November 26, 2001

ARC Harbourmaster James McPetrie says the Council is happy with its buoyancy aid bylaw and has no plans to make lifejackets or wetsuits compulsory for surfers and boogie boarders.

Mr McPetrie says Navigation Safety Bylaws adopted by the ARC on December 18 last year include the requirements for all vessels to carry lifejackets and for occupants to wear them in adverse conditions, but these requirements do not extend to surfers and boogie boarders.

“We don’t believe a change at this stage is warranted,” Mr McPetrie says.

He says the ARC’s bylaws are based on a nationally agreed set of bylaws. There is flexibility within the national framework for individual regional councils to address special cases, which some regional councils have done with the regulations relating to surfies and boogie boarders.

“A large part of the ARC’s approach to maritime safety is about working in partnership with other water safety agencies to educate all harbour users and we will continue with this strategy,” Mr McPetrie says.

“Last year saw the lowest number of drownings in Auckland waters for five years and we hope for an even better result this summer.”

Ends

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>