Government Inaction Makes a Mockery of Rail Safety
Week
New Zealand First is warning of a looming rail
disaster unless Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee takes
action to facilitate the rapid repair of thousands of
rotting wooden sleepers.
Transport spokesperson Brendan
Horan says KiwiRail has no idea exactly where the
dangerously compromised sleepers are located on our rail
network.
“But they are likely to be on some road
crossings. If they gave way under a fully laden goods
locomotive it could cause a catastrophic derailment with the
loss of many lives.”
Mr Horan says KiwiRail assurances
that about 7000 rotten sleepers would be replaced by
December are laughable.
“How can they expect us to
believe that when they have just announced that 181
maintenance staff will be made redundant by October?
“We
implore Mr Brownlee to stop making a mockery of Rail Safety
Week and step in to ensure the safety of our rail system,”
says Mr
Horan.
If you're using Scoop for work, your organisation needs to pay a small license fee with Scoop Pro. We think that's fair, because your organisation is benefiting from using our news resources. In return, we'll also give your team access to pro news tools and keep Scoop free for personal use, because public access to news is important!
Winston Peters is routinely described as the kingmaker who decides whether the centre right or the centre-left has a turn at running this country. He also plays a less heralded, but equally important role as the scapegoat who can be blamed for killing taxes that his senior partners never much wanted in the first place. Neither Ardern nor Robertson for example, really wanted a capital gains tax, for fear of Labour copping the “tax and spend“ label they ended up being saddled with anyway. Usefully though, they could tell the party faithful it was wicked old Winston who killed the CGT... More
The National Party claims the new coalition government will be stable, effective, and will deliver for all Kiwis. "Despite the challenging economic environment, New Zealanders can look forward to a better future because of the changes the new Government will make ... We know that, with the right leadership, the right policies, and the right direction, together New Zealanders can make this an even better country," says Christopher Luxon... More
“The new Government’s plan to expand oil and gas exploration is as dangerous as it is unscientific. Whatever you think about the new government, there is simply no mandate to trash the climate. We need to come together to stop them,” says James Shaw... More
MFAT's decision to remove te reo from correspondence before new Ministers are sworn in risks undermining the important progress the public sector has made in honouring te Tiriti. "We are very disappointed in what is a backward decision - it simply seems to be a Ministry bowing to the racist rhetoric we heard on the election campaign trail," says Marcia Puru... More
Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Green Party: Petition To Save Oil & Gas Ban
PSA: MFAT Must Reverse Decision To Remove Te Reo
