Dangerous and loopy

Green Party MPRicardo Menendez March’s labelling of police dogs as being “attack dogs” is as out of touch as it is insulting to our entire police force.

Abill seeking to increase the maximum prison sentence from two years to five years for anyone who kills a police dog was voted down by the Greens, with Menendez March’s comments highlighting just how dangerous and loopy the Green Party logic is when it comes to law and order.

Contrary to Menendez March’s belief, these aren’t crimes where we can just ‘hug it out’. Someone who cuts down a protected tree without permission faces the same

Carl Mather

Kerikeri

Beats fluoride

I write to support Carl Mather, one of the two sane residents of Kerikeri, whose letter ‘No connection’ (April 8) mentioned that death certificates have been falsified to politically distort the Covid statistics. Consequently, we must treat Covid statistics with a pinch of salt, pretty much as we do any claims coming from the mouths of this Government’s spokesmen and their media collaborateurs.

As some confirmation of that, I should mention communications maximum sentence as a violent criminal who kills a police dog. It’s plain wrong.

Police dogs are used to track dangerous criminals, save victims from crime, and end violent and volatile situations. They are there to protect both members of the public and police officers, and often put themselves in harm’s way in doing so.

The attitude shown by Menendez March is typical of the Greens, who consistently prove they care more about the offender’s rights and considerations than they do any victims of crime, or even our law enforcement officers.

What the Green Party fails to received over recent months from myson, who works as a funeral director in an Irish town. Inter alia, he has written that they conducted approximately 100 funerals in 2019 and approximately 100 funerals in 2020.

He has also written: ”… work is busy. Not too many Covid deaths for us, but people are still dying and Covid is the cause, even if they had lung failure or heart problems. If you are in a Covid ward in hospital and are tested and come back clear prior to death, you are still classed as having Covid

…”

But he also wrote: “Pubs not serving food have still not opened understand is that this legislative change was seeking to hold offenders to account and establish a sense of justice for the offender’s actions. He can talk all he wants about trying to stop people offending in the first place, but the reality is, if someone kills a police dog they need to be held to account.

The logic being used by the Greens would mean wewould get rid of prison sentences entirely and give no weight to justice or accountability. The Greens should go back to worrying about the environment and leave law and order alone.

Darroch Ball Sensible Sentencing Trust since last March. Going to be some very thirsty Irish people when they do open. Should just put the vaccine in the drink; wewill all be vaccinated in a week.”

Leo Leitch Benneydale

Logic defied

For Mr Finch to respond in letters to the editor (Northland Age April 1) in a manner that shows the defensive attitudes towards protecting a council contractor defies logic.

The cost of prepping and sealing Church Rd must be astronomical seeing that has taken nine months to not complete a job that, as Andy puts it, has defects that need to be rectified before sealing.

In mybook, and having worked for roading contractors doing similar jobs, that amounts to failing to pass pre-seal inspection.

With careful wording, Mr Finch is also correct that FNDC does not have a bylaw stating that metal roads with a 10 per cent gradient have to be sealed, but FNDC fails to meet its own engineering standards 3.4.3 for road surfacing, which clearly state: All rural roads which are within 300 metres of an existing sealed road, and/or which will service ultimate development of five household equivalents or more, and/or are steeper than 1 in 10 (10 per cent).

What is Mr Finch trying to achieve by defending over-priced contractors with misleading statements?

The first 200 metres of Parapara Rd was sealed last week with a resulting finish that is better than any I have seen done by (another contractor), in a four-day time frame. At that rate Church Rd would have been finished in four weeks tops.

Serious failings that weas the ratepayers are paying for.

FNDC is also pushing for this Paige Green claybased surfacing, which was developed by a South African engineer to suit South African conditions.

They do not get the rainfall wedo. It is apparent that Mr Finch and his team of pet engineers do not have to live down the roads with this treatment, nor do they visit the roads during the peak dry season or in the wet, when we are smothered with a heavy clay dust or covered in red mudthat drips off our vehicles wherever we park, leaving great cowpat-sized deposits.

Rural roads will always provide challenges, but why do wehave to be punished by a incompetent council at our expense?

Time to say front up and listen to the people, instead of telling the people they need what they don’t want.

Peter Morris

RD3 Kaitaia Editor: Mr Finch said sealing on Church Rd was not complete, and no failures in the new surface had been found. (Road-seal rumour full of holes, April 1). He also said the job would not be completed until any defects picked up by the council’s routine quality assurance checks were addressed to the satisfaction of the engineer. The job would only receive final signoff when the council and Northland Transportation Alliance were satisfied that the work met strict standards set by Waka Kotahi NZTA.

Following completion, the road would be continually monitored for another year.

Any defects that emerged over that time, and were part of the original scope of work, would be repaired by the contractor at their expense.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Email editor@northlandage. co.nz to have your say. Responses may be published.