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Dear John, I recently attended the Electorate AGM and was pleased to see so many people there to support myself and National colleagues. It was great to have the opportunity to thank the hardworking team for their success last year. In particular, the successful membership drive which our Chair received well-deserved recognition and acclaim for with her efforts which produced amazing numbers in Papakura. I appreciate that for some, the fear of Covid-19 will have put many people off attending their various meetings and events this year. There is confusion over what can and can’t be done in groups along with the ‘Red’ Protection framework. In spite of the many mixed messages out there, being double vaccinated and having a Booster seems to evidently be the best defence against the virus. Unfortunately at this time, our testing system in Auckland is falling behind with a wait period of up to five days before test results are sent to patients. Basically the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing and processing capability have been overwhelmed by the number of people requiring tests and we are yet to reach the peak of the outbreak. Recent reports show the numbers of tests being taken and then processed within 24 hours is under 50 percent of the capacity that the Health Ministry claimed they could cope with. People are waiting days for PCR test results in self isolation. The Ministry has now relented and said it will allow testing stations to use Rapid Antigen tests which are still in short supply and not readily available at busy testing stations where the wait time to be tested can be over three hours. In Auckland particularly, we need the Rapid Antigen Tests to be widely available to everyone as soon as possible. The National Opposition has been calling for this to be the case for almost a year as you know. The Mandates The question of mandating vaccination predominantly in the workplace has given rise to the big protest in Wellington now in its third week, and continues to cause major disruption in the CBD. Early on the Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard did intervene with some unusual and ineffective crowd control methods. The result, as you know, was that the protesters’ numbers have swelled and they continue to say they will not leave until the mandates of vaccination of essential workers and mask wearing in public places, are ended by the Government. The use of Rapid Antigen tests will be a critical tool for individuals to manage their health and self-isolation needs. I hope the Government will deliver on its promise of RATs becoming widely available. National’s New Leader Our new National Opposition Leader Christopher Luxon is measured on the question of the protests at Parliament, given the tendency of the media to jump on anything a person in his position says! He has said that the Government is showing it has no plan to end the protests despite the behaviour of some protesters. Christopher says he would have the protestors stop being abusive and clear the streets and the area around Parliament, so that a meeting with their leaders can be had. He, like myself, does not condone lawlessness. At the same time, we are very aware that many New Zealanders want to see a plan from the Government for the lifting of mandates. The use of Rapid Antigen testing and other tests (some even PCR grade) available overseas but effectively banned for many in New Zealand, is a failure of the Government. I fully support and have confidence in Christopher’s approach to all these issues as well as the economic, law and order and democratic ownership issues that have been overlooked by the Government recently. We will be keeping all of these front of mind and bringing our opposition to many of the proposals to the Government’s attention. Economy Recent “polls” show that the country is now divided 50/50 over whether the country is headed in the right direction, and that National is most trusted on economy, jobs and law and order. I am extremely excited and passionate about my new portfolios for which I am spokesperson. For the most part Research, Science, Innovation and Technology are industries focussed on the development of technology and mechanisms in which we can improve productivity and grow our economy in a way that is not just inflationary. This is an ever growing and evolving sector that will improve our lives in many ways and provide more jobs for the future. I will enjoy encouraging and supporting this work in Parliament and in the community. The Government seems to be focussed on increasing the minimum wage without increasing productivity and that is just fuelling inflation as we can see from the price rises affecting every-day items like petrol and food. Papakura High School Petition To support the petition to rebuild Papakura High School you can use the petitions website, Type in your name and email, tick accept and then click sign. Thank you! This is one of the ongoing ways to effectively have your say about issues affecting all New Zealanders and they are available in addition to General and Local Body Elections. There are Local Body Elections this year and there are some very important issues like the Three Waters legislation that you can influence with your local body voting. Wishing you all the best, Judith
Hon Judith
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