We must take steps to address the wealth gap

NEW figures out show that New Zealand has the largest margin of rich/ poor divide of any Western country.

A massive 40% of New Zealanders rent, while the remaining 60% own their own home. But, alarmingly, over 70% of these homeowners own two or more houses.

With the mortgage rate under 3% and house prices continuing to rise, lenders are bending over backwards to fund homeowners to purchase further properties based on a selfperpetuating asset.

Meanwhile, the firsttime buyer cannot raise an everincreasing asset (deposit) and therefore demand caused by homeowners buying more and more houses keeps moving the goalpost out of touch.

The divide is just getting wider and wider.

The cost of a rental house is rising to the point that a renter can’t pay the rent and save a deposit.

Statistics show that a couple on an average wage would need their two unborn children to also save all their working life to just save enough money to get a deposit.

Strong, possibly radical rules need to be introduced now. Only a maximum of two houses can be owned, including any houses listed under a trust or equivalent. And tax must be paid on any profit made on the second house.

Mark Hadida

Wanaka

Fireworks or feathers?

NOVEMBER 5 is upon us. Many will celebrate the day with fireworks.

I would like people to do a bit of reading research.

November 5 also marks the anniversary of the invasion of Parihaka in 1881. Armed policemen carried out the invasion in response to compulsory land acquisition by the Crown.

Te Whiti O Rongomai was one of the founders of Parihaka. A greatly revered spiritual leader and prophet, Te Whiti founded a passive resistance movement which was later adopted by Gandhi and

Martin Luther King.

In response to his resistance, he was imprisoned for two years.

Will you burn fireworks to celebrate an overseas terrorist, Guy Fawkes, who tried to blow up Parliament?

Or will you try to find a white feather, especially an albatross feather? This is a symbol of protection for the mana of Parihaka. I know what I will be doing.

Carol Sheldon

Invercargill

Chinese market

IT was hardly an ‘‘eyestopping’’ article. Nevertheless, its implications are huge.

Apparently, the Chinese Government has ordered its cotton mills to stop buying Australian cotton, a trade worth about

$NZ966 million in 201819 (ODT, 17.10.20).

This ban must have sent a chill down the spines of Fonterra marketeers, not to menton our multimillion dollar log trade.

All this and perhaps even more because of the importance of the Chinese market to our trade.

Surely, there must be a whisper circulating the Ministry of Trade and of Foreign Affairs and perhaps other national traders: “Don’t upset the Chinese Government.’’

Disregard the Hong Kong troubles and that of its Muslin residents, the looming South China Sea crisis, its Taiwan interests. Could this be why the Australians are bringing their Middle East naval commitment back home?

It is a fact that the loss of the Chinese market as a result of its government’s displeasure at the New Zealand Government’s comments could reduce our international cashflow to almost nil.

Jim Moffat

Caversham ..................................

BIBLE READING: Not that we are sufficient in ourselves . . . our sufficiency is from God. — 2 Corinthians 3:5.