MPs agree on need for a plan

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

We need a plan,” say the Labour and National MPs for the district. 

East Cape National MP Dana Kirkpatrick and Ikaroa-Rawhiti Labour MP Cushla Tangaere-Manuel found common ground yesterday at the Tairāwhiti Together Tomorrow Summit.

The morning sessions encompassed five-minute information talks from iwi, Government Ministers, Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz and scientists, discussing the future of the Tairāwhiti region post-Cyclone Gabrielle.

Ms Kirkpatrick said the Government would fund works in the region, but there needed to be a plan.

“Nearly $400 million has already been spent during the recovery process.”

She said the morning illustrated that there was a huge potential for a new economy based on digital technology.

As well, she said the reliability of infrastructure and its efficiency was critical, “not only for our productivity but also from a social perspective for our community”.

“We can’t keep doing infrastructure the way we have been doing it. We have to think about what that looks like so that we are not spending millions of dollars every year fixing things.

“The Government is clearly committed to this region.

“They will fund the support, but we need to be really clear about the regional priorities and what it is that will make the big difference.”

Ms Kirkpatrick talked about a collective power in te whenua Māori, bringing “new solutions and new ways of thinking”.

“Maori have already shown what that looks like in the use of their whenua for housing and helping to commit to the social outcomes of our community.”

Ms Tangaere-Manuel said she wanted to listen and ensure that the plans from these kōrero were advocated for in Parliament.

“My job is to hold the Government to account.

“I’m a true believer in the saying, ‘If the people for whom the plan is made are not a part of the planning, the plan will never work’.

“Forestry and cyclone recovery is not something I ever saw in my future, but when I was campaigning, the people throughout the region said, ‘We want you to be that person for us, because you live here and drive State Highway 35’.”

She endorsed Ms Kirkpatrick’s point about needing a plan.

But,“we need multigenerational planning. We can’t plan in three-year cycles,” she said.

“That’s what our tīpuna are so good at. We need to consider the whole environment and look at what is causing woody debris to come washing down our river ways, so we heal our whole environment and protect ourselves for generations to come.

“We need to balance economic viability with the value of people, and our culture.

“While investments are being promised, there is no kōrero about Māori whenua development and kaupapa Māori investment. I’m going to keep an eye on that,” she said.

The Labour MP highlighted the great working relationship between herself and Kirkpatrick.

“The greatest benefit that we have in this region is the fact that Dana and I commit to working together.

“And we actually quite like each other,” she said.