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Transmission Gully back in the slow lane
Wednesday, 14 January 2009
Transmission Gullyis again in doubt, with Transport Minister Steven Joyce unconvinced the billion-dollar highway is the way to go.
Mr Joyce, given the powerful transport portfolio after National's election victory, told The he remained on the fence regarding the long-simmering debate over the northern transport corridor.
He said he had no preference between the $1.
"Is Transmission Gully the right road rather than the coastal route? I've still got a mixed view on that," said Mr Joyce, who returned to Wellington this week for tomorrow's Government economic meeting. . I don't have a personal preference. "In terms of the actual Transmission Gully solution, I haven't formed a view. It's a big sum of money.
The region's mayors will meet this year to consider a regional fuel tax of up to 5 cents a litre to fund the shortfall."
The previous government pledged $405 million toward the project, leaving local governments till late this year to find the $600 million shortfall.
Labour's former transport minister Annette King gave the green light last June for planners to prepare resource consents for the Gully project, effectively ending debate on which route would be developed. Tolls are also an option but the funding gap remains a massive hurdle.
"`It's not to say we're not going to do it.
Mr Joyce said central government funding remained in place and resource consent work would continue, but whether Transmission Gully would be built was up in the air. I think the whole Wellington north roading corridor definitely needs substantial work and by that I mean right up to Levin. I think the whole Wellington north roading corridor definitely needs substantial work and by that I mean right up to Levin. Finance Minister Bill English signalled $5."
There have been signs the Gully has slipped down the Government's priority list.
However, sources said late last year that that money was likely to be spread around the regions and the Gully was likely to be "well down".8 billion in extra capital spending over five years in this year's Budget.
She met Mr Joyce before Christmas and said his stance was "wise" but did not see it as a step back from the previous government.
Greater Wellington regional council chairwoman Fran Wilde remains convinced the Gully road should be built. It's big money. "I think he's being cautious.
"We now have a lot of certainty about Transmission Gully, we don't have certainty about the coastal route, and the coastal route environmentally is disastrous. My feeling is he understands the need to do something, he just needs to get his head around what the options and what the ramifications are. "This is a national road, we should be expecting there will be a greater national contribution. "This is a national road, we should be expecting there will be a greater national contribution. This isn't something that's built out of national rates. I still believe the Gully is the way to go. It's still the best option long term."
Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast said she would "watch with interest" as the Government formed its roading priorities.
"Without support from government, Transmission Gully is unaffordable.
"In respect to our own programme of infrastructure projects in Wellington, there are big gaps in terms of what we can fund and what we've been offered."
But Ms Prendergast said the coastal route should not be ignored. "We can't continue to allow the coastal route to not have its safety issues addressed."
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Tributes flow for Manning
Saturday, 27 December 2008
The partner of murdered Christchurch prostitute Mellory Manning says he is "just hanging in there" a week after her death.
The man, who did not want to be named, said the murder of his partner of nine years had left him distraught, particularly as she was getting her life on track.
He said Manning was working in Manchester Street for the first time "in ages" on the night she was killed.
He had received support from Christian organisations and had been contacted by the Prostitutes Collective.
Other tributes have flowed in for the 27-year-old.
She was a kind and sweet person, he said.co.
One old friend wrote on press. She was dear to us .nz: "This is a shock to all who knew her, loved her, cared for her.. .
"As a child she liked the water and spent many a summer swimming in Southbridge at the local pool and river She was a beautiful-looking girl with soft curls that enveloped her sweet face. and was a sweet girl. She adored flowers and plants but most of all she adored her younger brother Robin and her sister Jasmine.
"She spoke softly mostly and had an attraction to all things spiritual.
"She got bored with life in Southbridge and moved on to the big smoke Christchurch. They were extremely close and a pleasure to all who met them."
Manning's partner said some media reports about her history, particularly that she had used a syringe in a robbery, were wrong.
"Christchurch hasn't been kind to her, it's as simple as that.
"The important thing is that they get caught," he said.
Manning was on the methadone programme and was overcoming her drug problem.
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A reduced police team worked over the holiday period, searching for Manning's killer
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Pumpkin’s father in scrap over legal fees
– Sunday, 14 December 2008
The fatherof the little girl dubbed Pumpkin who allegedly killed his wife then abandoned his three-year-old daughter at a Melbourne train station hopes to be bailed this week so he can get a job to pay for his defence.
Nai Yin Xue sparked a worldwide manhunt in September last year after he allegedly murdered his 27-year-old wife An An Liu, left her body in the boot of his car outside his Mt Roskill, Auckland, house, then flew to Melbourne where he dumped Qian Xun Xue before fleeing to Los Angeles.
The 54-year-old martial arts instructor who was captured in Atlanta in February has instructed his lawyer Chris Comeskey to make a bail application which is expected to be heard in the Auckland District Court on Tuesday.
Xue has been offered a job on an Onehunga building site.
Comeskey said he would argue that his client needed to be bailed so he could find work to pay for his defence as a "significant" legal aid payment Comesky's owed for defending Xue has been stalled.
"We will not be committing any more time to this as a result of the unsatisfactory set of circumstances," Comeskey said.
Comeskey said if he hadn't been paid when the bail hearing was finished he would stop working on the case, leaving Xue without legal representation, which Comesky said was a "breach" of the Bill of Rights.
"What sort of tin-pot country are we running here when we are happy to pay for a man to be flown back to New Zealand but we won't give him a lawyer?"
Comeskey said it was usual practice for legal aid applications to be determined within 14 days, but Xue's had been "dragging on" for nine months.
"Murder is the most serious charge one can face and we are saying that Mr Xue is not entitled to have a free lawyer.
"Someone at Legal Services [Agency] has obviously been asleep on the job, I am alarmed at this disgraceful behaviour.
But LSA spokeswoman Bronwyn Bannister said delays with Xue's legal aid application being approved had been caused by Comeskey not providing all of the required information."
Comeskey claimed if Xue was found guilty there would be grounds for appeal because there had been no money to hire private investigators to uncover information needed to ensure his client had a fair trial. Xue has signed an affidavit denying that.
It is understood the agency hasn't paid Comesky's fees because they believe Xue has money in an overseas bank account. .
The reports that Pumpkin is thriving in China, where she lives with her maternal grandmother, and starts school next year
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Big bucks for small chip off the old block
Friday, 12 December 2008
/The
YELLOW GOLD: Hailey White and son Blitz, 4, outside Chaffers New World in Wellington yesterday. .29 she parted with to purchase it was "quite ridiculous" and meant she only bought cheese in small blocks.
The mother of two, from the Wellington suburb of Brooklyn, said the $5. "But the price definitely needs to go down.
"I think it's more expensive to buy it in the smaller block, but we don't use much," she said. His joke about the "Colby cheese Budget review" resonated with families who struggled with rising day-to-day costs and the humble block of "yellow gold" became the standard to which price rises were compared."
A simple block of cheese hit the spotlight after John Key labelled Labour's proposed tax cuts of an average $16 as "worth a family-size block of cheese" early this year.2 per cent this year compared with October 2007, despite international dairy prices falling to half what they were a year ago.
Figures published by Statistics New Zealand yesterday showed the price of cheddar was up 35. "I don't really look at the price of fruit and vege, though, because it's a necessity in myself and the kids' diets.
Ms White said her weekly shopping bill had gone up by as much as $50 since this time last year, and she did not get any more for her money."
But she was philosophical about future price rises: "If it goes up, I guess we'll just have to work harder."
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Teacher dies at karate grading
Tuesday, 09 December 2008
A Rangiora school teacher and long-time martial arts instructor collapsed and died during a karate grading at the weekend.
Rangiora Karate Club sensei Rob Stewart, 53, was in the Waikuku Community Hall on Sunday morning when he started having trouble breathing, senior black belt Graham Russell said.
CPR was performed on Stewart "within seconds" by several people, and resuscitation attempts continued until emergency services arrived, he said.
The grading involved more than 30 people, mostly children, from five Canterbury clubs.
Stewart was a fourth-dan black belt in the Okinawan Goju-Ryu karate style, who trained for more than 25 years in Hamilton, Rotorua, Oxford and Rangiora.
Police confirmed a man died at the scene and the matter had been referred to the coroner.
"He's dedicated his life over the last 30 years or so to karate," Russell said. .
Rangiora Borough School principal Alan Sutton said Stewart was a highly regarded teacher and colleague. Stewart's wife, Diana, and their four children were still coming to grips with the death, he said.
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Drunken mayhem in Christchurch ‘shocking’
JO MCKENZIE-MCLEAN – Monday, 01 December 2008
Christchurch's inner city at the weekend was "absolute mayhem" with drunk people, particularly women, "at each other's throats", police say. . I don't know how many arrests there were.
"It was absolute mayhem. There were just so many confrontations, scuffles and violence going on; people getting bashed and robbed. We just didn't have time to make arrests; we were just pushing people apart. It was just incredible. It was just shocking, you know, with that 24-hour drinking. You couldn't afford to be off the street for an hour because it was just mayhem out there.
"You could not arrest someone, which takes (a police officer) off the street for an hour to process them.
"I could not get over the number of drunk women who were at each other's throats."
Some women had shown their nasty, drunken side, Johnston said.
"There is nothing wrong with alcohol, but I don't know why people stay out till after 3am and continue to drink and get written off and turn into nasty violent drunks. A lot of guys were trying to keep them parted and that would escalate and, from there, you would get a massive brawl," Johnston said.
Between 10pm and 3am there were 31 arrests."
The chaos started unusually early – about 11pm.
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A large number of people were summonsed to appear in court for breaching the liquor ban
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Police still hunting taxi driver’s attacker
Sunday, 30 November 2008
Police are still hunting for a knife wielding man who stabbed a taxi driver in Auckland on Friday night.
Alexander Ershov, 23, who received multiple wounds, remained in Auckland Hospital today in a serious but stable condition.30pm on Friday driving him to Bertrand Road, Mt Wellington.
Mr Ershov picked up his passenger from Auckland's Viaduct area about 11.
The victim drove himself to a nearby service station where members of the public assisted him until the arrival of ambulance staff.
He was then stabbed a number of times before his attacker fled.
"The injuries are extremely serious and the victim is lucky to be alive.
Mr Ershov, a Russian, later underwent emergency surgery at Auckland Hospital.
Police spent much of yesterday searching the area in case the offender had thrown the knife away. He is not out of the woods yet," Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Cramer said yesterday.
The offender is described as a brown-skinned male, about 180cm tall, of solid to athletic build and wearing a grey or sandy coloured 'hoodie'. .
Anyone with information that might be of interest to the Police should contact the investigation team at the Glen Innes Police Station on 0508 OPGLADE.
Police would like to hear from anyone who may have seen him nearby the Sebel Hotel getting into a dark green Lexus, or in the vicinity of Bertrand Rd, Mt Wellington last night.
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Police still hunting taxi driver’s attacker
Sunday, 30 November 2008
Police are still hunting for a knife wielding man who stabbed a taxi driver in Auckland on Friday night.
Alexander Ershov, 23, who received multiple wounds, remained in Auckland Hospital today in a serious but stable condition.30pm on Friday driving him to Bertrand Road, Mt Wellington.
Mr Ershov picked up his passenger from Auckland's Viaduct area about 11.
The victim drove himself to a nearby service station where members of the public assisted him until the arrival of ambulance staff.
He was then stabbed a number of times before his attacker fled.
"The injuries are extremely serious and the victim is lucky to be alive.
Mr Ershov, a Russian, later underwent emergency surgery at Auckland Hospital.
Police spent much of yesterday searching the area in case the offender had thrown the knife away. He is not out of the woods yet," Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Cramer said yesterday.
The offender is described as a brown-skinned male, about 180cm tall, of solid to athletic build and wearing a grey or sandy coloured 'hoodie'. .
Anyone with information that might be of interest to the Police should contact the investigation team at the Glen Innes Police Station on 0508 OPGLADE.
Police would like to hear from anyone who may have seen him nearby the Sebel Hotel getting into a dark green Lexus, or in the vicinity of Bertrand Rd, Mt Wellington last night.
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Maori men ‘need to take responsibility’ for violence
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
An unacceptable level of domestic violence among Maori communities has to end, a senior Maori leader says.
Anglican Minister Hone Kaa told the national White Ribbon Day men's breakfast in Wellington yesterday that Maori aged 15 to 24 were seven times more likely to need hospital treatment as a result of assault than non-Maori.
"Men need to take responsibility for the violence perpetrated against women and children," said Dr Kaa, who chairs a charitable trust that advocates for Maori children.
White Ribbon Day marks a zero-tolerance stand on domestic violence. His Te Kahui Mana Ririki trust intended to run "anti-smacking" workshops with iwi and hapu throughout the country to teach parents other ways of disciplining their children.
Events were held throughout New Zealand, with more than 500,000 white ribbons handed out for wearers to show they did not condone domestic violence. The day was started by a men's movement in Canada in 1991 and has been officially adopted by the United Nations as its International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. . It's also about the man who after an argument with his wife, takes the rifle out and cleans it on the kitchen table.
"It's not only about the kicks and the slaps.
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Police commissioner Howard Broad said police had pledged to cooperate more closely with Australian police in developing strategies and programmes aimed at reducing family violence
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Visitor drought means holiday bargains for Kiwis
Sunday, 23 November 2008
Kiwi holidaymakers are likely to reap bargains this summer as the tourist industry turns to the domestic market to drum up business and cheaper baches are made available to rent.
Tourism Industry Association chief executive Tim Cossa said the global recession meant fewer international visitors to New Zealand and Kiwis were more likely to stay closer to home.
Cossa recommends people approach operators directly for discounts and special offers.
Cossa said summer beach destination bookings were holding up but word from the association's 2000 members, including accommodation, attraction and transport operators, suggested most people were delaying their decision on where to go.
Peter Blackwell, AA Tourism general manager, told the Sunday Star-Times he expected some "eye-opening behaviour" from operators this summer. "I'm convinced there will be some good deals this summer," he said."
Many would have to change their attitude towards Kiwi tourists who would become the key to their future. "I believe a lot have built their businesses based on foreign visitors. The top end of the market, such as beachside apartment owners, would be more likely to feel the pinch.
He said New Zealanders were holding out for deals but he urged those planning a camping or holiday park getaway to book now or risk missing out. But visitor numbers were expected to be on a par with other years. ."
Rental rates were down by about 10%.
"The Thames Coromandel District Council rates have gone up so much, more bach owners are renting their properties during the peak season.
"More people are wanting to sleep eight to 10. There was also a glut of baches that slept five or fewer.
Turner said he had 30 properties available for the summer holidays."
This was possibly because families, examining to spread the cost of a holiday, were joining forces. Days in the Bay spokeswoman Marilyn Jones said she had noticed more cases of house owners giving up their properties to rent out.
The trend in the Bay of Islands is the same."
Demand between Christmas and January 10 was still very high, but there were vacancies on either side of those dates, she said. "We do have more properties on the books than we did last year."
It was similar in the South Island's Golden Bay. Demand for bigger houses was also high: "We have two or three families wanting to holiday together. Bookings for the summer were on a par with other years but there had been fewer forward bookings, she said. Bookings for the summer were on a par with other years but there had been fewer forward bookings, she said.
"I think we will really suffer during February and March."
Most of this summer's holidaymakers were from the South Island, she said.