Time for the Ministry of Works Mk 2?

I fully support Chris Trotter’s idea of a Ministry of Works Mk 2 (Nov 22).

A re-created Ministry of Works, run by the Government, would be of huge benefit to the country.

There would also be other benefits, such as profits from New Zealand work no longer lining the pockets of overseas investors.

Projects would likely cost much less as well.

There would also be numerous benefits for New Zealand as a whole, especially in training people across a multitude of disciplines.

My career in the electrical industry started in the New Zealand Electricity Department.

We were given thorough training in all aspects of the department’s operation, then assisted with our tertiary studies – be it an apprenticeship, polytech or university study – then we were given a job which we thought at that time was for life.

Of course, that was until Max Bradford and privatisation came along in the 1990s.

Similar opportunities existed for those working on the railways and in the Post Office, to name but two.

The employment opportunities for New Zealanders were enormous and the NZED took on about 35 people each year in Christchurch alone. Now, nothing.

As well, people of my age are retiring and leaving holes.

It should have been re-thought for Christchurch, but the enormous amount of work created by the Kaikoura earthquake is a good time to re-think how we do things in New Zealand. John Dodgshun Harewood