Labour focus on value-added jobs

"Every time we send away a raw log, we send away a real job."

Labour leader David Cunliffe headlined a regional development and jobs meeting to about 40 locals at the Frank Cody lounge at the Masterton Town Hall yesterday, part of an "away caucus" venture that brought all Labour MPs to Wairarapa for the day.

The MPs were split between three public meetings, covering jobs, health and housing.

Mr Cunliffe used his address to criticise the timber industry for sending logs to China to be processed and praised the dairy industry for developing powdered milk products.

He told the audience a Labour Government would give tax concessions to sawmills to spark the log-processing industry, which would encourage research and development.

Volume over value was key, said Mr Cunliffe, citing Fonterra as a company that understood converting milk into powdered milk for babies maximised resources for the company. "They get two thirds of their profit from 15 per cent of the milk."

Damien O'Connor, Labour Spokesman for Primary Industries, warned against rural New Zealand putting "all its eggs in one basket" by relying on dairy farming to keep the economy afloat.

He said that New Zealand farmers had to put more energy in developing other forms of farming and that the Labour Party would put their energies behind that process.

Mr Cunliffe finished his address by promising that a Labour Government would work alongside local government in a way that governments hadn't in the past. He talked about rural regions specialising in what they were best at and capitalising on that fact, giving the example of branding wine in Martinborough as the very best in New Zealand "like the French do".

"We won't just react to day-to-day markets, we plan to sit down with you and set a 10-year plan for business," Mr Cunliffe said.

Labour Party candidate for Wairarapa Kieran McAnulty said it had been an "excellent day", saying audiences were engaged and keen to express their views.

"It was not only an opportunity for the Labour MPs to express their views, but an opportunity to listen to the people of Wairarapa."

He said the housing meeting was "smaller" but robust.

Topics discussed included Labour's plan to create 100,000 homes over 10 years and the warrant of fitness policy for all rental homes, which National is trialing with 500 houses.

"I might point out, these are the guys, if elected, that will form the ministries in these particular topics," said Mr McAnulty.