The five Napier candidates answer five questions ahead of this year's election.
Damon Rusden - Green Party candidate Why should people vote for you?
This election is not about me as a person. I am simply the face here for a much larger movement, one hoping to help shape a modern New Zealand. The beauty of our MMP voting system is that we are able to be a progressive voice in Parliament, to hold power to account and make your voice heard with only the party vote. I am here to discuss the issues, and bring them to a public forum. To represent the Greens and our polices as best I can, and to articulate the problems that the people of Napier face and offer solutions that the Greens will implement if given the privilege of being a part of the next government. We are about transparency for all parties, cleaning our rivers and protecting our environment, finding solutions that address the core of the problems and crafting a smarter economy in a rapidly changing world. We are building a progressive movement, and this has been through talking to everyone we can and asking for the party vote.
What is the single most pressing need in your electorate?
Education. I say this because I grew up surrounded by young children, as my mother worked in Women's Refuge and I also have two younger sisters I've had the privilege to see grow. I say education because it is the foundation for a good life, and the lack of it corresponds to a diaspora of other social issues. It is essential we enable everyone to have access to education without the burden of loans or other penalties. Education is a right, and it is time we recognised that.
What's your top strength for this role?
I entered politics to see substantive, radical change. This is not in the traditional 'radical' sense. It is an awareness that we are doing things horribly wrong, and we need to reverse. We are selling our legacy, our future and our planet for short-term gain. I entered politics because my generation will inherit the earth and the problems that destructive, short-term economics has left us. My top strength is seeing this, and realising I will be dealing with the damage for a long while. My strength is being able to appeal to an audience of your classic non-voters (read: young) and, sadly, tell the full extent of the danger we are in and hope they act accordingly.
Who's your most respected New Zealand politician (living or dead) and why?
Michael Joseph Savage, the founder of our once-famed welfare state, and who made real the social contract any responsible government should commit to its people: We will help you, cradle to grave.
What's the biggest risk you've ever taken?
Risk? If you consider being young and a representative of a liberal party in a largely conservative electorate a risk, then my biggest risk would have to be the reason I'm writing this to all of your readers!
Karl Matthys - Democrats for Social Credit candidate Why should people vote for you?
A vote for me, or more accurately a vote for the Democrats for Social Credit, is a vote for a more equitable distribution of income and wealth in New Zealand. The traditional 'workers' party has now for many years occupied the 'Conservative Light' slot in the political spectrum to the detriment of many ordinary people of this country. The Democrats propose to trigger the onset of a full Universal Unconditional Basic Income for every man, woman and child. The Democrats stand for serious financial reform, curtailing the power and greed of banks and usurious money lenders.
What is the single most pressing need in your electorate?
The single most pressing need in the Napier electorate is the provision of sufficient and adequate housing for those at the bottom of 'the ladder'. While Napier is relatively wealthy, the recent furore over homelessness and soliciting for money in the streets bears witness to the fact that something is wrong, or at least could be better. If the poorest people of this otherwise lovely city (don't forget, automation is making more and more of us down and out) lead happier lives through improved support, the overall Napier Happiness Index would go up several points.
What's your top strength for this role?
My top strength for this role is my passion for a better world for all, rich and poor. This passion encompasses the wider view, not just 'Napier First' but consideration that politicians of today must be aware of the environment, the climate situation, globalisation and inequality, not necessarily in that order.
Who's your most respected New Zealand politician (living or dead) and why?
My most respected New Zealand politician is ... This is a hard one, I have lived in New Zealand for 50 years and did like David Lange for his "I can smell the uranium on your breath" during the Oxford anti-nuclear debate. But then he was also guilty of allowing the disastrous neo liberal creed called Rogernomics to take hold in this at that time still generous country. No, I vote for Sir Geoffrey Palmer for fighting for a proper constitution for Aotearoa, something we actually don't have and desperately need.
What's the biggest risk you've ever taken?
The biggest risk I have ever taken. Who knows? Being born? Getting married? Having children? Flying aeroplanes? Perhaps the latter.
Stuart Nash - Labour Party candidate Why should people vote for you?
Because I have proven that I stand up for the issues that are important to the people of the Napier electorate. I get things done in a way that makes a difference.
What is the single most pressing need in your electorate?
Medium-to-long term, it is creating sustainable, well-paying jobs and economic development. There are, however, two immediate issues.
1. Drinking water quality. Chlorine in the Napier water supply is unacceptable. I will work to see it removed and replaced with infrastructure that means we don't need chlorine to feel safe when we turn on the tap.
2. Lack of housing. Housing NZ pulled down 130 houses and apartments and they haven't replaced them. Spending $60,000 per week keeping people in hotels is not the answer. Building houses is.
What's your top strength for this role?
An ability to work with anyone in order to get things done. I don't care about their politics if they can help deliver solutions to the pressing issues.
Who's your most respected New Zealand politician (living or dead) and why?
I respect everyone who has the courage to stand up in public and put their ideas to the test. Having said that, Sir Walter Nash did achieve so much as Labour's first finance minister from 1935 to 1947.
What's the biggest risk you've ever taken?
There are many. A big one was giving up a fantastic job in Auckland to return home to Napier to pursue a political passion. We moved back in 2007 and it took until 2014 to realise my dream of representing the people of Napier as their Member of Parliament.
Maryann Marsters - Maori Party candidate Why should people vote for you?
I vote for a party that will bat for my whānau/families, whose election words translates into actions even after election results. That is the Māori Party. That is why I stand tall as a Māori Party candidate. That is why people should vote for the Māori Party, vote for me.
What is the single most pressing need in your electorate?
'What is the most important thing in the world? It is people. It is people. It is people'. (Māori proverb). A press release (July 26) of Tasha Hohaia, Māori Party candidate for Manurewa 2017, says, "Let's get legal on homelessness." Homelessness lives here too. I grew up in a home that believed a home is where first learning starts, where first relationships/bonds are established, where foundations are laid, who we are and what we value are etched into those foundations. What learning and valuing do homeless children, whānau/families see when they look at what surrounds them? What learning and valuing do you and I see when we look at ourselves? 'He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata. He tangata. He tangata'. (Māori whakataukī).
Who's your most respected New Zealand politician (living or dead) and why?
The New Zealand politician I respect is Marama Fox. Marama Fox is a leader who has a fire that burns for people, for whānau. We are the better for having Whānau Ora. We will be the better with an IwiRail connecting us regionally. Marama Fox has my respect.
* Ms Marsters did not answer two of the questions.
David Elliott - National Party candidate Why should people vote for you?
The purpose of constituency MPs is to represent an electorate in Parliament. To be effective, and achieve the most for that electorate, the MP needs to belong to the party in government. Napier needs an MP who will receive a sympathetic hearing in Wellington, and who will get things done for Napier. There is a world of difference between an opposition MP endlessly complaining about all the things a government is not doing, and an MP who is committed to making sure they do. It's time for Napier to get a fair hearing, and a bigger slice of the cake.
What is the single most pressing need in your electorate?
A voice. At a time when this Government is spending record amounts on infrastructure and social investment we are not being heard. Napier is expanding and growing on the back of a strong economy and booming exports. Many of the problems we face are in part due to that success. If we can secure the funding, initiatives and programmes the Government is committing to regional New Zealand, then we can achieve lasting solutions to these and other issues. I will ensure that the Government is made aware of our needs and acts accordingly.
What's your top strength for this role?
I can relate to everyone. I come from a poor background but have made the most of my opportunities. I know how hard that can be, but I also know that others can do what I did, with the right opportunities and incentives. I am fit and healthy, but I have a severely handicapped daughter. I know how tough life can be for those with health and related issues, and how important it is to receive the right help and support. As an officer in the RNZAF I know what it is like to be a leader and to search for practical solutions to problems. To be a good constituency MP requires an enormous breadth of consideration, of patience, and resilience, and the ability to understand and relate to every voter, whichever party they support.
Who's your most respected New Zealand politician (living or dead) and why?
John Key - because he made politics human again. He did not always have the perfect answer. He did not always adhere to convention and he never stopped being who he was. Like me he came from a single parent family and worked hard to transform his life. Was he the perfect politician? Not by any means but that is what I admire the most. For those of us starting this journey it is reassuring to know that you can still retain your natural character and be successful.
What is the biggest risk you have ever taken?
Apart from flying military helicopters in places where people could shoot you?
Military flying aside, the biggest risk I have ever taken, or am likely to take, is standing for Parliament. I will be trading a stable, hard-earned career for a position I must earn the right to hold every three years. If elected I will be in effect taking a 50 per cent pay cut. Because I believe so strongly in the importance of good constituency MPs, and because I am passionate about working with the people of Napier to grow regional and personal prosperity for everyone, it's a risk that, after careful consideration, my family and I are prepared to take.