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Some good fun a couple of Saturdays ago as a group of "celebrities" (I use this term loosely) marked the finish of the NZ Cycle Classic in Wellington with a quick cycle race of our own down the Golden Mile. The MP for Ohariu, Greg O'Connor and I took on former Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown, Mayor of Carterton Greg Lang, Captain Hurricane, and more. The NZ Cycle Classic itself finished on Lambton Quay later in the day - a great event.
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Many congratulations to former Lower Hutt Mayor Ray Wallace who was named as an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit (ONZM) in the New Years Honours announced on January 1.
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Three years ago I started doing the Lower Hutt parkrun and at the start of 2020 I set a goal of knocking off my 50th run by the end of the year! Pleased to say I did it on the final weekend of the year. Looking forward to wearing this shirt in the although not sure about the colour! Will have to quickly get to 100 which is a black shirt.
My times have steadily improved and my new goal is to get under 25 minutes for 5k. Current PB achieved in 2019 is 25.34 which I haven’t really come close to since. Tend to average about 26.30/27 these days and I want to steadily bring it down under 26 mins.
Thank you to everyone who makes parkrun happy every week. It’s an amazing community run initiative. I am looking forward to doing some volunteer shifts this year too.
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Big congrats to my old club Hutt Districts who took out the Men's T20 Cup over the weekend, defeating Taita by 8 wickets in the final!
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Thank you to Hardy St Quality Meats in Waterloo for the delicious Wakanui tomahawk steaks. Perfect on the barbie over the long weekend!
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Ladyhawke enjoying summer in Petone.
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