Hipkins needs to move fast

Andrea Vance (Sunday Politics, January 29) gets it spot on. Hipkins must move swiftly and convince a ‘‘had enough’’ electorate that the focus is on what actually matters to people right now – paying their bills, and the cost of living crisis that ministers were ignoring and deflecting only a few months ago.

Labour has been trying to do too much too quickly and this needs to be addressed immediately if they want to have any chance come October 14. They have a good chance because Christopher Luxon is not a John Key ‘‘man of the people’’ type. He comes across as just wanting to add the PM job to his CV.

On a side note, Hipkins would be well advised not to be seen in media events with Wayne ‘‘too much rain’’ Brown. The Auckland mayor has thus far shown he is a poor communicator and tends to get very defensive very quickly. His look is ‘‘rabbit in the headlights’’ and something Hipkins would do well to distance himself from in future.

Antony Willans, Auckland

Vance is always on target. Her column was spot on as usual, although to be frank, even if Labour do get it all wrong, National will not get it right for all the reasons she pointed out. They are far from being on track. Chippy only has to change and fix things, National has to reinvent its own wheel, which Christopher does not seem to want/or know how to do.

I could not help picture Jacinda Ardern thinking she did not have to deal with this disaster.

Anne Dyhrberg, Rolleston

Vance sums it up nicely with her ‘‘fresh coat of paint’’ comment.

Leadership is a craft, public relations is an art. Turning a leader into a marketable commodity is essential to winning; sow’s ear (or boar’s ear) cannot be turned into a silken anything. However, ‘‘we the people’’ can be convinced by the truly skilful that things really are different now.

David Cunliffe wasn’t marketable, nor was Andrew Little. Equally so, Judith Collins. New leader doesn’t mean new policies. Until those ‘‘truly skilful’’ people get to work.

Right up until October they’ll be hard at work trying to convince us that under this new leader, things have changed. Every marketeer knows the value of the word ‘‘new’’.

Caveat emptor.

Michael Dally, Levin

There is a bronze statue to ‘‘Chippy’’ in Wellington. That’s Mrs Chippy, a cat that went south with Shackleton on the Endurance. It did not end well for Mrs Chippy. Chippy Hipkins may not get a bronze statue, but let’s hope he doesn’t sink without trace.

John Edgar, Christchurch

Auckland floods

Some years ago the Auckland Council cancelled a city wide drain clearing contract. While on occasions some drains were cleared, this was on an ad hoc basis. They subsequently became blocked with debris, overgrowth, illegal infill and illegal diversions. Housing grew substantially but there has been inadequate planning to increase drainage. The council also cancelled lawnmowing contracts for berms and this is now being done by line trimmers, with the cuttings going into the road culverts and then into the drains.

Over the years the council has planted deciduous trees and the leaves likewise go into the drains.

To make matters worse, it has no definitive programme to audit the city drains and seek out illegal accesses and take remedial action.

The New Lynn flood (2017) should have been a wake-up call as to inadequate drainage, but this appears not to be so.

The media is to be commended for its in-depth coverage of the flooding both in Auckland and elsewhere, clearly showing the appalling inadequacy in drainage and road management. Surely there will be a substantial rethink on where we build structures and roads.

Wayne McNeil, Auckland

Your editorial (‘‘Did Auckland really get the help it needed’’) is wrong to state that the mayor had to declare a state of emergency before the Government could step in.

Section 69 of the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002 clearly and explicitly provides for the minister to unilaterally declare a state of local emergency ‘‘if at any time it appears to the minister that an emergency has occurred or may occur’’. The Government, specifically the minister, Kieran McAnulty, could have taken that move at any time.

The mayor, in finally declaring the state of local emergency, said he had been in regular contact with McAnulty.

If the mayor is to be blamed somehow for the delay in declaration, then the minister must likewise be criticised, perhaps more, because he had the power to act earlier and chose not to do so.

Ian Billing, Wellington

Support for youth

Labour has been accused of doing little for at-risk young people. Not true.

Labour’s September 2022 Better Pathways Package, with six varied initiatives proven to work, has just been upscaled, providing even more wrap

around support for families to help at-risk young people. By contrast, boot camps are a populist stigmatising failure extolled by Luxon.

Ursula J Rose, Christchurch