Copyright © 1995 Brian Harmer
For professional reasons, a trip to Napier was necessary. Needing to be there for just two hours, I explored the cost of flying. NZ$480 return for the short haul domestic flight from Wellington was so outrageously out of proportion (I can get a return trip to Melbourne for less), that I decided to drive up. Unaccompanied, it's a moderately long trip, but the weather was fine so that was a good start. Almost too fine, in fact. I had to be in Napier for an early afternoon meeting, so left Lower Hutt soon after seven. A cloudless sky is usually a bonus, but an hour and a bit later, as I negotiated the tree lined bypass road out to the West of Masterton, the sun was still low enough to be a serious hazard. Still the rolling green landscape of the Wairarapa passed by and soon I was at Woodville, and turning to the North and East on State Highway 2. The road is well formed, but by the very nature of the landscape it traverses, it offers few opportunities for overtaking the slow movers. Many heavy trucks seemed to be on the road, but they were booting along at modest speeds. The ones who really got to me were the banjo-pluckers who would pop out of a concealed side road in a worn-out Lada laying a smoke screen worthy of a destroyer at the battle of Jutland, and then proceed to block the road at 40 km/h. Eventually, even they turned off, and from there things should be plain sailing. Whoops! Here's a small herd of perhaps a hundred Jersey cows being moved up SH2. Two amiable but hassled farm hands are trying on foot to steer the cows in the right direction running about and clapping their hands and yelling, and entirely without the aid of dogs or vehicles. Glorious chaos! Traffic in both direction comes to a halt, with cows meandering between the vehicles and stopping to read the fine print on windscreen documents such as warrants of fitness and so on. People must settle down to a philosophical wait until the last of the herd is eventually extracted from between the various vehicles, and we're on the road again. Dannevirke always impresses me as a neat clean town with an appropriate sense of civic pride. I have no idea of the town's economic base, though I assume it must be a support and market town for the local farming community. Twenty km to the North and the road slides under an overbridge which connects the two halves of the otherwise invisible town of Norsewood. Onwards in the warm sunshine through the most benign pastoral landscape you could wish for, admiring the rugged tops of the Ruahines to the West. Waipukurau is another of those towns which is neat, industrious, and a complete mystery to me. Waipawa, Otane, are somehow more logical, but Dannevirke and Waipukurau, admirable though they seem, both appear to be bigger than their function requires. Anyway, the hallowed fields of Te Aute College pass by, and soon Te Mata peak looms on the right. I decided that this was a business trip, and that it would be sensible to take the bypass, the grotesquely misnamed Napier-Hastings Expressway. Napier itself is a pretty provincial city, with much to commend it. Tourists are a license to print money, not that Napier is the only place to realise that. I did not like the city council parking meters that accept a $2 coin but dispense a maximum of a $1 parking slip. I was unimpressed with the pretentiously expensive coffee shop which charged $7.50 for a "long black" and a very ordinary slice of cake. And I was grossly underwhelmed by the worst seafood meal I have ever been served, from a restaurant which said it was a seafood restaurant. Bleah! On the other hand, the new aquarium is impressive in its conception, though the range of specimens seemed a bit small for a place which proclaims itself the National aquarium. No doubt that will change in time. After a stay overnight in an undistinguished but modestly priced motel, it was back on the road again. Once more the expressway belied its name, and when it delivered me to SH2 there was a fairly heavy layer of fog which pretty much obscured everything back to Waipukurau. All I saw was the tailgate of the truck in front of me. I decided that a stop for breakfast would calm the nerves. By the time that was done, the fog had gone, and brilliant sunshine gave an entirely different face to the day. I paused at Norsewood because I was low on gas, and besides I wanted to buy a new Norsewear jersey to replace my faithful old brown one with the leather patched elbows. I got the jersey but was shocked at the $1.28/l price of petrol. A local told me it was vastly cheaper down the road in Dannevirke. With the warning light glowing at me, I made it into the gas station with seven litres left in the tank. It was market day in Dannevirke. The footpaths were lined with stalls containing crafts and produce, and I would hazard a guess that there were more people on the main street than you would find in Lambton Quay. Perhaps the town does have the critical mass after all. Down through the Wairarapa, all went well until Featherston when I began to encounter motor caravans. Dozens of them, like migrating Gnus, ungainly, impervious to the content of their rear vision mirrors, clusters of them wombled up and over the Rimutaka hill. I assume there was some kind of convention of them in Wellington over the Easter weekend. Guys, Auckland really does have a better roading infrastructure than Wellington, despite the lies told by politicians. Please go there next year!
All news items (except where noted otherwise) are reproduced by kind permission of copyright owner, IRN Ltd.
Any text above this point, and all subsequent material in parentheses, and concluded with the initials "BH" is the personal opinion of Brian Harmer as editor of this newsletter, or occasionally "HH" will indicate an opinion from Helen.
In all cases they are honest expressions of personal opinion, and are not presented as fact. This week's formatting is sponsored by the expat lady with the Anzac Day birthday. Thank you so much.
On with the news:
Prime Minister Helen Clark is surprised at suggestions our elite troops are fighting the international war on terror with sub-standard gear. The claim has reportedly been made by a former US presidential adviser. Miss Clark says she has received no advice on the matter. Speaking on the eve of her trip to Washington, she says the report is news to her. Helen Clark says the only issue she is aware of, is a decision to borrow rather than buy vehicles which could be driven on the other side of the road. She expects New Zealand's contribution to the war on terror to be discussed, when she meets US President George W Bush this week.
Police have released the name of a 17-year-old girl found dead in the troubled Palmerston North suburb of Highbury. The body of Barbara Jayne Miller was discovered early this morning. Detective Sergeant Craig Sheridan says a post mortem examination was carried out last night, but police will not be discussing the results. The scene examination of the Coventry Street house where she was found is continuing. The house is next to the one where the body of gang prospect Wallace Whatuira was found last month.
West Coasters have little to fear from the final transfer of native forest from Timberlands to the Department of Conservation, according to the Government. The final transfer takes place next week, marking the last part of the phase-out of indigenous logging on the Coast. Conservation Minister Sandra Lee says the West Coast region benefits greatly from the sustainable development made possible by the transfer. She says the sky did not fall in on the West Coast In fact, Ms Lee says the economy is booming. Sandra Lee says the transfer makes good a Government promise to end the logging of Crown-managed indigenous forest on the West Coast. A total of 130,000 hectares have been transferred.
The Lord of the Rings has won its fourth Oscar. The award for music original score went to Howard Shore for the rousing theme to Peter Jackson's blockbuster movie. The blockbuster has also won Oscars for best makeup, best cinematography and best visual effects. It has missed out on Oscars in the categories for editing, costume, art direction and sound. Sir Ian McKellen also lost the best supporting actor award to Jim Broadbent for Iris.
(It is sad that a procedure as arbitrary as voting by the members of the academy should be perceived to convey ranking in the sense of an athletic competition. It makes no sense to say that Sir Ian lost to Jim Broadbent. It's a bit like holding a vote to see whether Gainsborough, Degas or Breugel is the better painter. A vote which takes into account things like Russell Crowe's bad behaviour, or even factors in the national patriotism after the evil events of September 11, cannot truly be regarded as a reliable ranking mechanism. Not that we are unhappy to see the four awards to "our" film, you understand. - BH)
Ten special war medals have been presented at Parliament this afternoon. The medals are for veterans who have served in five separate operations between 1946 and 1994. Those operations are the occupation of Japan between 1946 and 1949, at Suez in 1956 and off Malaysia in the 1960s, and the Vietnam War. They have also been awarded to air force veterans involved in peacekeeping operations in Rwanda in 1994. Defence Minister Mark Burton says most of the issues relating to recognition for operational service have now been settled. One of the 10 recipients was Returned Services' Association President David Cox who served on HMNZS Achilles in Japan from 1945 to '46.
The collapse of the big American company Enron could have implications for the way our chief executives are paid. There have been allegations of mismanagement in the wake of Enron's collapse. Personnel firm Sheffields says that points to the need for businesses to review their salary structure for top executives. Spokesman Simon Hart says large fixed salaries may not be the best answer. He says New Zealand needs more balance in its packages with less on the fixed side and more on the variable, particularly long term incentives.
A survey, by personnel company Sheffield, shows some healthy pay packets for the country's chief executives. The survey, of 513 top bosses, shows they received pay increases of around 4.6 per cent last year. More than 100 CEOs now receive more than $200,000 as their base salary, However the survey says New Zealand's chief executives are still being short-changed when it comes to long-term incentive benefits. Their counterparts across the Tasman earn an average of 19 per cent of their salary package in benefits. In the United States the figure is 47 per cent. Here it is four per cent.
Women are being warned the days of letting their dates buy their drinks may be over. A clinic that counsels sexual abuse victims, the Auckland Help Foundation, says drug rape is becoming a serious problem nationwide. The foundation helps around four women a month who were raped after their drinks were spiked. Clinical psychologist Kathryn McPhilips says women should not accept drinks from others. She say, if women feel more drunk than what they should be for the amount of alcohol they have consumed, they should stay with their friends. Meanwhile Hospitality Association Chief Executive Bruce Robertson says bar staff are now being told to watch for drink spiking.
Aviation enthusiasts are in for a treat today. A group of World War II war planes will be flying from South Auckland to Wanaka for this weekend's Warbirds over Wanaka air show. Among them is a Grumman Wildcat fighter. It is one of only 15 left in the world and arrived in the country last weekend from the United States. Also taking part in the procession are two Kittyhawks and a Mustang.
(Reports today indicate that a visiting pilot has "bent" an AT6 Harvard. The owners are very unhappy. - BH)
A free trade agreement with the United States is expected to be high on the agenda when the Prime Minister meets George W. Bush. Helen Clark will spend half an hour with the President tomorrow. IRN political editor Barry Soper says there is talk of negotiations on a free trade agreement beginning next year. Director of Australia and New Zealand Studies at Georgetown University, Richard Teare says there is little doubt Australia has been talking up its own agreement. He says Canberra is pulling on the Bush administration's heart strings, citing its involvement in Afghanistan and East Timor. Others in Washington say it would make little sense for Australia to go it alone, when the CER agreement is so firmly in place. Richard Teare says Helen Clark will be received as a friend, but not an ally because of our nuclear ships ban. Mr Teare says we can not be called an ally if ships that would defend New Zealand in times of war are not allowed in during peace time.
(That headline must have come straight from the scriptwriter of Basil Brush! - BH)
Police are hunting two prisoners who have broken out of Waikeria Prison south of Te Awamutu. Remand prisoner Cori Ohutu and convicted burglar Tumu Tangiia escaped at about three o'clock this morning. Prison authorities did not realise the men were missing until an hour and a half later. Senior Sergeant Chris Higginson says the pair forced a window open on the second floor of the minimum security wing of the prison. They made their way to freedom across the prison farm. Police believe Ohutu could still be in Te Awamutu and Tangiia may be making his way back to his home in Papamoa.
Caltex has heralded the start of a new phase in the fuel price war. From now on its prices will vary from region to region and they may go up and down without warning. Caltex today announced a one cent a litre national increase in the price of both grades of petrol and diesel. It follows a five cents a litre rise a week ago. Caltex blames the latest price hike on soaring input costs. Spokesman Niall Kramer says the new regional pricing policy means prices will vary around the country. He says it plans smaller, more frequent price moves, up or down, to avoid taking people by surprise with large increases. There is no word yet from the other oil companies. The Automobile Association hopes motorists will reap the benefits from Caltex's new regional price policy. Spokesman George Fairbairn says traditionally, fuel has cost more in remote centres. He says Caltex is now promising better competition. He is advising motorists to shop around for the best price.
(My advice is check the fuel gauge before you leave Waipukurau or Dannevirke so you don't get hit with the extra 20c/l in Norsewood - BH)
A crane has been used to free three workers, trapped under a billboard in Palmerston North Square. One man's seriously injured. Two others have suffered moderate injuries. They are in a stable condition at Palmerston North Hospital. OSH manager in Palmerston North, Linda Murphy, says the billboard was blown over by the down-draft from a helicopter helping to move signs from a building. She says the workers were not trapped for long. Ms Murphy says it is fortunate a crane was on the site, to quickly lift the billboard clear.
Interest rates and petrol prices may be on the rise, but it has not stopped us spending. Consumer confidence edged up one-and-a-half points in the March quarter according to the latest WestpacTrust McDermott Miller Survey. The bank says it is likely to provide a springboard for further growth in spending in coming months. However, WestpacTrust's Chief Economist Adrian Orr warns it also provides a platform for further interest rates rises from the Reserve Bank.
Staff at Wellington's Victoria University are taking industrial action this week. They will walk off the job at one o'clock tomorrow afternoon for 24 hours. Association of University Staff President, Tony Quinn, says staff are upset the university has rejected their latest compromise in their pay dispute.
Hawke's Bay could be heading for a record grape harvest this season. Most of the region's grapes should be off the vines by the end of next month. Hawke's Bay Grape Growers Association president, Mel McLennan, says this year's harvest is expected to yield around 35,000 tonnes. That is about three times more than last year's frost-hit vintage. Mr McLennan says it still has not been an ideal growing season with more rain than usual. He says winemakers should be happy with the flavour of grapes being harvested.
Damper summer conditions are being blamed for a huge increase in the number of Campylobacter cases in the Canterbury region. So far this year Canterbury has had 716 reported cases of the stomach bug - that is about 150 cases more than normal. Canterbury Medical Officer of Health Doctor Mel Brieseman says the upsurge in cases is being felt right around the country. He says normally in hot dry summers the number of Campylobacter cases decreases, because the bacteria in the soil get killed off. But Dr Breiseman says, with a wetter season than usual, the organisms are surviving and being picked up by other animals or by people when they go camping or picnicking. He says people need to remember to wash their hands, especially when dining outdoors, and take care preparing food.
There is still a glimmer of hope that New Zealand could yet be a sub-host for next year's Rugby World Cup. The Australian Rugby Union appears concerned at New Zealand's latest move to retain hosting rights for the tournament. It is understood NZRFU boss David Rutherford is off to Paris this week to speak with French officials. Indications are that France could support New Zealand when the IRB Council votes on the World Cup venues in three weeks. Now, Australian Rugby boss John O'Neill is flying back to Britain for another meeting with World Cup officials. The ARU has described speculation about France helping New Zealand as "strange". Australia has until the end of the week with the RWC to formalise its proposal to be sole hosts.
Auckland secondary school teachers are threatening to take further industrial action after the Easter holidays if the Government does not come up with an acceptable pay offer. The Minister of Education has postponed discussions with teachers this week, while members of the PPTA's Auckland branch send students home. PPTA president Jen McCutcheon hopes pay talks will resume in the first week of term, otherwise she says teachers will escalate their industrial action. She says teachers will continue to refuse to send assessment information to the NZQA and ban meetings taking place outside the hours of 8 am-5 pm.
Cook Strait is likely to become a key weapon in keeping the South Island free of the varroa mite. Mainland councils have backed a plan to promote the strait as a bio-security defence line between the North and South Islands for varroa and any future pest risks. Otago Regional Council chief executive Graeme Martin says the campaign will include signs to remind transport operators they should not ship live bees from Wellington wharves to South Island ports. He says the moves are being supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Beekeepers Association.
More kiwi music will soon be heard on New Zealand radio stations. Broadcasting Minister Marian Hobbs will this afternoon unveil a voluntary code of practice for commercial radio. Stations have agreed to boost local music content to 20 per cent by the end of 2006. The current level is around 11 per cent, but radio station bosses say that is more than twice the level of five years ago. The voluntary code has been developed by the Radio Broadcasters' Association in partnership with the Minister.
(In my view, this is a fatuous and ideology driven policy, and one which will drive people to choose their own music via MP3 or CD. If they can't make it on merit, then tough! What other industry gets this kind of support? We scream blue murder if someone puts a tariff or other barrier on the things we export. Why is music different? Is this a sign that the time is ripe to resurrect the Trekka now that we are mandating the country of origin for our purchases? - BH)
Allegations that New Zealand's SAS contingent in Afghanistan has sub-standard equipment are being hotly disputed. Former US Deputy Assistant Defence Secretary Kurt Campbell claims that while New Zealand's soldiers are top notch, their equipment is not up to the standard of other countries. Defence Force chief, Air Marshall Bruce Ferguson, says New Zealand's gear is as good as that of any other special forces in the Western world and in fact, other countries are often envious of it. He says the training of New Zealand soldiers and the equipment they carry enables them to do their assigned tasks to an extremely high level of competency. Air Marshal Ferguson says he has full confidence in New Zealand's special forces personnel. He admits that the Defence Force did face one issue over equipment and says a conscious decision was made to borrow vehicles in Afghanistan for the SAS rather than send them over from New Zealand.
National's released further information which it says illustrates that Race Relations Commissioner Gregory Fortuin is not the right man for the job. A decision on Mr Fortuin's future has been put off until after Easter. Cabinet needs to decide whether to re-appoint him after he became involved in the Alliance row, trying to act as a mediator between the different factions. National MP Gerry Brownlee has told Parliament Mr Fortuin is advertised on the Celebrity New Zealand website, as being available to speak for a fee of $3,000 plus GST and expenses. He says that is another appalling lack of judgement, and further evidence Mr Fortuin must go.
Auckland's health board has been told to change its approach to caring for the region's sick. Director-General of Health Karen Poutasi has met with the Auckland District Health Board this afternoon. Ms Poutasi says Auckland is struggling to provide tertiary health services at the moment. She says the board needs to be more preventative - and less reactive - in its approach, if it is to get on top of its current funding issues. Ms Poutasi says the current review of population-based funding should help to ease that strain.
(Why don't these politician/managers get real? By all means invest in prevention, but you can't cut back on care for the sick as a means of so doing. - BH)
A woman who drove her car into oncoming traffic in Wanganui faces a charge of reckless driving. The 19 year old is undergoing psychiatric evaluation. Senior Sergeant Jed Byers says the woman's car collided with two vehicles and a police car. He says the occupants of the two other vehicles have been shaken up by the incident.
Education Minister Trevor Mallard is defending the beleaguered head of the Teachers' Council, over allegations she has been 'double-dipping'. National this week told Parliament that Kathie Irwin had done outside work, while employed full-time by Victoria University, without permission. There are also claims she went behind her employer's back to do contract work for the Christchurch College of Education. But Trevor Mallard says inquiries to date show Ms Irwin was not double-dipping. He says no one involved has said Ms Irwin was being paid for two jobs at once. Ms Irwin has stepped down while the State Services Commissioner investigates.
(It's a beginning, Mr Mallard. Now support the rest of the teachers and University staff! - BH)
Associate Labour Minister Laila Harre is urging ACT's Rodney Hide to get over his plans to liberalise shop trading hours. Parliament has rejected the main thrust of his private member's bill, which called for retailers to be able to open up on Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Christmas Day. The bill did not call for shops to open on ANZAC day morning. Ms Harre says Rodney Hide and his ultra- liberal mates should realise the bill will never go through after an overwhelming vote against it last night. She says he has to realise he is flogging a dead horse, following the defeat of the bill for the third year in a row.
(There is something seriously flawed here. If the vote was so "overwhelming" why is the maximum fine still just $1,000. What that means is that if you are Oderings or one of the bigger garden centres, you just treat the $1,000 as an unfair, but affordable fee for staying open and still make money. If the MPs felt strongly about it, they should have added teeth to the law, otherwise what was the point? I am not especially in favour of the open all hours policy, and I think that an extra day of opening does not inject a single extra cent of discretionary spending money into the economy. It just alters the distribution of the amount spent across different days. - BH)
WestpacTrust Bank says a third of its branches are closed by industrial action today. Members of Finsec, the bank workers union, have held meetings at WestpacTrust branches around the country this morning. They have discussed what they regard as the bank's failure to offer a decent pay increase. Afterwards a number of employees went back to work, while others walked out. Bank spokeswoman Jane Anderson says two thirds of the branches are open, with most operations working normally. She says there is some inconvenience to customers, mainly in Canterbury and Southland, and the bank is working to limit the impact.
Levin police are concerned about several traffic incidents involving the same car. The alleged vehicle is a blue Ford Falcon which was travelling on State Highway One between Paekakariki and Levin yesterday. Police want to hear from a cyclist from Paraparaumu who was allegedly almost hit by the Falcon, just north of the Kapiti Lights. They also want to hear from a driver of a northbound Toyota Rav4 vehicle who may have been tailgated by the Falcon.
An Auckland man has been charged with stealing close to one million dollars worth of expensive cars. Police accuse the 30-year-old man of stealing a 7-series BMW from a Mount Wellington showroom last week and taking a Porsche, two other BMW's and a jeep Cherokee earlier this year. The man has appeared in the Auckland District Court facing a number of charges. Police are continuing to try to locate other people who could be connected to the theft.
The Corrections Department is denying claims of a budget blow-out in the Community Probation Service. The Department is also refuting allegations made by union representatives from the PSA and the Corrections Association that home detention offenders going unmonitored. Community probation general manager Ann Clark admits they do have budget pressures but insists they are not in crisis. She says while home visits for offenders on supervision have been suspended, those on home detention and parole will continue to be monitored.
The Tokoroa community is fearful about the impact of large job cuts at the region's largest employer. Carter Holt Harvey plans to lose around 400 positions at its Kinleith mill. Around 190 jobs are being created by the decision to outsource the mill's maintenance operations. Forest View Primary School principal Robert Blucher says the job cuts could force families to leave the town. He says that could mean a drop in the number of pupils at his school, which will impact on the service schools can offer those children who remain.
(I am stunned to learn that prior to the proposed cuts there were around six hundred employed at the mill. When I worked there in 1965 through 1970, there were 3,600. - BH)
There is bitter disappointment this morning from retailers in Mt Maunganui, who have been fighting for years to have the right to open on public holidays. A bill by Act MP Rodney Hide that would allow shops to open all hours, except on Anzac Day morning, has been neutered. MPs amended the Private Member's Bill to retain restrictions on Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Christmas Day. Mt Maunganui businessman Trevor Craig says Labour Minister Margaret Wilson promised them last year that trading restrictions would be lifted. Mr Craig says the people of Mt Maunganui have been let down for eight years by various governments.
(The regional disparities seem nonsensical. It should be all or nothing. - BH)
Tariana Turia has come to the aid of the embattled Race Relations Commissioner. The Associate Maori Affairs Minister believes Gregory Fortuin should keep his job. The Government is considering his position, after it was revealed Mr Fortuin was involved in peace talks within the Alliance. Opposition parties do not want his contract renewed when it runs out on Sunday. But Tariana Turia hopes Mr Fortuin will stay on, saying New Zealand needs someone with his skills.
(Given Mrs Turia's standing with the media, aid from that quarter may be a mixed blessing. - BH)
Legal action against the directors of collapsed Air New Zealand subsidiary Ansett Australia has come as no surprise to the aviation industry. The Travel Compensation Fund, which is controlled by the Australian Government, is suing 13 Air New Zealand executives, including former Air New Zealand boss Gary Toomey, over their directorships of Ansett and its travel agency, Traveland, which also collapsed. The lawsuit claims the directors failed to meet their obligations to clients. Aviation analyst Tom Ballantyne says a lot of people got burnt when the airline went under. He does not think the suit will be the last of the legal action. Air New Zealand says its executives are not liable and it will be defending the proceedings. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission is investigating whether a class action should be brought against Air New Zealand over its financial disclosures before Ansett's demise.
The Reserve Bank wants people to put their money where their mouse is. The bank has launched a web-based computer game in which players fight inflation by controlling interest rates in a virtual economy. Reserve Bank Governor Don Brash says the game was created by the Swiss Central Bank. It has been adapted to fit New Zealand's economy. He hopes the game will be a useful tool for teachers and secondary students. Dr Brash says the challenges of controlling virtual inflation are similar to the challenges he faces every day. The game can be found on www.rbnz.govt.nz.
GDP has risen 0.6 percent in the December quarter - a smaller rise than expected by many experts. BNZ Chief Economist, Tony Alexander, says that's quite a bit less than the 1.1 percent economists were looking for. He believes the decline in tourism after September 11th may have had a bigger impact than expected. But he says it is nothing to get too depressed about, as the economy still grew by a respectable 2.4 percent for the year. Tony Alexander says that means we will be facing more interest rate rises over the next few months. He is expecting the Reserve Bank to increase rates by a quarter of one percent at the end of April, and a similar rise in May. Finance Minister Michael Cullen says the figure is still good, given that much of the impact of September 11th fell in the December quarter. He says its significant business investment grew by 8.5 percent for the quarter. Dr Cullen says all indications are that tourist numbers, which dived after September 11, will bounce back this year. He is predicting that will help maintain steady growth throughout the rest of the year. Annual growth for 2001 reached 2. 4 percent.
Long delays for motorists in the upper North Island, after an accident on State Highway One at Ohinewai, north of Huntly. At one time, traffic was backed up as far as Drury to the north, and Tokoroa to the south. Police have now reopened the road, but Inspector Barry Smalley says it will take several hours for the tailbacks to clear. Latest reports from the area say roads through Matamata, which have been used as a diversion, are jammed solid.
Hazardous chemicals caused a seven-hour clean-up job, after a crash on State Highway One today. A truck and trailer unit rolled at Ohinewai, spilling building materials and forcing police to close the road. Sergeant Mark Toomey says the road was partly eaten away by some of the chemicals, which were judged to be dangerous. Solvents used in the construction industry became mixed with battery acid, and fire service personnel needed protective gear for the clean-up. Mark Toomey says most drivers have been very patient, despite the long delays.
Traffic is returning to normal following a day of huge snarl-ups in the Upper North Island. An accident on State Highway One at Ohinewai, north of Huntly, blocked the road for almost seven hours, leading to tailbacks of more than 40 kilometres at one time. Sergeant Mark Toomey says hazardous chemicals were spilled in the crash, which took a long time to clean up. He is asking drivers to keep their cool in the remaining delays. The truck driver involved in the crash was only slightly hurt.
An Easter drenching is expected for much of the country. Wet weather currently working its way up the West Coast will affect most areas this weekend. Up to 150 millimetres of rain's expected in the Western ranges, with thunderstorms in the lower south, and snow to 800 metres. Metservice forecaster Bob Lake says high winds over the Tasman Sea are pushing cold air up from the Southern Ocean. He says the bad weather's come a few weeks earlier than usual this year.
The Prime Minister is not holding her breath over the possibility of the US sending warships to our ports again. Helen Clark is on her way back to New Zealand after meeting the United States president, and says the ban on nuclear warships still bothers the Americans. Miss Clark says the British also stopped sending their warships to our ports, but have since resumed. She says they found vessels in their navy which could comply with the policy and the US could do the same. Helen Clark does not believe the nuclear warship ban affects our relationship with the United States as much as it used to.
A chain of garden centres is feeling hard done by, after being fined for trading today. The nine Oderings Nurseries stores around the country have already been pounced on by Labour Department inspectors. Each faces a fine of up to 1000 dollars. Oderings spokesman Donald Odering says they were allowed to open on Good Friday until 1990 but were then banned without a good reason. He says he never had a complaint for opening on Good Friday but since the new law, has been fined every year.
(My heart bleeds - BH)
There are calls for hard labour to be reintroduced into the prison system. The Sensible Sentencing Trust is unhappy with the new law and order reform bill going through parliament. Spokesman Garth McVicar says the Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill is not a tough enough deterrent for criminals. He says hard labour in prisons helped stop re-offending years ago and he can not see why it would not work today.
Parliament is moving to outlaw the party drug Fantasy. It will become a Class B substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act, alongside morphine and cannabis oil. Fantasy is the common name for a range of substances, including GHB, GBL and 1-4B. Since their arrival, one person has died of an overdose, and a number have been hospitalised. Experts say it is dangerous because there has too fine a line between euphoria and coma. It has also been implicated in drug- assisted sexual assaults. As a Class B drug, three months is the maximum jail term for possession, and 14 years for supply.
A New Zealand flag pulled from the World Trade Centre rubble in New York will go on display in the Beehive. In a ceremony which moved the Prime Minister to tears, she was presented with the flag by the two policeman who found it. It came during Helen Clark's visit to Ground Zero. She says the flag will be on show to the public. She thinks the flag is a reminder that events on September 11 were an attack on all humanity, including the people of New Zealand.
University heads say they are being kept in the dark over the level of funding they can expect next year. The Vice Chancellors' Committee says universities need a ballpark figure of what they can expect, so they can start planning ahead. Chairman James McWha hopes the Government will consult them well before the Budget in eight weeks time. He says the lack of dialogue is starting to look like a repeat of last year's breakdown in relations. Then, universities were forced to either take the money on offer and keep fees frozen, or reject it and let students bear the impact.
New Zealanders will munch their way through more than ten million Hot Cross buns this year. While most will be consumed from today onwards, bakeries have been turning out the Easter delicacies for weeks. Hot Cross bun sales are expected to be down slightly this year because traditionally when Easter falls early, there is a shorter selling period. Nevertheless nine to ten million buns will be baked this year. South Islanders tend to start buying and eating well before Easter while Aucklanders wait until nearer the time. Easter is also the second busiest time for baking bread.
A warning our cats and dogs could be next on the 'banned' list, after a law banning pet ferrets. A new law prohibits the breeding, distribution and sale of ferrets, largely due to the impact feral animals are having on native bird populations. National MP Murray McCully says the move should send shivers up the spines of dog and cat owners. He says those animals also cause extensive damage to wildlife when they escape. Mr McCully says there are other ways to protect wildlife than outlawing an entire species, such as fining owners who let their animals run wild. He says dealing with the threat of dangerous dogs on our streets is a far more pressing issue.
(Dangerous dogs are indeed a pressing issue, but so is illiteracy, and other than competing for the same pool of money one has nothing to do with the other. Mustelids have no place in New Zealand. To really mix the metaphors, the nonsense about cats and dogs is a red herring. - BH)
Date: March 28 2002 Brian Dooley
Wellington New Zealand
CURRENCIES
The currency codes given below conform to ISO 4217, which
can be found at http://www.xe.net/currency/iso_4217.htm.
The rates given are for telegraphic transfer and are
as given in the Wellington Evening Post today.
To Buy NZD 1.00
USD 0.4404
AUD 0.8327
GBP 0.3090
JPY 58.56
CAD 0.7024
EUR 0.5057
HKD 3.4432
SGD 0.8141
ZAR 5.0507
CHF 0.7408
INTEREST RATES (%)
Call : 5.00
90 Day: 5.58
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