|
I add my voice to those condemning the desecration of graves, not just the recent attack on Jewish graves in Wellington, but any burial places.
These attacks are something we as a society cannot stand back and allow to happen.
Racial bigotry and hatred cannot be condoned in any form and this must rank as one of the worst our country has seen.
To deliberately set fire to a place where people mourn those they have lost and to destroy memorials to people's mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and children is the worst form of cowardice.
If you have something to say, stand up and say it. Don't creep around in the night under the cover of darkness to commit acts of vandalism.
The following motion was adopted in Parliament last week and I fully endorse its intent:
"That this House deplores recent attacks on Jewish graves and a Jewish chapel in Wellington; recalls the terrible history of anti-Semitism stretching over many centuries, culminating in the holocaust under Nazi rule; and expresses its unequivocal condemnation of anti-Semitism, violence directed against Jews and Jewish religious and cultural institutions and all forms of racial and ethnic hatred, persecution, and discrimination."
I'm pleased the Government is investing $9.5 million to help schools create a safe cyberspace for their students by screening out hackers and filtering websites and email, including spam.
Contracts have been signed with four providers, giving state and state-integrated schools a choice of free products and services that make internet use safe and secure.
The contracts are good news for schools as they can now be confident in providing a safer online computer environment for their students at no cost.
We want students to learn to work well using the benefits of the internet age by accessing information and resources online. But we want to be sure they are well-protected when they do so.
By having a safer internet connection teachers will be able to concentrate on the important role of educating our students rather than having to waste time monitoring and controlling the online environment.
Government funding means services are free to schools for three years with extra services available at a cost, depending what they choose.
The first independent assessment examining how effectively national coastal policies are influencing decisions about coastal developments, such as subdivisions, is up for discussion.
Much has been said by communities around the country, including the Wairarapa electorate, about the amount of development on New Zealand's coastline, the impact this is having on the character of the coast and on the traditional kiwi lifestyle.
The assessment explores how effectively the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement, the country's only national planning document governing the coast, is influencing decisions by councils about what types of activities will be allowed, controlled or prohibited in a particular coastal environment.
We must ensure we have the balance right between the need for development, the preservation of our unique coastline, and the opportunity of New Zealanders to enjoy it.
Copies of the assessment findings are available from www.doc.govt.nz
Farmers, community groups and others are invited to apply for funds to promote and care for plant and animal life on private land.
The Biodiversity Condition and Advice Funds were established as part of the government's $187 million five-year biodiversity package in 2000 and the contestable funding programmes are designed to help private landowners maintain native species values on their land.
There will be two bidding rounds this financial year totalling $4.1 million. The first opened on 9 August and closes on 27 September, with decisions announced before Christmas. The second round will be notified in the first quarter of 2005, with decisions announced by 30 June.
The latest fall in unemployment across Wellington region, which includes Wairarapa, is more icing on this region's growing economic cake.
Unemployment stands at 4.7 percent in Wellington in the June quarter, with 12,000 registered unemployed. This compares to a rate of 4.8 percent, around 12,500 people, at the same time last year.
This is a useful drop on last year and the lowest unemployment rate in Wellington region since the late 1980s.
Nationally for the first time two million New Zealanders are in paid work and we now have the second lowest unemployment rate in the OECD (behind Korea on 3.5 percent) at 4 percent.
Since the Government came to office 211,000 new jobs have been created - or 136 more people in work each day since the beginning of 2000.
I'm particularly delighted that under the Labour-led government Māori unemployment has more than halved; nationwide, the rate is down to 8.8 percent from 10.4 percent in June last year, and from 18.2 percent in June 1999.
The Government's policies of providing leadership and partnership with regions to encourage growth and innovation in the economy are a key factor.
Clearly, initiatives like the Jobs Jolt package giving work skills to jobseekers, and the Pacific Wave Strategy targeting Pacific peoples, are paying off. As New Zealand's economic cake grows, more and more Kiwis are getting a share.
That has to be good for Wairarapa.
Finally I am really excited about the plans for the new Masterton hospital.
Interested groups were given a run down on the plans last week and feedback so far has been extremely positive.
We will have a modern, user-friendly facility that we can be proud of and I would like to personally thank all those who have had input into the process.
This community stood up and said we are not prepared to lose our hospital and now that is paying dividends.
|
|
|
