Dear John,
I hope you had a enjoyable and relaxing time over Easter. After an incredibly busy start to the year and with our baby due in mid-June, Jenna and I are taking a few days off to recharge the batteries. Parliament is on a break for the school holidays, and I'm looking forward to getting out and about in the Hutt, including on Anzac Day. Sadly a couple of Anzac services won't be running this year because of ongoing COVID restrictions, but maybe I'll see you at one.
Speaking of COVID restrictions, it was good to see the country move down to "Orange" last week, but frankly I think the whole Traffic Light Framework should just be junked altogether. It was designed for Delta, not Omicron, and it's all about vaccine passes, which we've now abolished. Plus, it's never been applied properly anyway - we've spent most of the time at "RED"! It's now more about control and making people tune into the weekly updates from the podium, I reckon. Time to scrap it and just implement some simple rules around isolation, testing and mask rules. And the rules need to be simple and easy to follow - it was amusing this week watching Chris Hipkins struggle to explain when they were mandatory, "encouraged", voluntary, etc. Although I did perhaps share too much information in reply...
In the last week I've focused on a couple of areas: first is the frustrating length of time it's taking to allow people from non-visa waiver countries to enter New Zealand. While all the media focused on Aussies now coming to New Zealand (which is great), people from places like India for example can't come until October. Chris Hipkins told me this week the reason is not to do with public health, but about the capacity of the Immigration Department. I find that pretty frustrating - Immigration hasn't had a lot to do for two years, and yet we can't open the border properly for another six months.
The second area is the issue of unvaccinated permanent residents entering NZ. The government quietly changed the rules a few weeks ago and allowed unvaccinated citizens to enter NZ without going into MIQ, but it hasn't extended that to permanent residents. I think that's wrong - permanent residents pay tax in New Zealand, they can vote in New Zealand, and they make a big contribution to our society. We're one of only a few countries barring permanent residents from entering and I hope the government changes its mind.
Finally on COVID matters, it's critical we have a full inquiry into the recent protests at Parliament. The Independent Police Conduct Authority is doing one, but it's scope is narrow and it won't include the actions of the Speaker (the PM is wrong when she says it will). This was a significant event in our history and we need to get to the bottom of exactly what happened and why.
The big news of the last couple of weeks has of course been the cost of living crisis. Inflation is at a 30 year high and wages aren't keeping up. People are really struggling to get ahead. Economists predict typical household costs will rise $150 per week this year alone. The government blames the Ukraine War. But inflation in NZ is higher than Australia, the UK, Singapore and a whole host of other countries. The government's massive spending binge of the last four years is to blame as well as international factors. A sensible government would be tightening its belt. Instead Grant Robertson is planning a big $6 billion spend-up in the Budget in May, the single biggest increase in new spending in NZ history. And he won't inflation-adjust tax brackets, like National has proposed. Last week the Reserve Bank raised the OCR by 50 basis points and more increases are on the way. Tough times lie ahead.
There's more about what I've been up to in the last couple of weeks in the rest of this newsletter. Increasingly as COVID-19 winds down as a focus, my attention will turn to my new portfolios of housing and infrastructure. Both are critical for the Hutt Valley and Wellington, as well as the rest of the country, so I'm very excited to get stuck in.
Have a great rest of the week and if I can be of assistance, let me know.
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Have you ridden on the Ika Rere electric ferry yet? It’s an amazing ride. Was joined by Scott Simpson and Todd Muller for a trip last week to Days Bay and to talk to Wellington Electric Boat Builders and East by West Ferries about their future plans.
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What is happening at Wood St?
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Two and a half years after Kainga Ora said they would build 44 transitional housing units on vacant Crown land in Wood St, Wainuiomata, the land lies empty and residents have no idea what is going.
In late 2019 Kainga Ora proposed building 44 transitional units for 144 people. After strong community representations, which I was proud to lead, Kainga Ora decided in in July 2020 it would build a mixture of permanent and transitional homes on the site.
Since then there has been radio silence from the government. In fact answers to written questions reveal Kainga Ora still has not even purchased the land. It is sitting in the Crown Landbank under the control of Te Arawhiti, the Office of Maori-Crown Relations.
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Nicola Willis visits the Hutt
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Awesome to host Nicola Willis in the Hutt a couple of weeks ago alongside the Hutt Chamber to hear about her journey into politics and some thoughts on the New Zealand economy. Some great questions on housing, infrastructure, education and more too. Thanks to the Hutt Chamber and Gibson Sheat for hosting.
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There should be a full inquiry into the Parliament protests
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Speaking to media last week about our call for a full inquiry into the Parliamentary protests.
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Great to have Lower Hutt parkrun back up and running - did a PB on Saturday morning!
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Don’t normally field with a phone in my pocket but couldn’t resist. On the Basin playing for Parliament a couple of weeks ago with the Dixon Clock in the background.
On my mother’s side of the family I am descended from seven Dixon siblings who arrived on ships at Pētone beach between 1838 and 1856. Edward Dixon was one of them, and the clock is named after him. He was a great lover of cricket and a Wellington Councillor from 1877-1879. He farmed in Wellington for a time before becoming a cordial manufacturer.
For those wondering about the cricket. The NZ Parliament Cricket XI played the Seddon Cricket Club for the Seddon Cup, named after former Prime Minister Richard Seddon. We played our first game against them last year at Seddon Park and it was awesome to host them in Wellington.
Pleased to say we won the cup again this year! Seddon 124 for 8 from 20 overs (B Strang 3/12, Kieran McAnulty 2/19, C Bishop 1/21, Paul Goldsmith 1/23). Parliament 127/4 from 18.4 overs (B Strang 49, O Tonu’u 44*, M Woodhouse 19*).
We also played the Old Tablelands CC, although the less said about that game the better! The match featured former and current Blackcaps Richard Petrie, Hamish Bennett and Hamish Marshall which was such a thrill. Hamish Bennett had me stumped (bowling off-spin) and I snaffled a diving catch in the deep off Kieran’s bowling to snaffle Peaches! Quick video of my bowling here.
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The final stop on Christopher Luxon's visit to the Hutt the other day was MJH Engineering in Gracefield. I am very proud of this great Hutt company, one of New Zealand's leading structural steel fabricators. They've done award-winning work on some of the biggest building projects in NZ in recent years.
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Happy Vaisakhi greetings to all my friends celebrating it in Lower Hutt, Wellington and around New Zealand!
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Look who dropped in on the boss...
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Important to acknowledge the resignation by Dr Ashley Bloomfield from his role of Director-General of Health. He has worked extremely hard over the past couple of years in a very challenging role. He has given steadfast service to New Zealand and all Kiwis should thank him for that service.
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