Bright Wings

Mining: dangerous life so we can live in comfort

While we sat last evening, with tears in our eyes, watching the end of hope for miners' families caught up in the Pike River tragedy, for those with family members in the mining industry, it was particularly poignant.

My elderly neighbour's son is a miner, in Rununga. When news of the first explosion at Pike River broke, she was beside herself, unsure which mine her son was working in.  When her son phoned her mid-evening, her relief was great, but tempered with the knowledge that mining is an inherently dangerous occupation and that her son could easily have been among those working at Pike River.

Coal fuels much of the world's electricity production. It's a salutary reminder to those of us who sit behind computers all day, moaning about our lot, that people such as miners risk their lives, often working in difficult, dirty and hostile environments, so we can enjoy comparative comfort.

Masterton Families Commission study waste of money

A Families Commission study of access to social services for Masterton families has left out those who are most likely to need social services: those at the bottom of the economic food chain.

Although the researchers wanted to include the vulnerable families in their investigations, they could not contact them and most did not have telephones and avoided social services.

Masterton has a large group of economically deprived families. Typically, they don't have landlines, and, as a result, no internet access either.  Phone access is usually pre-paid cellphones.

To have any validity, this study needed to sample households across Masterton, using Statistics meshblocks, and conducting face-to-face interviews where telephone contact wasn't possible (the study used randomised phone sampling).

Any number of local government staff and social service professionals could have directed those conducting the survey to where they would find the economically deprived. 

This ill-conceived report seems to be a complete waste of taxpayers' money.

Read the full report here.

 

Community Centre concept requires fresh thinking

The Wairarapa Community Centre is trying to muster support from potential backers so they can remain in business in new premises.

Currently based - for a nominal rent -  in the old button factory owned by the Masterton Trust Lands Trust in Dixon Street, the Community Centre is home to an eclectic bunch, including:

• the Wairarapa Green Dollar Exchange
• Happy Circle
• Brain Injury Association
• Wairarapa Women's Centre
• Supergrans
• Wairarapa Asthma Society
• Heart Foundation
• SPELD
• Healthy Touch Massage Centre, and
• Wairarapa Geological Society.

While the Masterton District Council has given them some short-term funding, a shortfall of $60-70,000 is likely if they have to pay market rents when they have to move from current premises in December.

 

Review needed

If I was the Masterton District Council, or a decision-maker for other funding groups, I would be asking the following questions:

• How many of these groups require premises where clients can visit?
• Is there a compelling business reason for these groups to be housed collectively?
• Could these groups individually be dotted around other spare premises in the CBD?

While many of these groups individually make a valuable contribution to the community, I'm struggling to see why they need to be housed together.

A large group of organisations like this requires large premises.  Potential landlords - even community-based ones such as the Trust Lands Trust - need to make some sort of a return on their investment. Charging a peppercorn rent is, in the long term, not sustainable.

A better approach would be for individual organisations to put the word out to their colleagues and contacts in Masterton to find spare space in existing offices, unused church facilities, etc, just for themselves, rather than the whole Community Centre.

 

Public Meeting

If you'd like to have your say on the future of the Community Centre, there's a public meeting in the Frank Cody Lounge, at 4 pm, on 12 August, or add comments below.

Remutaka or Rimutaka?

The Waitangi Tribunal wants the Rimutaka Hill's name to revert to the historical Maori version - Remutaka, Stuff reports.

A new tribunal report for the Wairarapa and Tararua region says the Rimutaka Hill Road and region should be Remutaka and the change would be recommended to the Geographical Board.

The usual argument against changing locality or street names is that affected residents and businesses have to change their addresses, or have new stationery printed. 

Tinui Anzac memorial still not resolved

 Tinui folk agitating to have the site and cross marking New Zealand's first Anzac service on Mt Maunsell (Tinui Taipo) recognised as an historic place are going to be disappointed again this Anzac Day.

Tanya Katterns, writing in the Dompost, notes that the Historic Places Trust needs to do more research.

The village was promoted last year as the new Gallipoli, with pilgrims urged to stay home to remember the fallen Anzac soldiers. The air force then led the drive to bring thousands of people to Tinui for April 25.

Masterton wastewater upgrade cost highlights funding difficulty

Masterton Mayor Garry Daniell has been lobbying Government for a sewerage subsidy to reduce the $21 million cost of the much-debated Homebush wastewater upgrade.

He highlights a real problem for local government in provincial New Zealand: the small number of ratepayers means a higher individual cost per ratepayer for any infrastructure initiative.

Household incomes are much smaller in Masterton than in a major urban centre and the population of Masterton is aging significantly. Those on superannuation do not have much spare discretionary income to spend on additional rates but the sewerage system needs fixing. Urgently.

Infrastructure spending is always a fraught area for local government. Much of it is unappealing and irrelevant to individual ratepayers - except for getting the Council to fix the stormwater problem in their street.  Councils large and small struggle with a trade-off between industry best practice, a vociferous few, and ratepayer indifference to consultation initiatives - until it hits them in the pocket.

Central and Regional Government has set higher and higher standards for territorial authorities to meet. Some councils have had real difficulty funding the cost of upgrades to meet the required standards for drinking (potable) water.

I hope Garry Daniell is successful in his submissions to Government over the Homebush upgrade. Failing that, perhaps every household in Masterton could install a composting loo - !

Worthwhile reading

Chris Trotter on the narrowness of thinking of commercial boardrooms and national education standards.

Mac Doctor on Bible graffiti as art and myths about religion.

Those of us horrified at the cost of the anti-smacking referendum may wish to note that smacking is trending downwards according to a Stuff report.

The hotel industry is struggling with low occupancy rates. The Herald reports there are bargains to be had around the country.

Women's Refuge Appeal

Emma Hart tells a poignant and sickening story that characterises the journey of women in a violent relationship.  Any port in a storm is compelling reading.

Women's Refuge 2009 Annual Appeal is underway. You can support their appeal with an online donation here

NZ First resurrected in Wairarapa

You have to admire the determination of the Wairarapa Branch of New Zealand First. 

The Times-Age reports

Wairarapa supporters of New Zealand First have the wind in their sails and are gearing up for another crack at winning the seat now that founder and party guru Winston Peters has emerged from political obscurity.

The party machinery in Wairarapa has kicked into full gear with branch chairman George Groombridge, who is also party president, pledging a full-on drive to bolster membership and to try and wrest Wairarapa away from incumbent National MP John Hayes.

Chris Trotter provides thoughtful comment on Winston Peters' impeccable timing in emerging from the political wilderness just as the Foreshore and Seabed argument is being revisited.

Caregiving as a career

The Institute of Public Policy is recommending development of a low-skill migrant programme to address the increasing requirement for resthome caregivers.

Caregiving - both in resthomes and in-home care -  needs to be seen as the highly-skilled job it actually is.  At the moment it is regarded as a job of last resort if all other career options are exhausted.  Pay rates are very low.

Caregivers are typically older baby boomers or migrants and the work has little appeal to young people embarking on a career.

The Government needs to look at Australia, where caregiving is regarded as a career.

Two measures that would help include provision of appropriate tertiary courses, and sufficient government funding to ensure caregivers receive an adequate wage.

Bouzaid and Ballaben staff receive very little

Stuff reports that receivers for Lane Walker Rudkin (LWR) owe creditors $121 million and it is unlikely any money will be available for unsecured creditors.

Bouzaid and Ballaben (owned by LWR) workers in Pahiatua and Greytown received only 10 cents in the dollar redundancy and holiday pay.

Given that many of these workers had been with Bouzaid and Ballaben for many years and produced a high quality product, this is a very sad outcome for loyal service.  I hope these people have been able to find work in this difficult environment.

Dalefield School challenges John Key

Tanya Katterns reports Dalefield School, near Carterton, challenged Prime Minister John Key to spend a day teaching disabled Wiki Tamihana after he justified axing funding for her teacher aide.

Dalefield School principal Kevin Jephson threw down the gauntlet this week and accused the Government of "playing chess with children's lives and their right to education".

The issue came to a head after The Dominion Post highlighted the plight of Wiki Tamihana, 10, whose High Health Needs funding has been severed after a review of her case. The funding of $13,000 a year paid for a teacher aide, who has now lost her job.

Mr Jephson said the move could jeopardise the little girl's right to ongoing education.

John Key declined the invitation.

In a recent interview on National Radio Kevin Jephson talked about how difficult it is for schools to fight their way through the Education bureaucracy to organise funding for students with special needs.

John Key doesn't want to have a go at teacher aiding Wiki. Maybe he could do something about streamlining the funding approval system for special needs students.  From listening to Kevin Jephson it sounds as if applying for funding for these students is a fulltime job in itself.

Poor timing for Wairarapa District Health Board Restructure

Jamie Morton in the Times-Age reports another round of restructuring at the Wairarapa DHB.

Big changes are set to transform Wairarapa District Health Board and whether that will mean job cuts is yet to be revealed.

DHB chief executive Tracey Adamson said 29 reviews expected to be complete by August would indicate what could be improved at the DHB, which has forecast deficits of $2 million this year and $900,000 next year.

To announce a restructure at the same time as hospitals nation-wide are struggling to cope with the seasonal influx of admissions caused by winter ailments - including swine flu - seems spectacularly poor timing.

"There will be big changes but we don't know what they will be, and it's expected that people will be concerned. That's why we've involved them in the decision making."

Any restructure announcement creates anxiety and uncertainty among staff: fear of their job changing or even disappearing.  Mistakes occur when staff are distracted and unhappy.  And often "involving" people in the decision-making means receiving written submissions which are often ignored.

It seems a pity to have to turn a "top performing" DHB on its head when the problem appears to be impossibly low levels of government funding.

Foolish behaviour by Masterton Councillors

The Wairarapa Times-Age has a disturbing report about a formal complaint laid against Masterton District Councillor Brent Goodwin.

Aratoi director Marcus Boroughs has laid a formal complaint, accusing Mr Goodwin and other councillors Roddy McKenzie and Chris Peterson of intimidating the temporary female worker at a meeting at Café Strada.

Mr Boroughs said the girl had arranged to meet Mr McKenzie to talk about a temporary job on his Mauriceville farm and first assumed the other two men were farm workers.

Mr Goodwin has admitted he offered the worker free movie tickets in exchange for "accurate" visitor counts at Aratoi, and has also claimed full responsibility for the approach, stressing the other two councillors are innocent.

Irrespective of whether the formal complaint has any basis, it is never a good idea for councillors to meet junior staff members of an organisation which has a contract with the Council behind the back of that organisation's management.  Whatever the reason.

Councillors need to remind themselves of one of the key planks of their own Code of Conduct which states:

Honesty and Integrity - Members should not place themselves in situations where
their honesty and integrity may be questioned, should not behave improperly and
should on all occasions avoid the appearance of such behaviour.

According to the Code of Conduct, complaints are to be heard by the Conduct Review Committee. The results of their findings will be awaited with interest.

Texting truckies

With the Government advocating heavier trucks (see my earlier post), I hope there's no truth to rumours I keep hearing about truckies texting to pass the time on long trips.

44 to 50 tonnes of truck and trailer hurtling down the highway, with the driver's attention diverted elsewhere, doesn't really bear thinking about.

Bigger trucks not the answer

Transport Minister Steven Joyce appears to have picked up and run with an international campaign by the trucking industry to increase truck size from 44 to 50 tonnes.

The US Coalition for Transportation Productivity is currently lobbying Congress for a similar size increase.

Stuff reports that Steven Joyce as saying that

allowing truckies to carry heavier loads on some roads could boost GDP by up to $500 million a year.

He notes that trials were undertaken during 2008 and that carrying bigger loads

could boost productivity by 10 to 20 percent, reduce trip numbers by 16 percent and see fuel use drop by 20 percent.

Joyce's assertion of economic benefits fails to take account of a couple of key infrastructural issues - an expensive-to-maintain, winding, narrow roading system in New Zealand which is ill-suited to large trucks, together with an under-utilised rail network.

I'm the first to agree that rail isn't the answer to everything but - leaving aside urgent deliveries, livestock and some perishable items - a goods train, with one locomotive and one driver, can move an awful lot of stuff at once.

Wairarapa residents are only too aware of the problem of large trucks. The "inland port" at Waingawa is under-utilised, while logging trucks carry large and precarious loads over the Rimutaka Hill. They deposit logs right alongside the railway siding on the Wellington wharves.

If Waingawa was used as intended - as a transport hub - local truckies could pick up and deliver much currently wearing out the Rimutaka Hill.

I'd have liked to have seen results of the 2008 heavy truck trials - and comparison with the economics of using rail - but the NZ Transport Agency site only contained technical details of the proposed change.

Winter Solstice Today

21 June marks the Winter Solstice, the shortest day in the year.

For the technically minded, the sun rose this morning in Masterton at 7.42 am and sets at 4.59 pm.

The Royal Astronomical Society of NZ Sunrise and Sunset tables suggest that by 30 June the day will be about four minutes longer.  Can't wait.

Have your say on the Draft Maternity Plan

The Ministry of Health is wanting feedback on their revised Maternity Action Plan, designed to address some serious concerns with the way maternity services are currently being delivered.

This plan includes:

• Longer stays for new mothers in birthing units
• An optional meeting each trimester for at risk mothers, attended by the pregnant woman, their General Practitioner (GP) and their Lead Maternity Carer (LMCs)
• Obstetric training or refreshers for GPs wishing to return to maternity care
• Voluntary bonding scheme for graduate midwives
• Rural midwivery recruitment and retention service

The Maternity Action Plan site has a wealth of background papers and details about how to make a submission.

Local government needs to improve governance information

The controversy over the Masterton Urban Wastewater Treatment upgrade has highlighted the need for Wairarapa Councils to provide more online information about governance and supporting reasons for decision-making. I noted Jeff Workman's desire to improve Council communication in an earlier post. 

While some Wairarapa councils have council and committee minutes available on their websites, these are simply a record of decisions, and do not provide any background of the discussion that led to a decision, nor the reports submitted by council officers to support the discussion.

I would like to be able to read online the same council officers' reports that councillors read so I can be informed as to the reasons a particular course of action is proposed.

What I'd like to see happen is:

• Agendas for all council meetings and committees posted on councils' websites at least a week ahead of a meeting
• All council officers' reports tabled at those meetings to be uploaded to the website at the same time
• All council and committee minutes uploaded when they are prepared. (These would need to include a note that they have yet to be approved.)  Carterton and South Wairarapa already post their agendas and minutes, but I was unable to find any on the Masterton website. 
• All information about a council committee - membership, agendas, minutes and reports - grouped together on the website.

This would give interested ratepayers - and the media - an opportunity read background information and to highlight more effectively issues that may well be of interest to the wider public. It would also allow searching on a particular topic.

At the moment council agendas and supporting papers are available at public libraries and, daunted by the amount of paper, I suspect few people read them.

There will always be a few "in committee" issues - where councillors need to have a full and frank discussion about an issue of particular sensitivity, or where there is commercially sensitive information - such as contract details between a supplier and a council.  These are the exception - the majority of council governance activities should be open and transparent.

The principle underpinning the Local Government Information Act 1987 is that all local government information is "discoverable" (ie, open to the public) unless there are compelling reasons, which are outlined in the Act, for their remaining secret.

Insight into Richard Worth saga

David Farrar (Kiwiblog) has cut through the political who-said-what and media hype surrounding Richard Worth in a good backgrounder in NBR, The fall and fall of Richard Worth.  

When news of his resignation broke there was speculation on a number of fronts as to the reason:

The sad reality for Dr Worth is that there were so many things it could have been. It could have been about his Indian business dealings. It could have been about the high profile defamation case he is a witness in. It could have been about his visit to a crime victim, despite knowing the assailants’ family. It could have been about his Korean business dealings. Or it could have been something to do with a woman.

He ends:

Until the exact nature of the criminal allegations are known, it is premature to say he will definitely go as an MP. But I have to say it is hard to imagine he will ever attend a National Caucus meeting again.