Brynderwyns alternative was drafted by Labour prior to election, Labour leader Chris Hipkins says

Labour's Willow-Jean Prime and Chris Hipkins (centre) celebrate Kamo High School's rebuild with principal Natasha Hemara, and prefects Paige Cleaver and Luke Rouse.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins came to Northland with a message: His party is not against building the State Highway 1 alternative to the Brynderwyns.

Hipkins and Northland-based Labour MP Willow-Jean Prime visited Whangārei on Tuesday, meeting people from the area where the party lost support in the 2023 general election.

They visited Kamo High School’s $22 million redevelopment, which Hipkins approved as education minister. The first stage of the project is nearing completion.

The politicians also visited a Kāinga Ora development on Ross St in Onerahi. Hipkins remarked the coalition Government had taken a step backwards in state house building, with no new builds planned for 2025 after record builds in 2023.

“This is the only Government who, in the midst of a housing crisis, think they should stop building ... If we don’t want people living in cars or emergency accommodation, we need more affordable rental accommodation.”

Should Labour get back into power, it will not stop projects already started by the coalition Government, including roading projects, Hipkins said.

A SH1 alternative to the Brynderwyn Hills was part of the draft Government Policy Statement for land transport before the election, meaning Labour had already committed to it, he said.

“I think the recent weather events have highlighted that something must be done. It’s not a nice-to-have, it’s actually pretty essential for the whole Northland region that we get a more enduring, reliable and safe connection between Auckland and Whangārei, in the first instance.”

Hipkins said a decision to stop four-laning SH1, between Whangārei and Marsden Point, was about prioritising the rail link ahead of the new road, which made more sense with Northport and its freight.

While in Whangārei, he also visited Blue Light to hear more about its work with young people, to keep them engaged and out of trouble.

When it comes to youth crime in provinces such as Northland, Hipkins said it was important to focus on the underlying causes, rather than taking a punitive approach.

“There are 8 to 12-year-old kids getting involved in ram raids. I don’t want to see them locked up for the rest of their lives... We want to create a future for them that they can look forward to.”

Hipkins wanted to see programmes that give support, including one called Circuit Breaker, where inter-agency support was offered to troubled youths, stopping reoffending in 75% of cases.

The coalition Government’s boot camps now include nine months of intensive, Circuit Breaker-like support to help turn lives around, with the boot camps themselves not offering any solutions, he said.

Hipkins also weighed in on discussions about healthcare in Northland, saying there was no excuse for the first stage of the Whangārei Hospital rebuild not to happen.

Labour funded $759 million for the first part of the rebuild in November 2022 and made a commitment to stage two, although the funding was not set aside due to the opportunity cost of funding so far ahead, he explained.

“We committed to rebuilding the hospital and [current Health Minister] Shane Reti, in opposition, said it should happen and now he’s gone very quiet as a minister because the Government has basically cut the funding for hospital builds.

“I hope that he will follow through and actually ensure the hospital that he said was a good idea does actually get delivered.”

Hipkins said he would also like to see more doctors trained in New Zealand to meet the health workforce shortage, by making spaces in New Zealand’s two medical schools.

Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.