After meeting business owners who suffered through the gastro outbreak, Labour Party leader Andrew Little said questions around the disruption to their livelihoods should be answered by the government inquiry.
That was one thing he took away from his visit to Havelock North yesterday, when he and incumbent, and hopeful, local Labour MPs toured the village.
After a morning speaking with businesses, and Ngati Kahungunu representatives, Mr Little, Ikaroa Rawhiti MP Meka Whaitiri, Napier MP Stuart Nash, and Tukituki candidate Anna Lorck went to the MCL construction site of the Village Exchange complex, including a tour of Hastings' first five-star hotel.
With the guidance of Porters Boutique Hotel general manager Odette Bowyer, the group took in some of the 42 high-end rooms and suites, visualising where the downstairs Malo restaurant would soon serve fine cuisine.
Mr Little said the complex was a good expression of local economic confidence. It was fantastic to see the development of good-quality accommodation, he said, with the rapid growth of tourism, especially in areas like Hawke's Bay with "a strong tourism underpinning".