Peters pledges to boost Whanganui tourism fund

NZ First leader Winston Peters has pledged to return the GST component paid by international tourists in the Whanganui area to the region. In the year to July 2016, the tourism spend there was about $115 million, according to data from MBIE. ‘‘This money could be used for tourism infrastructure as well as roads and to stimulate job training and opportunities,’’ he said. Not enough funding had been given to councils for toilets, sewerage schemes and road upgrades to cope with tourist numbers.