Issues to confront but don’t forget to look up

From the Beehive

Electricity outages, both scheduled and unscheduled, in Queenstown and

Clyde are of significant concern, especially as the winter season settles in.

The frequent power cuts impact residents’ health and wellbeing and business owners say they hurt business continuity. The interruptions to their operations are especially challenging with increased visitor numbers to the area for school holidays.

The security of electricity supply has to be addressed urgently. I am in touch with Aurora chief executive Richard Fleming about the issue, and we will be meeting shortly to discuss Aurora’s plans for the power network.

My advocacy for postal delivery to Hanley’s Farm or Jack’s Point continues. Just recently, a letter that I had mailed to a constituent to welcome them to the electorate was returned with ‘‘no delivery point’’ as a reason by New Zealand Post.

It is incomprehensible that in this day and age we do not have a functional postal service in areas of our electorate. I am in contact with the NZ Post board to hear about solutions for mail delivery there.

In the meantime, Queenstown has welcomed many to town with a bang, literally. The Welcome to Winter fireworks extravaganza was spectacular and the town is still buzzing, which is excellent news for local business revenue.

I enjoyed attending the Welcome to Winter chamber business lunch, too.

Time, a news magazine with more than 20 million subscribers, has just named Queenstown as one of the world’s greatest places. The resort town will feature in the next double issue, as the only New Zealand spot on this year’s list of 50 extraordinary travel destinations around the world.

This international accolade tops off an action-packed fortnight, with the Australian and New Zealand school holidays under way and the Welcome to Winter four-day event attracting thousands of visitors to the area.

People are also excited about and looking forward to next month’s Winter Games NZ, and international cricket returning to Queenstown in December.

I know many businesses still face some of the worst staffing shortages in memory. The Government has been slow to address the crisis, and the news that Immigration New Zealand is struggling with processing issues comes as no surprise – a lack of forward planning and ineffective immigration settings have become a hallmark of this current regime.

Another focus for me remains the health crisis. Southland Hospital is experiencing difficulties with managing increasing patient numbers and a demand for hospital services across the board.

The fact that the hospital has shut its doors to visitors reflects the seriousness of the problem and makes a case for another base hospital to take the pressures off current facilities much stronger.

I hope you and your family have taken some time to enjoy the school holidays and fresh snow on the mountains. Stay safe.