Exactly 75 years ago today, Superman made his debut in "Action Comics" No. 1. Campaigners for the restoration of the Christchurch Cathedral are "thrilled" that rebuilding the earthquake-damaged church remains on the table. The Press reports Christchurch's hotel shortage is so critical that at times visitor centre staff have had to put tourists up in their own homes.
What does leadership look like in a disaster? David compares Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown's leadership this week with how Bob Parker and Lianne Dalziel coped with the Christchurch earthquakes and terror attacks. He looks at how current Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger's council is faring and whether reality meets the rhetoric and what's happened to the city's Metro Sports facility, one of the anchor projects in the rebuild.
The government's looking overseas to get more hands on deck to help with the rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle. A new short-term Recovery Visa will bring in specialist foreign workers through a similar pathway used after the Christchurch and Kaikoura earthquakes. The visas will be fast-tracked with officials aiming to get applications through within seven days. Corn Dann spoke with immigration minister Michael Wood.
A panel with Michael Bell, Steph Walker and Kiri Jarden. It’s almost 13 years since the devastating earthquake of 22 February 2011, which forced 70 percent of the Ōtautahi Christchurch CBD to be demolished. While the rebuild has been a slow and often difficult process in visions meeting reality, there is also much to celebrate in the city taking up the opportunity, through art and design, to remake it as a place for all.
Businesses in the Christchurch suburb of New Brighton say something needs to be done urgently to pull the area out of an economic slump. The seaside town has struggled since the Canterbury Earthquakes, with thousands of people - and customers - leaving the area due to land damage under their homes. And they're pointing the fingers at city leaders like the Christchurch City Council and its rebuild agency, Development Christchurch. Logan Church spoke to New Brighton business owner Nigel Gilmore.
The Week In Review for week ending 12 August 2011... featuring a new rebuild plan for Christchurch's earthquake ravaged CBD, problems at the Waikato-Tainui Tribal Parliament, a pricing fiasco surrounding the Adidas All Blacks Rugby World Cup jersey, the Mana party confirms it will contest all seven Maori seats and some general seats in November's general election, the renaming of Mt Cook's South Ridge to The Hillary Ridge and the White Mouse passes away.
In half an hour, the first passenger train since the devastating Kaikoura earthquake will depart Picton for Christchurch. The 7.8 earthquake that struck the region in 2016 ripped up much of the scenic Coastal Pacific railway - sweeping kilometres of tracks out to sea and buried beneath slips. The rebuild of the railway line has taken two years and the efforts of nearly 1700 workers. Todd Moyle is KiwiRail's acting chief executive. He talks to Susie Ferguson.
A Christchurch couple locked in an ongoing legal battle with state-owned quake insurer Southern Response says it is sobering for a Court of Appeal decision to go their way, one decade on from the harrowing earthquakes. An earlier High Court decision found Southern Response guilty of misleading and deceptive behaviour when it short-changed Karl and Alison Dodds tens of thousands of dollars after their quake damaged house was written off. The Dodds say they were tricked into accepting a lower offer from Southern Response only to later discover the insurer had kept secret from them a second higher estimate to rebuild their damaged house, a so-called second secret detailed repair and rebuild analysis (DRA). The High Court ordered Southern Response to pay the Dodds almost $180,000 in damages, plus costs. But the government appealed the decision, saying it needed clarity, because of the thousands of similar cases it could be liable for. The Court of Appeal reduced the damages Southern Response has to pay $10,656.44 due to an earlier error in calculations. The Minister responsible Grant Robertson has declined to be interviewed. Southern Response also declined to be interviewed. Neither have ruled out appealing the decision in the Supreme Court.
The much loved 'Dux de Lux' pub in Christchurch could be set to open its doors again in the next few years if enough money can be raised to restore it. The building was badly damaged by the earthquake in 2011 and a group looking to rebuild the pub say it could take around 12 million dollars to see it welcoming Cantabrians back. James Stewart of Gemelli Consulting had a yarn with Nathan Rarere about a couple of schemes to raise the money.
The bill to fix botched EQC repairs from the Canterbury earthquakes has hit $270 million - four times what the previous Government predicted just two years ago. The Minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission, Megan Woods, has asked Treasury to urgently crunch some figures to give the Government an idea of its future liability, with many experts warning thousands more homes may be affected. The former Canterbury Rebuild Minister Gerry Brownlee, who was in the job for six years until a year ago, speaks to Guyon Espiner.
We're broadcasting today from Christchurch on the second anniversary of the six point three magnitude earthquake which devastated this city. One hundred and eighty five died in the quake and today at midday a memorial service will be held in Latimer Square. After two years, the pace of the rebuild is growing, but for some, so is frustration. More than seven thousand property owners in the residential red zone received a buyout offer from the government. Most of those have taken it - but there are a few who haven't.
A review of the week's news including: Continuing industrial trouble at Ports Of Auckland, the National Road Policing manager Paula Rose on holiday road toll figures, Southland faces drought conditions, researchers come up with a solution that could lower the cost of rebuilding the earthquake devastated Christchurch CBD, a 24 year old woman with autism wins a 2011 attitude award for raising awareness of the condition, New Zealand Tasman Sea rowers hope to finally make some progress and how they celebrate New year at the bottom of the World.
As the fourth anniversary of the earthquake which devastated Christchurch approaches, the slow pace of the rebuild has surprised many. But how quickly have other earthquake hit cities returned to their former glory? Radio New Zealand Christchurch reporter, Rachel Graham, visited Japan for an Insight documentary to compare the progress made in the Sendai area, almost four years after it was hit by a magnitude 9 earthquake and a mega tsunami. She also visited Kobe to look at the impact on that city, and the lessons learnt, 20 years after it was hit by a major earthquake.
Topics - it's been described as the 'Downton Effect' - a revival of more formal dinner parties as the British try to bring back fine dining. Today we learned that insurance companies have completed just 15 per cent of rebuilds and 10 per cent of over-cap repairs more than three years after the Canterbury earthquakes. A series of rallies are being held in five Australian cities today by New Zealanders protesting against legislation which denies them rights to welfare. Commuters are cautiously optimistic about a radical revamp proposed for Wellington's rush-hour rail service.
It's been a long, long wait but Christchurch's Arts Centre finally has a contemporary art gallery space again - and it's just opened. It's the latest 'reveal' in the Arts Centre post-earthquake rebuild. The new gallery's called The Central and is housed in the original Canterbury College Library. Four Christchurch families and gallerist Jonathan Smart have made it happen and artists including local sculptor Neil Dawson, photographer Peter Peryer, glitter specialist Reuben Patterson and painter Dick Frizzell are in the mix for the opening group show. There are some new names there too. Lynn Freeman speaks to The Central's Jonathan Smart and Ngai Tahu artist Lonnie Hutchinson who has work in the opening show.
Nine to Noon continues to look at who's in the running to head up our biggest cities after local elections in October, with a focus today on the 11 candidates vying to be mayor of Christchurch. Three-term mayor Lianne Dalziel announced last July she'd be stepping down as mayor, having overseen nearly a decade's worth of the city's rebuild following the devastating earthquakes. The two major contenders for the role are Burwood city councillor Phil Mauger and former Canterbury District Health Board chief executive David Meates. Other contenders include the city's Wizard, a coffee boss, pro-gun pastor and a candidate who's stood in every election since 1971. For more, Kathryn is joined by David Williams, the South Island correspondent for Newsroom.co.nz.
Topics - ready with the pumps at last this time, but thankfully not as much rain - so far - as feared for people in the low-lying Flockton Basin in Christchurch. Labour's proposing a special court be set up just to deal with earthquake insurance claims, as part of a policy around the Christchurch rebuild. The policy would see an Earthquake Court established to try to speed up the settling of 9,755 outstanding "over cap" insurance claims. John Banks will be gone by Friday from Parliament, at the behest of the ACT party with a gentle nudge from the Nats as well. The PM thinks it's a joke that the Civilian political party, run by Ben Uffindell and named after his satirical webite, will receive $33,000 of taxpayer funding for the coming election.
A review of the week's headline news including: 123 jobs at KiwiRail's engineering workshops in Dunedin hang in the balance; SkyCity's Chief Executive is defending gaming options at its Auckland casino; orthopaedic surgeons say they're working hard to determine exactly how many New Zealanders have a hip replacement system that's been recalled; tobacco companies are vowing to fight a government plan to remove branding from cigarette packets; the rebuild of central Christchurch has been taken out of the control of the City Council and will now be managed by a newly formed unit within the Government's Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA); Trade Me's decision to open up the site to overseas retailers is ruffling a few feathers and; Hamilton singer Kimbra's hit number one in the US.
Questions to Ministers 1. AMY ADAMS to the Minister of Finance: How many claims does the Earthquake Commission expect to receive as a result of the earthquakes in Canterbury since 4 September 2010? 2. Hon PHIL GOFF to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that "rebuilding Christchurch is a key priority for the Government this year"; if so, what rebuilding plans are currently in place? 3. METIRIA TUREI to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: Does she stand by her statement that state support is for "people to fall back on when they really need it"? 4. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that New Zealanders were "more than compensated" for last year's increase in GST? 5. NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: How is her Ministry responding to support the Christchurch recovery following last month's earthquake? 6. JACINDA ARDERN to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his answers to Oral Question number one on 8 March 2011; if not, why not? 7. AARON GILMORE to the Minister of Corrections: What support has the Department of Corrections provided to the people of Christchurch following last month's earthquake? 8. Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM to the Minister of Finance: How much has he budgeted to raise from the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal and has this figure been revised in light of the Japanese earthquake? 9. JO GOODHEW to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What work will the New Zealand Urban Search and Rescue team be carrying out in Japan? 10. Hon SHANE JONES to the Minister of Transport: Does he stand by his statement that the $300 million bill for restoring the Christchurch road network won't be causing any "dramatic issues" and what is his timeframe for the completion of this work? 11. COLIN KING to the Minister of Transport: What work has been done to repair and reopen Christchurch's roads and highways following the 22 February earthquake? 12. Hon STEVE CHADWICK to the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage: Has he had any discussions with the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery about heritage buildings or recovering cultural artefacts from buildings damaged by the earthquake on 22 February; if so, what did he say to the Minister?
The David and Goliath battle over a heritage building sitting in the way of a planned $473 million dollar, multi-use arena for Christchurch has ended up in court. The 25,000-seated, roofed arena is the final anchor project for the Christchurch rebuild and will be designed to host everything from All Blacks tests to big concerts. But sitting on the edge of the site, at 212 Madras Street, is the NG Building, a 115-year old warehouse that's home to a number of creative businesses. It escaped the worst of the 2011 earthquake and was strengthened by its owners: Roland Logan and Sharon Ng. They say they were told in 2013 the building could be incorporated into the arena's design, and are at loggerheads over its compulsory acquisition. Last week they were at the High Court seeking an injunction that would allow them to temporarily maintain ownership of the building, and that decision was released yesterday - and upheld. Roland joins Kathryn to discuss why they hope the building can be saved.
It was so nearly lost. As the Christ Church Anglican Cathedral is being rebuilt, historian Edmund Bohan is releasing a history of the distinctive Gothic building. It shows it was controversial even before work started on designing it, let alone building in. From the laying of the foundations to the official opening, it took 40 years, after squabbles over pretty much every aspect of its construction - not to mention the huge problems raising the money to build it in the City Centre. In Heart of the City: The Story of Christchurch's Controversial Cathedral, Edmund is critical of the former Anglican Bishop Victoria Matthews' determination to demolish the badly-damaged cathedral after the Canterbury earthquakes, to replace it with a modern church. And he tells Lynn Freeman he's very much looking forward to seeing the Cathedral restored to its former glory after a lengthy and pricey rebuild. But first he sets the scene. Back in the 1860s, there was controversy over where the cathedral should go, its design, whether it should be in stone or timber - even if there should be a cathedral built at all! Heart of the City: The Story of Christchurch's Controversial Cathedral, by Edmund Bohan is published by Quentin Wilson Publishing.
A review of the week's news including... Laila Harre says she is returning to politics to lead the Internet Party because young people, in particular, have been ignored by politicians, Kim Dotcom's US lawyer says a bid by Hollywood's movie studios to have the Internet businessman's assets frozen here is a bid to ensure Mr Dotcom can't win in court in the United States, Fiordland's controversial 240 million dollar monorail is scrapped by the Conservation Minister, documents show WorkSafe New Zealand was still grappling to get on top of asbestos dangers in the Christchurch rebuild nearly two years after the February 2011 earthquake, a train smashes into a concrete barrier at a Lower Hutt station, the New Zealand First leader accuses a South Auckland Maori trust of mis-spending of hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayers money, the associate Immigration Minister stands by her decision not to intervene to allow a Fijian man with kidney failure who has since died in Fiji to stay in New Zealand for treatment, a British writer and academic's use of creative writing to help rehabilitate young offenders and sheep on a farm in Queenstown are being covered in a repellent spray to stop them being eaten alive by Kea.
Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers? DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements? MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What measures is the Government taking to help increase national savings? Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: What reports has he received about the extent of fraud allegations in the Christchurch rebuild? Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Is he confident that the Government's initiative to provide "Better, Sooner, More Convenient" health care, is meeting his expectations; if not, why not? MARK MITCHELL to the Minister for Economic Development: What progress is being made in encouraging firms to invest in New Zealand through the Business Growth Agenda? PHIL TWYFORD to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements? DAVID BENNETT to the Associate Minister of Transport: What recent announcements has he made on transport safety? Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Will he extend the deadline for residential red zone property owners who have been offered only 50 percent of rating valuation for their land? SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister of Justice: What recent report has she received showing that crime is falling under this Government? METIRIA TUREI to the Minister of Education: Will she wait until the Chief Ombudsman's investigation of the Ministry of Education's processes on school closures is complete before making a final decision on the Salisbury and Christchurch school closures? GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister responsible for the GCSB: Did GCSB Director Ian Fletcher attend the three briefings he received from GCSB in February 2012; if not, which, if any, of the briefings did Ian Fletcher attend?
METIRIA TUREI to the Minister of Education: In relation to the proposed school closures in Christchurch, does she agree with Manning Intermediate head Richard Chambers that "The Minister promised us that we would have two years no matter what. It was a guarantee she made to our community repeatedly, it was unequivocal"? MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the New Zealand economy? DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers? Dr CAM CALDER to the Minister of Education: In the context of the Government's Christchurch schools announcement, what is the process going forward? Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for Building and Construction: Does he believe that the contracting system currently used in the construction industry works appropriately and fairly in circumstances of insolvency; if so, why? NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: What progress is being made on making the Christchurch city centre safe for rebuilding? IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements on withdrawing troops from Afghanistan? TIM MACINDOE to the Minister of Science and Innovation: How is the Government focussing New Zealand's science funding investment, and encouraging Kiwis to get involved in science? DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements? ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector: What recent announcements has she made regarding government support for volunteering? EUGENIE SAGE to the Minister of Local Government: Does he have any concerns about the Hawkes Bay Regional Council's forecast of 530 percent increase in its debt by 2021/22? Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he still have confidence in the Associate Minister of Health; if so, why?
Questions to Ministers 1. AMY ADAMS to the Minister of Finance: What will be the focus of the Budget on 19 May? 2. Hon PHIL GOFF to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements on the sale of State-owned assets? 3. SHANE ARDERN to the Minister of Customs: What recent reports has he received regarding interceptions of methamphetamine by Customs officers at the border? 4. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that "we've done as good a job as we can in the conditions we've got to try and help low-income New Zealanders"? 5. KEITH LOCKE to the Minister of Defence: Has New Zealand's SAS detained anyone during its operations or joint operations with other forces, since being redeployed to Afghanistan in 2009? 6. Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that "I have seen almost no criticism of the Government's plan to rebalance the economy" given the statement from the Chair of the 2025 Taskforce, Don Brash, that "There is certainly no evidence yet that current policies will deliver the kind of accelerated growth we need"? 7. NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: What process will the Government use to rebuild and restore damaged infrastructure in Canterbury? 8. Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Is he satisfied that the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act 2011 provides him with all the powers necessary to facilitate the recovery of Canterbury? 9. Hon JOHN BOSCAWEN to the Minister of Finance: By how much has Government expenditure increased as a percentage of GDP since he became Minister of Finance? 10. DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in his Minister of Foreign Affairs? 11. KATRINA SHANKS to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: Why has the Government announced a Green Paper on how we value, nurture and protect children? 12. Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Prime Minister: Is he still committed to "ensuring our schools are working for all students", and is he satisfied his Government has done enough to ensure that every child has equal access to a low-cost public education? CLAUDETTE HAUITI to the Minister of Finance: What steps has the Government taken to turn around the Treasury's forecast net Government debt? METIRIA TUREI to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements? Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: Does he agree with Infometrics that after the Canterbury rebuild peaks, the New Zealand economy will experience a "hangover" with slow income and GDP growth? SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister of Justice: What justice initiatives has she announced to address family violence in New Zealand? DAVID SHEARER to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade: When did he first become aware of allegations that led to a Malaysian diplomat being charged with assault with the intent to commit rape and burglary, and what actions did he take? MARK MITCHELL to the Minister of Corrections: What recent announcements has she made on how technology can be used to better protect victims of domestic violence? JAN LOGIE to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Was he made aware of the wishes, if any, of the woman at the centre of the assault with intent to rape charges laid against a Malaysian diplomat, regarding his return to Malaysia; if so, when? JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister of Health: What investments has the Government made in health services for Taranaki? CHRIS HIPKINS to the Minister of Education: Is she satisfied that schools receive sufficient funding to deliver the New Zealand curriculum? KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI to the Minister for Food Safety: What recent announcements has she made regarding food labelling? DENIS O'ROURKE to the Minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission: Is he satisfied with the progress of the Earthquake Commission in the settlement or disposition of all claims in respect of multi-unit dwellings, arising from the Canterbury earthquake; if so, why?
Hon NANAIA MAHUTA to the Minister of Education: Is it still her strategy in education to "focus on teaching and learning quality" and "transparent accountabilities"? MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What progress is the Government making in supporting jobs and economic growth? EUGENIE SAGE to the Minister for the Environment: Does she stand by her statement that, "My preference will always be for all our sites to be safe for swimming"? CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Attorney-General: Who, other than himself and the Prime Minister, was present at the discussion on the Government Communications Security Bureau's unlawful surveillance of Mr Dotcom? NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: What reports has he received on the outlook for increased employment opportunities in the rebuilding of Greater Christchurch? Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he think it is important that his Ministers, including himself, come to the House prepared to give honest answers? DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: How will employers know whether a job applicant aged 18 or 19 has been receiving a benefit for 6 months or more in order to pay the Government's starting-out wage? TIM MACINDOE to the Minister for Social Development: What announcements has she made on the new Children's Teams which form part of the Government's White Paper for Vulnerable Children? Dr DAVID CLARK to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his comment that Government computer systems "can't actually support radical changes from Government"? Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister of Customs: How successful has SmartGate technology been at processing passengers at the border? CHRIS HIPKINS to the Minister of Education: How long will boards of trustees of the schools she proposes to close or merge in Christchurch have to consult with their local communities before they are required to provide feedback to her ahead of a final decision? CATHERINE DELAHUNTY to the Minister of Education: Does she stand by her statement to schools, about their obligation under the Official Information Act 1982, that, "New Zealand is an open and transparent democracy. They [schools] are required to release this information. You are public entities."?
1. Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Trade: Does he still consider that the United States will benefit from being part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership; if so, how? 2. Hon PHIL GOFF to the Prime Minister: Does he believe that all persons who have served as Ministers in his Government have met the requirement of the Cabinet Manual to behave in a way that upholds, and is seen to uphold, the highest ethical standards in their ministerial capacity, their political capacity and their personal capacity; if so, why? 3. CRAIG FOSS to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the Government's financial position? 4. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Tourism: How many full-time permanent jobs has his cycleway project created? 5. JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What progress has been made on the Ultra-fast broadband initiative? 6. Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Minister of Education: Which ministers, if any, did she personally consult with on the question of removing the requirement for police checks for employees of limited attendance early childhood centres before she introduced the Education Amendment Bill (No 2)? 7. AARON GILMORE to the Minister of Revenue: What examples can he give of families claiming social assistance for which they are not entitled and what has this Government done to stop this abuse? 8. Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister of Finance: How much lower will the growth forecast be for the year to March 2011 in the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update compared with the Budget 2010 forecast? 9. SHANE ARDERN to the Minister of Agriculture: What recent actions has the Government taken to improve the welfare of pigs in New Zealand? 10. Hon RUTH DYSON to the Minister of Health: Will he act to prevent closure of health services in Taihape? 11. AMY ADAMS to the Minister for Land Information: What steps has Land Information New Zealand taken to help in the rebuilding of Canterbury following the 4 September earthquake? 12. Hon DARREN HUGHES to the Minister of Transport: Which project has the higher benefit cost ratio: the Auckland CBD rail loop or the Puhoi to Wellsford Road of National Significance?
DAVID SHEARER to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Has the Government met the five criteria the Prime Minister laid out for proceeding with asset sales? Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Will New Zealanders have money taken from their bank accounts to fund a bank bailout under his proposed Open Bank Resolution scheme? TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on New Zealand's balance of payments? Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Does he stand by all his statements regarding "Better, Sooner, More Convenient" health care; if not, why not? MARK MITCHELL to the Minister of Police: What reports has she received from Police on the success of pre-charge warnings? PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister of Housing: Why did he tell the House that, even if the Auckland plan took effect in September, new subdivisions would not be available until 2016-17, when the advice he tabled from Roger Blakely of Auckland Council shows that if the unitary plan takes effect in September new land would be available two years earlier? ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for Social Development: How will the Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Bill back people off welfare and into work? GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements on the actions and involvement of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Government Communications and Security Bureau in Operation Debut? SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister of Health: What is the Government doing to extend access to free flu vaccines? METIRIA TUREI to the Minister for Social Development: Does she have an obligation, as Social Development Minister, to ensure all policy she is responsible for will be good for children and their families? Hon KATE WILKINSON to the Minister for Primary Industries: What announcement has he made on the drought in New Zealand? Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Have allegations of fraud and corruption involving Canterbury earthquake recovery and rebuild contracts been raised with him as Minister; if so, what specific steps has he taken to address them?
DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Finance: How is the Government's economic programme supporting stronger regional job growth? Hon SHANE JONES to the Minister of Commerce: Is he aware of demands being made by the Countdown supermarket group for retrospective payments from New Zealand suppliers, with threats Countdown will not stock their products? JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister for Economic Development: Why is the Government holding up economic development in Auckland's CBD, according to Auckland City officials, by delaying the opening of the City Rail Link until 2025? ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for Social Development: What reports has she received about the state of the nation in relation to social outcomes? DENIS O'ROURKE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Is he aware of any proposals to transport asbestos-contaminated material from the Christchurch rebuild to sub-standard landfills? Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Is he satisfied New Zealanders are receiving timely and affordable healthcare? MARK MITCHELL to the Minister of Housing: What reports has he received on positive progress being advanced on the Government's housing agenda? DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: Does he agree with the Prime Minister's statement on the minimum wage that "I think we've been pretty fair in what we've done in the past and we probably will be in the future"? CLAUDETTE HAUITI to the Minister of Science and Innovation: How are the National Science Challenges bringing together the best scientific talent across New Zealand? HONE HARAWIRA to the Minister for Economic Development: Will he commit to spending the $41m on reducing child poverty, after signalling that he might not now give that money to Team New Zealand to compete in the next America's Cup? Dr RAJEN PRASAD to the Minister of Immigration: When he said in response to an oral question on 29 January 2014 that it was "a pretty simple process…to alert immigration authorities", what was his understanding of the process a complainant would go through? CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Associate Minister of Transport: What progress is being made in improving road safety?