News from the Hutt Valley, Wellington

A great bit of ironic reporting from a local newspaper on the New Zealand election.

After a bit of gerrymandering the National Party is after longstanding MP, Trevor Mallard's seat.

Two major issues they want their way on are the Hutt River (which is showing signs of severe stress) and an Auckland-style amalgamation of the Wellington region councils.

More erosion of local autonomy, democracy and environmental protection from Wall Street's party.

Vote chase

By Jim Chipp

the Hutt News,

2 September, 2014

Queensgate asked gang members to cover their patches when at the shopping centre shoppers turned off by dirty politics will get no such relief from party rosehips.

The party colours were out in force at the mall on Saturday.

Prime Minister John Key headed a National Pary showing on the same day local labour MPs Chris Hipkins, Rimutaka, and Trevor Mallard, Hut South, fronted a Labour election campaign stall.

Mr.Key was accompanied by local candidates tLewsi Holder, Rimutaka, and Chris Bishop, Hutt South, Hutt South.

As young National party volunteers entered Queensgate they exchanged good-natured banter with the Labour supporters.

Asked whether they were allowed to fraternise with the enemy, Team Key volunteer Gareth responded by throwing an arm around Mr Mallad to show that they could disagree without animosity

Mr Key was scheduled to be there at exactly the same time as the Labour faction, but he was delayed by a press conference to announce the resignation of the Ministry of Justice, Judith Collins.

When he did appear more than two hours late he was marked by locals looking for selfies with the Prime Minister. Among them was Bernadette Barry of Upper Hutt who wanted him to sign a photo of the two together outside Parliament. Mrs. Barry said later she was actually a Labour voter.

A National party staffer joked that it was West Side Story playing out at Queensgate.

The Hutt News also provided an article providing an opportunities for parties to set out their policies on housing.

Conspicuous by the absence were the parties of the Right.

Key in the debate last night talked about all the houses they had built (without mentioning the state houses that have been demolished so the land can be sold to developers)

He said people could, if they want to, buy “second-hand houses” - something our own import from Wall Street is unlikely to do

No response from National

“National party Housing spokesman and Minister of housing, Nick Smith

did not respond to our request for a policy statement, but a spokeswoman demanded to know where Hutt news got the numbers of empty housing New Zealand properties.

“The Act party did not reply to our deadline”