Hodgson admits doing nothing about looming crisis

Energy Minister Pete Hodgson should be congratulated for his honesty, finally admitting that he knew about the looming electricity crisis but did nothing about it, according to National Party Energy spokesman Gerry Brownlee. "When I floated the prospect of a power shortage at the end of last year, Mr Hodgson accused me of scaremongering and said I should be sacked," says Mr Brownlee.

"The New Zealand public are now able to make up their own minds, given that they're now being asked to carve more than 10% from their electricity consumption," says Mr Brownlee.

"It's Pete Hodgson who should be sacked for not giving New Zealanders the full picture as far back as last year, when he now admits he knew about the problem.

"If the Minister had acted then, we would not now be discussing more drastic conservation efforts or entertaining the idea of black-outs this winter.

"But the reality is that Pete Hodgson did not raise the alarm.

"He's failed New Zealand business and the Kiwi public, who thought the conditions that lead to the energy crisis of just two years ago had been remedied," Mr Brownlee says.

"With better management, the lack of rain would not now pose the same risks to our economy.

"Businesses would be better placed to make savings because they would have been planning for them while householders could have joined the conservation effort much earlier," Mr Brownlee says.

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