Peters highlights lack of police access
The rain poured down and the crowds turned out to hear Winston Peters address the Upper Hutt Grey Power Association.
The Hapai Club Rooms played host to the NZ First leader last week and the room was filled with supporters.
Peters started by acknowledging the recent passing of Max Becker, the previous president of the Upper Hutt branch, who died on March 6, aged 84.
Peters spoke on the need for people to ‘‘have answers, not rhetoric’’ when dealing with issues such as budgets, immigration and superannuation.
Immigration was a key point of his address and the issues he saw surrounding it.
‘‘Ninety-one thousand young New Zealanders not in training, not in education, not employed. Some of you have grandchildren in university. Why should they compete with someone from Shanghai?’’
He tackled cuts and frozen budgets, pointing to the lack of 24-hour police access for Upper Hutt residents.
The 72-year-old drew attention to the recent announcement from Police Minister Paula Bennett that more police had been allocated to every district - but Upper Hutt was left out again.
When asked if they felt safe with police patrols coming from Lower Hutt instead, the audience chorused ‘‘no’’. Many felt it was too far for police to come in an emergency.
Peters promised NZ First would train 1800 new officers and put them in under-resourced areas such as Upper Hutt.
He was asked about the state of rivers in New Zealand and how to deal with immigrants and refugees who committed crimes.
Upper Hutt resident and campaigner Marie Brophy asked Peters if he planned to increase the percentage of superannuation from 66 per cent of the average weekly wage to 75 per cent.
He told her he was fighting to keep what pensioners already had.
He touched on the behaviour of Labour and National over the changing retirement age by quoting poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: ‘‘If I change with all the winds that blow, it’s only because they made me so.’’
There was time for a few quick handshakes and Peters was off, leaving the group with a few things to think about.