Wine & Cheese
This Friday, September 26, I will be hosting a Wine & Cheese night to talk politics and everything else that comes up. This is promising to be an excellent Friday night and I invite anybody from the electorate to get in touch with me if you're interested in coming. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

• My home, Totara Valley Rd
  6pm onwards
  26 September
  Contact me if you're interested in coming.

Shane Jones
On the tenth of October Shane Jones will be coming to Thames. Shane rose to become the Chair of the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Commission before becoming a Labour MP at the 2005 general election. He has since entered New Zealand's Cabinet and became the Minister of Building & Construction and Associate Minister of Treaty Negotiations, Immigration and Trade.

We want to make sure that his time is completely exploited by you all, so feel free to not the following:

• Workingmens Club, Thames
  1pm - 3pm, 10 October
• Thames Club, Thames
  4pm - 6pm, 10 October

Anybody is welcome to pop in to the Workingmens and Thames Clubs without prior notice.

Come along, we'd love to have your input.

Environment Waikato is beginning a review of the catchment areas of Hauraki, the Waihou, Ohinemuri and Piako rivers with the aim of ensuring flood protection works are up to scratch.

I applaud the efforts EW, Hauraki District Council, Federated Farmers and individual farmers have made in ensuring that the water quality of our rivers and streams continues to improve. Every day I look out of my window and believe that I can see our beautiful Firth of Thames getting bluer and bluer. I can only put that down to less nutrients being washed down the rivers from dairying operations.

However, the very expensive flood protection work should not be seen in isolation to but rather part of the overall water management of our rivers. The spreading of Whangamata Estuary mangroves, the yet to start clean up of the toxic waste at the Tui Mine site near Te Aroha, possum and goat control using 1080 in the Coromandel and Kaimai ranges and the ongoing clean up of the Piako River are all issues that should be dealt with under the review. It is costly and short sighted to simply look at one issue in isolation to the very important related water issues that confront all of our communities. We ratepayers support Environment Waikato as our agent to manage our environment effectively and efficiently and need to know that they are taking a broad holistic approach to river management.

I applaud Environment Waikato’s efforts of our behalf, but I plead with the EW Board and managers collectively to not become so focused on one issue that they miss all possible benefits. Flood protection and water quality are part and parcel of the same issue and should not be managed separately.

So much in our great country is achieved by committed volunteers. These efforts are even more important in our rural communities. Their success on our behalf needs our support.

I trust that everyone will get behind the Emergency Services Ball on June 21. It is fun evening and we all need to take our hats off to the people of St John Ambulance, Victim Support, Fire Service, Search and Rescue and Coastguard. The volunteer spirit is under more and more stress in our busy lives, but the commitment shown by these very special members of our communities deserves our appreciation. I am sure if you cannot make it on the night, a donation to any or all of the organisations would be gladly accepted.

In a similar vein it was fantastic to see the never say die attitude of our communities again coming to the fore in Turua (“Learning centre confirmed,” Friday April 16).

Education is the core pillar of our society’s future and in rural areas so much relies on volunteers’ efforts. It is a joy to see that the combined efforts of the Turua kindergarten committee and Barnados to ensure future access to quality early childhood education has paid off. The government’s commitment to the young families of Turua (with a $135,000 grant) and to all New Zealanders (with 20 hours of free early childhood education to all families with young children) is part of supporting and protecting the core foundation of our country’s future.

Congratulations and my sincere appreciation to you all-your volunteer spirit keeps us all safe and well educated. Thank you one and all.

My heart was warmed by Jill Williamson’s “Good News Story”, Hauraki Herald, 17 June. Her very positive impressions of the Thames Hospital clinical staff was a breath of fresh air amidst all the uninformed emotional ballyhoo.

The fact is that more than a billion dollars has gone into improving public hospitals around the country over the past eight years. Slowly but surely Labour is replacing the buildings that had been left to function long past their use by date. Also, most doctors and nurses working in the public health system have experienced 40% salary increases over eight years.

I contrast Jill’s letter with the diatribe heard from Roger Douglas. If he (and ACT’s “juiciest election bribe ever”) could be believed the public health system would be saved by a healthy dose of privatisation. The fact is that under Labour more public funding goes to private primary care providers (GPs, pharmacists, physiotherapists and other health professionals) than ever before. In addition, more private surgery is being paid for by public funding than ever.

However, none of this is at the expense of the public health system. Both are producing good results in a balanced way for all New Zealanders.

Beware the zealots who will radically change our health system, or those who try to rubbish the efforts of the fine clinicians working within it. Worse still beware those who would try to win your vote with no policy at all. We know where we are with Labour - a very balanced New Zealand way of life that is reflected in a balanced health system caring for us all.

Labour has delivered on its commitments to a health system which delivers on need, not the size of a wallet.

Labour party believes fervently in providing a system which provides for the many, not just the few. So far we have achieved this by:

• Reducing the cost of seeing a doctor for patients in Primary Health Care organisations, and lowering prescription costs to $3;

• B4 school health checks for children starting school are being rolled out this year to catch problems which may hinder learning;

• Screening for breast cancer has been expanded and the campaign to fight obesity is advancing;

• We have rebuilt 33 new or upgraded hospitals, invested in 1200 more doctors and more than 4000 extra nurses and increased funding for elective surgery each year;

• Labour has rebuilt neglected hospitals, invested in doctors and nurses and increased funding for elective surgery.

Our health sector is focusing on 10 priority areas. They will give us a focus for action - enabling us to go harder and faster in our goal to improve the health outcomes for all New Zealanders.

Click here to see Labour's Health Targets.

It is crucial to the progress of New Zealand - and to the objective of ensuring dignity in every Kiwi's life - for people to have easier access to their doctor. Reducing the cost of seeing your doctor and lowering the cost of picking up prescription matters to kiwis and Labour has delivered.

I am committed to continuing this progress in and for Coromandel, in our communities, and for your family.