The National Government has again demonstrated how short sighted it is when it comes to infrastructure in its cancellation of The New Zealand Upgrade Programme, Labour transport spokesperson Tangi Utikere said.

“New Zealand’s road networks are important, but so are the public transport, rail, hospital and school projects in our regions funded by The New Zealand Upgrade Programme which was designed to boost productivity and long term growth.

“This is another example of National throwing the baby out with the bathwater. The Government needs to be transparent about the future of other areas that were overdue for investment, and where the schools and hospitals designated funding will be funded from now. There is no long term thinking from this government which is intent on taking New Zealand backwards.

“When it comes to these new Roads of Regional Significance, moving the decision-making responsibility from government ministers to NZTA, at a time when the public service is experiencing cuts, will make this challenging for the public sector. This is yet another example of a government not taking responsibility for progress in this area.

“Worryingly, these decisions have been taken before the government has bothered to release its finalised GPS on Land Transport, making a mockery of the submission process that recently closed,” Tangi Utikere said.

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