Ria Bond to contest city seat
Ria Bond has been confirmed as the NZ First candidate for Invercargill in the September general election.
She contested the seat three years ago, polling third with 2526 votes.
In 2015 she entered Parliament as a list MP, filling a vacancy created when party leader Winston Peters won the Northland by-election.
Peters said Bond had been a vocal advocate for Invercargill and Southland.
‘‘Ria has also focused on the Government’s failure with health funding overall, and particularly in mental health services,’’ he said.
Prior to Parliament she was an Invercargill hairdresser who had owned her own business for 20 years and held numerous industry governance roles during that time.
Bond said her immediate reaction to the candidacy confirmation was relief.
‘‘I’ve only had two years as a list MP and feel like I have so much more work to do,’’ she said.
‘‘This gives me the chance to keep working hard, . . keep representing my community and helping them through their day to day struggles.’’
She has been appointed the party’s spokesman on the community and voluntary sector, which she said had long been unheard.
‘‘I’ve been told the Government never listens to them. Nobody listens to them. Everyone’s forgotten about them. Well I’m not forgetting. My door’s open and their door’s open to me as well,’’ she said.