Lottery for MIQ
The MIQ debate will continue to rage unless we identify the nubs of the problem: its fitness for the purpose, and the foolish concept making it a lottery was fair. Whoever decided this was suffering from MIQ (missing IQ). When resources are strained, the pecking
order should be determined by two things: the applicant's urgency of need, and their waiting time. A lottery for places is even worse than placing one-armed-bandits, junk food outlets, and grog shops in low-decile areas. It is indiscriminate.
As for fitness for the purpose, the ball was dropped more than a year ago, when the Government dismissed the idea of purpose-built MIQ facilities. That left us begging for both capacity and for the guaranteed filtration of breathing air. Purpose-built MIQ facilities would need to be within easy reach of international airports and would not become redundant. When no longer needed for pandemics, they could still serve as emergency accommodation.
Hugh Webb, Huntington.
Olympic letdown
Great anticipation and write-ups in the Herald, but we were so disappointed with the NZ team's appearance on television at the opening ceremony of the Games. We waited and watched, enjoying the spectacle of the teams coming in with their great enthusiasm, broad smiles and flag waving , acknowledging the stands, in their colourful outfits and obvious pride in their country. At last our team appeared. Oh dear! Drab black outfits, no smiles or flags and eyes fixed ahead as they walked past. No commentary either. What happened? Surely they were excited to be there?
Fairlie Blake, Waihī.
Light rail ludicrous
After wasting millions on reports, it defies logic how the Labour Government and Auckland Council could put forward such a ludicrous scheme for light rail. Look at the map. Heavy rail already goes to Onehunga, a few metre short of the Manukau harbour bridge. At great additional cost, this bridge was designed to carry trains via Onehunga over to Māngere and on to the airport and then link up with the Manukau city station. This would give Auckland an inner-city loop (nearly ready) and an outer southern metropolitan loop servicing a huge population base. Ignoring this vastly more affordable option would be completely loopy. Shame on minister Wood and if Labour pursues this financial folly it stands to loose a massive amount of voter support.
Ken Yallop, Titirangi.
Better transport options
John Roughan is right to question the expense (potentially $1 billion per kilometre) of light rail to the airport, especially as there are cheaper, but more effective options. Extending the heavy rail system from Wiri to Onehunga via the airport, with a simple connection to the proposed freight line from Avondale to Southdown at Onehunga would serve far more people. If the isthmus is to be densified, then the best form of mass transit is surface light rail. The best route would be Queen St, Dominion Rd, Richardson Rd, Maiora Rd, Sandringham Rd, New North Rd, Symonds St, then Queen St, with services in both directions. Although roads are popular, they are polluting. They require vast land, and GHG emissions aside, produce high levels of pollution from tyre dust. New rail station developments at Drury will require settling ponds just for the park and ride facilities. Public transport offers transport equity to the young, old, disabled, poor and those that cannot drive. We need less "me-want" cars.
Niall Robertson, Balmoral.
Update the Treaty
David Seymour's call to scrap the Treaty of Waitangi from NZ law could be considered, at first sight to be at the best, badly timed, and at the worst, racist. However, with the benefit of consideration, there is some merit in Seymour's suggestion.
The intentions of the Treaty are, fundamentally, quite clear — that NZ should be one country, one people, all equal under the law, and all afforded equal opportunities in life. To that end, the Treaty has been an almost complete failure. Having both a European and a Māori version of the Treaty has of course been extremely counter-productive to that end. History shows that the NZ European community had scant regard for the Treaty, in its early years, inflicting many wrongs and injustices on the Māori people.
In later years an effort has been made to right these wrongs, however, an ever-growing attitude of mea culpa, by our law makers, has led to an over-correction, with the pendulum having now swung heavily in the other direction. As a result of that, the Treaty is now being quoted almost ad nauseum — as if it is the panacea of all ills. Unfortunately it is far from that; it could in fact be considered, in many ways, to be "not fit for purpose''.
Perhaps it is now time to revisit the Treaty and update it, not only to correct the obviously inadequate legal aspects of it, but to also make it relevant for today's world — so that we can truly become "One People'', living together in harmony, to the benefit of each and every one of us. That is what the Treaty was meant to achieve, when unfortunately written so badly, all those years ago.
Philip Lenton, Somerville.
