David Parker
Labour List MP
Environment Spokesperson

MEDIA STATEMENT

18 November 2016

District Council prosecution should not halt wider inquiry

The Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s decision to prosecute Hastings District Council in the contaminated water case should not delay the wider inquiry” says Labour Environment spokesperson David Parker.

“This is the most serious contamination of a public water supply in living memory. Thousands of people fell ill. It’s important that we get to the bottom of all aspects of what went wrong.

“The court process in respect of the District Council prosecution will now follow. However, it’s also critical that the wider inquiry is completed, so that we prevent such an alarming situation reoccurring.

“It remains of huge concern that in a first world country, the health of thousands of people could be endangered by contaminated drinking water.

“The response of the health authorities as well as the council also needs to be investigated. Havelock North residents are right to question why it took so long for some people to be warned once the contamination threat was evident.

It seems unlikely that this was all the fault of the District Council, and the role of the District Health Board and the Ministry of Health also needs scrutiny,” says David Parker.

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