Charge of the light brigade

With respect to the perceptive contributions on high wholesale power prices, high dividends and lack of investment in generation ( NZ Herald, April 10 &12), the scale of price increases from the electricity reforms of 1988-1992 might be worth mentioning. From having the second cheapest prices of electricity in the world (after Canada), we now have the 21st most expensive electricity out of 147 countries listed.

The reforms split the sectors into threegeneration, lines and distribution — and split entities to provide competition in generation and distribution. With a homogeneous product and gaming, the so-called resulting “markets” were always marginal and fragile. In addition to high wholesale prices and high dividends, salaries and costs skyrocketed.

Energy Ministers of the time (Prebble and Bradford) said that the reforms would make the industry more efficient and lower prices. In reality, the Government benefited from the tax take, dividends and public floats — both Labour and National Governments saw electricity as the cash cow. Taxpayers and others may have benefited from the reforms but at the cost of consumers and the competitive advantage which NZ industries formerly had. I score the reforms: Government, 10;

Consumers, nil.

John Collinge, St Mary’s Bay.

Nursing grievances

I wish to endorse David Wait’s efforts ( NZ Herald, April 14) regarding the fantastic work done by this country’s nurses. Why is it that these irreplaceable frontline workers continually struggle to get a fair and reasonable income?

I had the need to be admitted to North Shore Hospital recently and have enormous admiration for all the nursing staff there.

The government is currently shelling out billions of dollars for the unemployed, emergency housing, slow trains, pointless light rail “consultations”, dopey decisions on housing and yet will not fund the group who does the most for all of us in times of extreme need.

Please give the nurses of this country what they deserve and not what the topheavy DHBs think they can get away with.

Anthony Browne, Birkdale.

Limited sense

The rural Northland road from Ohaeawai to Kerikeri is about 18km of low traffic and population density. The fully sealed road was for many years 100km/h dropping to 80km/h near Kerikeri with one primary school zone. It has a low accident history.

A newly created “Safer Speed Area” has produced a haphazard collection of everchanging speed limits that would confuse a mathematician. We start at 100 going to 80, 40 80, 60, 80, 60, 80, 50 and finally 30km/h. This is either nanny state overprotection or zealous revenue collection.

This winding road creates its own natural speed range and this constantly changing limit would confuse any driver.

Bad law makes normally law-abiding people disrespect authority and this is starting to be seen with vandalism of some new speed signs.

Hoons don’t obey speed limits anyway so by all means target them, but not to the cost of the rest of Northland.

Rick McCay, Waimate North.

Overriding concern

Simon Wilson is peddling the idea ( NZ Herald, April 13) of devoting a lane on the Auckland harbour bridge to cycle traffic. Sometimes ideology has to give way to practicality.

It would be disastrous. Inching down Lake Rd, Takapuna on a recent Saturday in typically horrendous traffic congestion, I noted the two empty bicycle lanes either side of the road and decided to count the bikes.

I passed 380 oncoming cars one way and over 500 returning. How many cycles? Just one, and he was on the footpath! On average there would have been three to a car (mostly families). That’s one cyclist in 2700 and he wasn’t in the cycle lane.

In this debate, ideology has to dismount and, hopefully, common sense will get back on the pedals.

Jeff Tallon, Takapuna.

Rental squeeze

Twelve months ago, it took 10 working days to get your bond refund from Tenancy Services. Now, it’s 20 days i.e. four weeks.

They say you can transfer your bond to your next rental but, unless the system is changed, it’s not practical.

You have to pay your next bond weeks before your final inspection and all parties have to sign up — good luck with that.

The other thing agencies are doing is asking for two weeks’ rent in advance then asking for rent after the first week. I was told I had to be one week in credit at all times.

But I’ve paid four weeks bond also? According to tenancy services this practice, though common, is illegal.

Does Tenancy Services have the resources to police these so-called rules? More importantly, who has all that extra money?

David Patterson, Levin.

Reasonable force

The article on Operation Burnham ( NZ Herald, April 12) left an impression that NZDF soldiers killed civilians in Afghanistan in 2010. This has been refuted by a two-year, $7 million process of inquiry, first by the NZDF top command, and then by an eminent judge Sir Terence Arnold and a former prime minister and international law professor Sir Geoffrey Palmer. Both inquiries acknowledged that five civilians were killed, but by a US helicopter gunship. An NZDF soldier shot one Afghan who was a hostile combatant.

The several inquiries found no evidence of illegal behaviour or a deliberate cover-up by the NZDF, only of misperception, bias, and flawed reporting in the heat of the moment.

The militaries of the US, UK, France, Russia, China, Israel, Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Myanmar, Ethiopia and Eritrea, to name only a few, have killed thousands of civilians in the past decade, while New Zealand’s has killed none.

The authors’ attention could be directed to calling out those militaries’ egregious breaches of international law. In comparison, the NZDF’s respect for the laws of war, its record of disciplined conduct on the battlefield, and its nowreformed reporting procedures exemplify international best practice.

Stephen Hoadley, Castor Bay

Different times

As one of the older generation that keeps getting blamed for the sad state of our universe, I would like to remind the younger generation of a few facts.

I walked to school every day or rode my bike, there was no 4x4 for me or my classmates. We never saw cars outside the school gates so we didn’t need the double yellow lines, which most parents seem to ignore anyway. Parents walked the younger children to school.

We shopped at the local shops, no supermarkets. There were no plastic bags to spoil the environment, we had carrier bags made of stronger paper.

There were no disposable nappies to block the sewers or rot away in the hedgerow — sorry, plastic does not rot, not in our lifespan anyway

I see people throwing bottles out of the car windows. We got money back on bottles.

No KFC or McDonald’s boxes or buckets littered the countryside. We brought our rubbish back home, and still do, it’s no hardship.

We can’t keep taking from Mother Earth for your mobile phones, TVs, convenient luxuries. We can’t carry on being a throwaway world.

Michael Jones, Hamilton.

Party alliance

I read R. Howell’s letter ( NZ Herald, April 13) with some surprise. When I was last in Parliament from 2002-2005 and 2008, I was a list member for New Zealand First — the only NZ political party with a platform opposing the rampant immigration we have today, irrespective of race.

I have not been a member of a political party for over 10 years. At the moment New Zealand needs a net inflow of zero immigrants, in my opinion as an immigrant from South Asia.

Dail Jones Stanmore Bay.

Challenged to a dual

A recent letter from a bowling club ( NZ Herald, April 13) inquired about how to withdraw cash with Eftpos card for prizes when the club account is dual signatories.

Whilst dual signature Eftpos cards don’t exist, a simple solution is to open a single signatory “petty cash” account and assign an Eftpos card to it.

A single authorised signatory can now withdraw cash using this card provided funds are made available to this cash account via online transfer from the main account authorised by two signatories.

Tony Wong, Flat Bush.