Terminal project’s costs
The “scrapped ferry plan” that Alan Smith lauds (Letters, February 20) required the government (and the regional council) to pour money into expansion of the terminals at Wellington and Picton for larger new ferries, with only about a fifth of the money actually going into new ferries.
KiwiRail had abandoned plans for joint development of the present Kaiwharawhara terminal and proposed to take over CentrePort land used at Wellington for containers.
Michael Cullen purchased Toll Rail in 2008, as this would allow government oversight of the cash “investments” that Toll Rail or KiwiRail would regularly be requesting. But Grant Robertson (otherwise an excellent minister of finance) allowed KiwiRail to continue with these plans despite turning down requests for more money.
John Wilson, Johnsonville
Plumbing depths
Am I missing something in the call by our councils to install private property water meters. Do they know, (if so how?), or just assume, that we are wasteful of the water which we already pay for in our rates.
It seems that the leaks and water wastage we see and hear about are on public/council land. How can private property water meters help with this? If a property owner finds a leak in their place they call a plumber and get it fixed at their cost.
If councils can find the funds to install water meters, then please let them use those funds to fix the pipes and leaks. Maybe employ plumbers to check all the water tobies for any problems. Then we can discuss and accept the need for and benefits of water meters.
Action not excuses is needed for the longsuffering and increasingly unhappy ratepayers. Jenny Studd, Khandallah
Tax avoidance
Just a thought as the Government reverts to its “harsh on beneficiaries” DNA, are they also toughening up on tax avoidance estimated to cost the fragile economy $7b annually? Richard Davies, Paraparaumu
Nurse praise
I have been in hospital; that highly, highly technical place with all its tubes and wires and bleeping sounds, all in special sequence; and lights that blink similarly but separately; and screens with numbers that people watch intently! This is hospital, more and more.
It is not a machine.
The indispensable connection here is the nurse. You can relate to a nurse. Nurses are the highest form of life in all creation. And God smiles and says "That's true!".
Selwyn Boorman, Waikanae
Waiting game
I am reminded of Albert Einstein’s relativity of time as I wait for the No 2 bus to Karori. The digital signboard’s advice of “due in 3 minutes” surpasses 9 minutes by my watch before I stop caring. “If it was so, it might be, and if it were so, it would be, but as it isn’t, it ain’t,” as Tweedledee said.
Maurice Horner, Karori
Paying off
John Turner of Christchurch (Letters, February 19) says people should carry on working. Or get the pension. Maybe he has had a good job with lots of pay rises.
In all the years I have worked as a carer I have had more pay cuts than rises; worked more hours than I have been paid; and only been paid for the hours I worked, or the company could pay, often just above the minimum wage. Often seven day weeks to cover all the people who needed cover, as many others could not or