Letter to Editor: I'm paying more than enough

 I'm paying more than enough
For many years I have mown the council strip of lawn in front of my home. In the years I have not been well enough to mow it, I have paid to have it mown.
I have watered young trees to keep them alive, "mended" their branches that have been broken by children and even sprayed them as they needed it.
I have tended the HDC flower gardens, replanting plants that birds and children have uprooted, and bought new plants to replace those that had died for whatever reason.
All of this was done willingly as an act of pride in my city and area I live, and as a responsible citizen. All this came out of my very low income, at no charge to HDC.
Over this time I have owned a "cat-sized dog". The dog had no access to the house unless supervised by us, and never went off the section unless in the car or walked on a lead. She was trained in "puppy school" and, later, "obedience school". We paid the fee for this training.
To get the "low ownership fee" we had to have an employee of HDC visit our property. They arrived in a vehicle, sat in it, and within three minutes granted us the special ownership discount, but first we had to pay HDC an exorbitant fee. All could have been proven by photos of our property and certificates for vet vaccinations, puppy school and a certificate of a good pass from obedience school (93 per cent).
We moved house and had a new dog, as our previous one had died aged 10 years. Again, we went through all the above, and again the HDC employee, who was this time only on our property for 30 seconds as the gate and fences were clearly visible from the road. Again we were charged an exorbitant fee, even though on both occasions the HDC employee said he was doing several other properties in this area.
In all the years above (20 years), we have paid dog registration and in return got a 5c dog tag. I'm told we're paying for dog control, etc, etc, etc. But these animals are not my responsibility. I am more than being responsible, and paying hugely for it, while the irresponsible pay nothing! How long will HDC be deaf to this repeated cry of its people?
Twenty years of mowing HDC lawn and 13 years of looking after HDC trees and garden at no charge. I think my yearly lawn-mowing efforts equal - or more when I pay someone to do it because of my ill health - my dog registration fee!
If I sent council an account for lawn maintenance over 12 months I think I'd be scorned and ignored, yet what I do is visible and on a weekly, two-weekly, basis.
My dog registration fee offers me nothing tangible and relevant to my situation, yet I have no option but to pay - unless I break the law and become "irresponsible".
What if all dog owners who mow council grass or look after trees, etc. and who own a dog choose to send in a yearly account to offset dog registration?
That to me seems fair. Both parties acting as equals to benefit Hastings and areas. Let's start this year!
Jeanette Nightingale, Hastings
Give jobs to Kiwis
Youth (age 15-19) unemployment is spiralling out of control with 27.5 per cent unemployed. Business New Zealand chief executive Phil O'Reilly said the record high youth unemployment was "an emergency" and something needed to be done about what was a time bomb of a generation of workers who may be unemployed for a long time.
"That's a problem that could be with us for decades," he said.
In a letter to the editor last year, I warned of the stupidity of allowing over 10,000 foreign workers to flood the country, taking jobs from school-leavers and university students.
There is another problem with school-leavers applying for tertiary education and financing themselves with a student loan.
But when they have qualified there is often no job for them, which is not their fault.
Prime Minister John Key didn't realise the effect of his signing off over 10,000 foreign workers and he has been far too busy being Mr Important in England and France or holidaying in Hawaii with $30,000 protection before coming home to a BMW with heated seats.
There is real work to be done to fix this crucial rise in unemployment which has reached a crisis point.
Pete Carver, Havelock North.