Letters to the editor: Tauranga City Council lacks leadership

Are councillors providing Tauranga with the services they were elected for?

Speed limits ignored

I recently travelled over the Kaimais during heavy rain that the Bay of Plenty experienced.

The illuminated signs were on warning people of road conditions and the reduced speed limit signs were on.

What a joke. No wonder there are accidents. Ninety per cent of the cars showed no regard for either.

Truck drivers can obviously read signs but I can not say the same for the rest.

There was a police car sitting part way up which did not move as cars zipped past me - maybe they have all received fines.

I know there are roads not up to standard but this was total irresponsible driving in awful conditions.

Janice Craig
Welcome Bay

Council lacks leadership

Thank you, Peter Williams, for your thought-provoking article highlighting the shortcomings of Tauranga City Council (Opinion, August 25).

I hope we can look forward to reading more comments from you on the performance of TCC.

It's easy I guess to complain and lay blame against the combined council for the various issues that annoy us. Surely the individual councillors are conscious that whatever reason they are not performing to the standards that they were elected on.

It appears evidently obvious that Tauranga City Council lacks leadership. The individual councillors need to take a look in the mirror and ask themselves: "Am I providing my city with the service that I was elected for?" And if not, why not?

It's time for you all to stand up, ignore the weak leadership and start operating as a team.

Robert Ricketts
Welcome Bay

Landlords being punished

This Government has got it wrong again. You can not make the lives of tenants easier by making the lives of landlords harder.

The only way to fix tenants' - and landlords' - troubles is to fix the housing market. That will take two things: Cutting the red tape which stifles development, and levelling the investment tax playing field. Tough, but not complicated.

Unfortunately, Labour shows no more political will to do this than National did. It seems we will have to wait for the other type of housing crisis - where interest rates rise, house prices collapse, and many homeowners lose their equity.

Let's hope that doesn't come in the next year or two. But maybe then someone will get the policy settings right before another crazy cycle begins.

Or we could all ensure that the next coalition includes some economically smart minor party/ies with enough seats that they can demand this is put right urgently.

Stuart Pedersen
Mount Maunganui

Are councillors providing Tauranga with the services they were elected for?