Sam talks about his work on the Commerce Select Committee, the Budget estimates debate and the Insurance Bill, as well as developments in the electorate.
IN MAUNGAKIEKIE:
Last week I attended the Anzac Day service in Mt Wellington/Panmure. Anzac Day is a time to remember and honour the sacrifices that the Anzacs made when they landed at Gallipoli 95 years ago. Sadly we were reminded of such sacrifices with the sudden and sad deaths of three RNZAF personnel killed on route to Wellington to perform their Anzac Day duties. My thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the fallen servicemen and with the fourth serviceman to whom we wish a speedy recovery.
Around 60 people joined me at the Library Café for another of my regular business breakfasts. This time our guest speaker was Hon. Randy Berry, Consul General of the USA. Consul Berry gave us a fascinating insight into the role of an American diplomat in NZ and spoke at length about the NZ-US relationship going from strength to strength.
I had the pleasure of attending the fundraising gala for Tayana Tutu, a young local girl who was fundraising to have a lung transplant in Australia. Held at Te Papapa School it proved a great way for the community to come together to support a local girl in need. The day provided live entertainment, tasty food, quick fire raffles and some real bargain purchases. Over $5,000 was raised. Tayana and family are currently in Melbourne awaiting her transplant and many in our community wish them well.
Last month I also had the honour of addressing the National Council of Women. The Council is an umbrella organisation for women’s issues and I enjoyed meeting with and exchanging ideas with the group about women’s issues of the day. These include pay parity and the role of women in Government.
I also went to support the Onehunga High School 1St XV play in their promotion/ relegation match against Tangaroa College. The last time the team played in the A grade in 2003, I had the honour of being the team’s assistant coach. The team play an exciting brand of running rugby and were clearly the best team on the paddock (no bias intended!) However, Tangaroa scored a try deep into injury time to draw the game 17-17 and retain their status in the top division. My commiserations go to Steve Frier their coach, the team and their supporters. It was gut wrenching for all concerned, but I know their time will come.
IN PARLIAMENT:
Incentives to quit smoking
This week the Government increased the excise tax on cigarettes and tobacco. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in New Zealand. It is directly linked to almost 5000 deaths each year. University of Otago research shows that when cigarette prices rose steeply between 1995 and 2000, smoking fell.We are working to reduce smoking, discourage young people from starting to smoke, and improve the health of New Zealanders.
One of the six current health targets is to provide better help for smokers to quit. We fund the Quitline free telephone support service, subsidise nicotine replacement therapy, Aukati kai paipa face-to-face quit support services, and information campaigns to help people quit. Increasing the cost of cigarettes, subsidising treatment and support, and providing good information all contribute to reducing smoking.
Future Focus: Rebalancing obligation and support
For most people, a benefit should only provide temporary support until they can return to work. The Future Focus welfare package delivers on National's pre-election commitments, and rebalances the expectations and obligations of our welfare system.
The changes aim to support those in genuine need, while also being fair to taxpayers. Around 345,000 New Zealanders receive a benefit, and this year, will cost taxpayers more than $7.6 billion - that’s $20.8 million a day.
Research shows that children are always better off when parents are in work. Long-term welfare dependency imprisons families to a life of low income with limited choices and outcomes.
Maximising New Zealand’s mineral potential
New Zealand is a mineral-rich country. Our mineral resources are estimated to be worth $194 billion. It is National’s goal to unlock the potential of these resources for the benefit of all New Zealanders.
We have released a discussion paper on the environmentally responsible development of our extensive mineral estate. It covers a stock take of land in Schedule Four of the Crown Minerals Act.
The Government is proposing to remove 7058 hectares of land from Schedule Four. Any mining on conservation land would be subject to strict environmental tests. No decisions have yet been made and we want your input on the proposals.
SPECIAL MENTION:
Happy Mothers Day to all the mums out there for Sunday. Hope you have a great day being spoiled.
MP for Maungakiekie Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga's regular update on activities in Parliament and his electorate.
19 March 2010
IN MAUNGAKIEKIE:
Last week we held two successful public meetings on National Standards with the Minister of Education Hon Anne Tolley. We had the biggest turnout in the country with a strong mix of parents, principals, and teachers discussing plans on how to improve achievement in our schools.
We also had visits from Hon. Maurice Williamson who hosted a meeting for Body Corporates on leaky homes, Hon. Tim Groser who visited the CMA recycling plant in Onehunga and the Hon. Stephen Joyce who announced that the Mangere Bridge upgrade is seven months ahead of schedule.
This week the three local high schools in Maungakiekie each nominated a student to represent me in Youth Parliament 2010. To select a winner we asked them to give a 5min speech on why they think they should be a Youth MP. They all gave fantastic speeches, however there can only be one winner who will be announced next week.
I attended the 18th Pasifika Festival last Sunday with the PM and a number of my caucus colleagues. There was a great turnout of pacific people celebrating the diversity of pacific culture, dance, crafts and food. It was great to see so many Aucklanders participate in what has become an iconic festival bringing people from all over the world together.
IN PARLIAMENT:
Making our roads safer
National is giving priority to measures aimed at young drivers and drunk and drugged motorists outlined in our Safer Journeys strategy to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads over the next decade.
A disproportionate number of young New Zealanders die on our roads - young Kiwis have a 60 per cent higher fatality rate on the roads than young Australians. Alcohol is a factor in almost one in three fatal crashes.
Over the next two months Cabinet will consider action plans which include raising the driving age to 16, zero blood-alcohol limits for young drivers and repeat drink drivers, introducing alcohol interlock technology and making changes to our give way rules.
Getting tough on truancy
More than 30,000 students are truant from schools on any given day, an Education Ministry truancy survey shows.
National is determined to get tough on truancy, and we have doubled the funding to tackle the problem. An additional $4 million a year will help schools introduce stronger and more proactive measures to reduce truancy.
Among the initiatives that we are extending are electronic attendance registers, enabling schools to quickly identify casual truants before they become regular truants; text messaging parents whose children are missing from school without explanation; reducing the time it takes to get non-enrolled students back into school; and helping schools prosecute parents of persistent truants.
Government investing $6 billion a year on infrastructure
The National Infrastructure Plan shows the major investment this Government is making in New Zealand's critical infrastructure such as roads, broadband, and schools.
This is directly supporting thousands of jobs, and unclogging the country’s economic arteries. A stronger economy will, over time, mean better wages and higher living standards for New Zealand families. It also gives local councils, contractors, and businesses certainty for the future.
We are investing $10.7 billion in State Highways over the next 10 years, $3.3 billion in our electricity grid over the next five years, and $1.5 billion in urban broadband over the next decade. Then there is the $2.7 billion for new schools and buildings over the next five years.
SPECIAL MENTION:
On Friday the Minister of Police Hon. Judith Collins will be visiting local police stations in Maungakiekie.
On Saturday we have a stall at the Onehunga Lagoon Festival from 11am-4pm, would be great to see you there.
National Children’s Day, Sunday 7 March 2010, is an opportunity to celebrate how special and important our kids are, says Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, local MP for Maungakiekie.
Children’s Day 2010 is the 10th anniversary of this day, and the theme is ‘Praise and Encouragement’ which is one of the key messages of the event,he says.
We want to celebrate the special nature of childhood, and promote practical ways to enhance and improve the lives and opportunities of children and young people.
Children’s Day operates under a charter which promotes five key messages:
Giving time
Love and affection
Praise and encouragement
Listening and talking
New experiences
At the heart of Children’s Day is the opportunity to spend time with our kids, and to show them how much we love and appreciate them,Lotu-Iiga says.
We have a number of local events happening for Children’s Day, and I want to encourage people from all over Auckland to get out there and take part.
Our kids are our future, but they are also an important part of our lives now. Positive relationships between adults and kids make such a difference to their lives, and Children’s Day is an opportunity to build on that.
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga MP for Maungakiekie warns that many New Zealanders are still complacent about preparing for a natural disaster.
Last weekend, despite the tsunami warning in the wake of the Chile earthquake, some New Zealanders were still not taking the situation seriously or observing the warning, Lotu-Iiga says.
New Zealand is vulnerable to unpredictable natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunami, as well as weather related emergencies. People need to know what this means and that they won’t always get a warning.
When a disaster strikes there will be a time when households and communities might be isolated and without essential services.
Every household should have a plan for this eventuality. This should include knowing where to shelter in an earthquake, flood or storm; knowing where you will all meet up during and after a disaster; and knowing where you have emergency survival items stored.
The Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management’s website www.civildefence.govt.nz has lots of valuable and potentially life-saving information you can use to help put together your family or household emergency plan and checklist.
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, local MP for Maungakiekie, is pleased that the Government’s increase to beneficiaries, students and Superannuants will help more than one million New Zealanders.
We’re committed to making sure that people who rely on government support get a fair deal, particularly given the current economic climate.Lotu-Iiga says.
The increase keeps benefits and pension rates in line with the cost of living, which is measured using the Consumers Price Index. For the year ending 31 December 2009, the Consumer Price Index increased by 1.96 per cent.
New Zealand Super and Veterans’ payments will actually be increasing by more than 2 per cent, keeping them at 66 per cent of the net average weekly wage, Lotu-Iiga says.
Currently the Government is only required to keep these payments at 65 per cent of the net average wage. National promised to maintain them at 66 per cent, and we’re sticking to that promise.
A married couple both receiving New Zealand Superannuation will receive an increase of $11.04 a week, taking their payments to $489.42.
As well as benefits and Super payments, the increase will apply to foster care allowances, student allowances and loans, and the income thresholds for the Community Services Card,” Lotu-Iiga says.
The increases mean that New Zealand will be spending an additional $240 million a year on benefits and pensions.
The National-led Government is committed to a fair system for the people who need it.
Further information about the increases to benefit rates, NZ Super, Veterans’ Pensions and student allowances can be found at http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/million+kiwis+get+increased+payments
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, MP for Maungakiekie, welcomed the introduction of National Standards this week, as primary and intermediate schools return after the summer break.
This is a very exciting year for education. Our National Standards policy is a groundbreaking initiative, and a critical part of the Government’s plan to lift education standards across the country, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga says.
National Standards will help the one in five students currently leaving school without the basic skills they need.
From this year, primary and intermediate schools will report to parents twice a year in plain language on their child’s progress in reading, writing and maths.
I’m delighted that for the first time, parents in Maungakiekie will get the information they want and deserve about their children’s progress.
Children who are slipping behind will be identified, so teachers and parents can help them improve before it’s too late, he says.
The Government is spending $36 million over four years to support schools which have identified students who need more support. There will also be $26 million to provide training and support for teachers, principals and boards of trustees to help with the implementation of National Standards.
National Standards will be independently monitored and evaluated over the next three years to make sure we get it right, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga says.
The National-led Government will continue to work hard this year alongside schools, parents and communities to make sure our children get the quality education they deserve.
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, welcomes legislation that will ensure the worst repeat offenders receive the maximum allowable sentence.
The Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill will plug a gap in the law regarding the punishment of the most serious repeat offenders – those people who consistently pose a very real threat to the safety and security of New Zealanders, Maungakiekie MP, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga says.
This Bill will uphold National’s election promise of no parole for the worst repeat violent offenders, and incorporates significant aspects of ACT’s three-strikes policy.
This Government has been serious about better meeting the needs of victims. This legislation and its three-strikes provisions is an acknowledgement that the justice system exists to serve the victims, rather than offenders.
Under the three-strikes regime, an offender will receive a standard sentence and warning for the first serious offence. For the second offence they will get a jail term (in most cases) with no parole and a further warning. On conviction for their third serious offence, the offender will receive the maximum penalty in prison for that offence with no parole.
Some may see this Bill as harsh. But it’s only harsh on the very worst and most dangerous of repeat offenders, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga says.
By helping keep the worst repeat offenders behind bars for longer and deterring criminals from committing further crimes because of the escalating severity of sentences, this legislation will help make NZ a better, safer place.
Auckland City Council yesterday received their first payment of waste levy funding collected under the Waste Minimisation Act, Maungakiekie MP Peseta Sam Lotu-liga says.
Money from the waste levy is being distributed to Councils to support their work to reduce, reuse and recycle waste thereby reducing harm to the environment and ensuring resources are used more efficiently, Peseta Sam Lotu-liga said.
In Auckland $305,000 will be available to see this work done.
The Waste Minimisation Act discourages waste disposal by imposing a levy of $10 per tonne of waste on disposal facilities such as landfills. Half of the money collected is allocated to councils on a population basis to spend on minimising waste in their area and the remaining levy money, minus administration costs, is made available for waste projects and education through the Waste Minimisation Fund.
I encourage applications to the Waste Minimisation Fund from those in the community delivering waste minimisation education, people with new ideas to reduce waste and those wanting to expand the scope of existing waste reduction operations. Information about the fund is available on the Ministry for the Environment website, with applications closing on 1 March 2010.
The Waste levy funding will be made quarterly and councils will use the funding in accordance with their waste management and minimisation plans which are developed locally. These plans are supported by the New Zealand Waste Strategy which is the Government’s long term vision for waste reduction. This long-term strategy is being updated to be in line with the National Government’s waste policy.
This policy is about discouraging waste being dumped in landfills through the waste levy and supporting councils and communities in their waste minimisation and recycling programmes, Peseta Sam Lotu-liga said.