Another injustice

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sealing to $2 million per year (a $1m per year increase). I consider that it is important that more ratepayers should have their existing metal roads sealed.

Some FNDC elected members did not support this increase in spending on road sealing, however the motion has enough support to be approved. The new roading strategy will assess and rank all roading projects across the whole of the Far North District. It will also give direction about which existing metalled roads get sealed first.

I would like to thank the councillors that worked together to formulate these ideas and also get them across the line in the LTP deliberations.

What are your thoughts on our Far North roads? More than $40m on new roads or more funds towards new road sealing and/or heavy metalling (strengthening) of metal roads? The great news is that you will get your chance to formally have your say when the roading strategy is out for public consultation. I encourage you have your say, as you will pay. COUNCILLOR FELICITY FOY

Kaitaia

I would say the greatest injustice done by the New Zealand Labour Government was the Rogernomic reforms in the 1980s, with the sale of the New Zealand Railways and other state-owned assets, opening the door for the National Government to sell off our power generation in the 2000s.

Now we have the Labour-led Government committing another great injustice, that is the winter heating grant, of $450 for a single person and $700 to a couple.

I may be one of the few today who never had secondary or university education, but I do know that it does not take twice the power costs, etc, to heat a home, cook a meal, heat water, wash dishes, clothes, etc, because two people reside in a home.

Just as land rates, phone, insurance on a house, car insurance, rego, WOF, RUC, petrol, etc, remains the same for a single person, as opposed to a couple.

I say to our prime minister, get real. Either you are out of touch with reality, or your advisers are misleading you. That’s why homelessness and poverty is increasing, along with long delays for health treatment, increasing cost and more.

Yes, the New Zealand single superannuation needs updating, as it is nothing other than discrimination of those elderly living on their own, the very same ones who built and paid for the state-owned infrastructure to provide for their retirement years, which has now been sold to private investors to profit from.

Yes prime minister, we worked hard, gave many lives in the war years, and paid high taxes, the top rate of tax was one pound two shillings and six pence in the dollar in today’s money, a very far cry from the present top rate of 33 cents in the dollar.

But hey prime minister, we built what was once a great little country, free education, hospitals, teacher training, doctors, nurses, benefits for those in need and much needed infrastructure, even with two world wars, the depression years, the Korean War and other conflicts we were involved in.

Yes prime minister, you need to get off the gravy train and down to reality.

I wish you and your partner all the best with your newborn child, but sadly, thousands of newborn children will never have the great start in life that your child has, so they will always be disadvantaged, from day one of their lives, not meaning in most cases that they do not having loving parents, but because politics will hinder their lives.

JOHN BASSETT

Diggers’ Valley