Letters to the editor: Tourism, Saudi Arabia, Dilworth College

Hikers in the southern crater of the Tongariro Crossing. The number of hikers has increased enormously and the route is overcrowded. Photo / Mike Scott

Rules around tourists
Most of the people believe that we need to restrict future tourists visiting our country, but there are many problems with this. This could be done by voting, but that would require a bureaucracy to make decisions about who can come and then someone would have to decide whether or not a visitor who calls family or comes here mainly for business is a tourist. The other way to choose tourists is to let them in after paying an prohibitively high fee, which would mean that tourists to New Zealand are just wealthy tourists and stop everyone else. Such a high fee could deter families and backpackers from coming here.

Sarah Bennett (Herald Canvas on Saturday) makes a lot of excellent points with her look at the tourism report of the Environment Commissioner.

One thing that both she and the Commissioner bypass, however, is the current $ 35 entrance fee, which is charged to all tourists except Australians and islanders in the Pacific. If that fee were to be greatly increased, to say $ 350, it wouldn’t stop many tourists at all. But it would put a ton of money into enabling DoC to improve access and also properly fund local councils to provide facilities and proper police freedoms for campers of local and foreign origins.

Along with stalls allowing the number of daily tourists at pressure points such as Milford Road, Mt Cook and Tongariro Crossing (and fees should be charged for non-New Zealanders), the number of tourists in these areas could be limited, thereby solving many problems the problems we have met with overseas tourist pressures.

Many overseas countries suffer from overtourism in some areas and are taking steps to prevent it.

John Potter
Takapuna

Jet engines and Air NZ
Fran O’Sullivan questioned the moving sand of the kerfuffle of the Air NZ / Saudi Arabia engine.

Did anyone jump into high positions before realizing that the Saudis in the Yemen conflict have nine other Gulf State and Middle Eastern countries on their side and are supported by Great Britain and the US Navy? And before we find out that we deal close to half a billion dollars a year in Saudi Arabia alone.

Shall we also review our dealings with Air NZ or other countries with all of these countries?

Nick Nicholas
Auckland

Dilworth School
I read Dr. Selvaraj’s letter describing Dilworth School as a “national disgrace”. The abuse and “cover-up” I read in the newspapers was shocking and sad to read. However, courageous people have stood up in many schools and institutions to speak out about their abusive treatment and this is no reason to close Dilworth.

Needs are changing and although there are no longer war widows to raise their sons, there are still many families with children in need !! Some single parents, some with both parents.

There is no “pushing for attention”. Applications are made in writing, financial situations are disclosed and interviews with children and parents follow. After that, a child can be offered one of the limited places.

Our four grandchildren received great education in Dilworth and later made great citizens. A Lance Corporal in the Army, a health science graduate, a sixth year medical student, and the youngest hoping to join the police force.

We cannot speak highly enough of the staff and teachers. “Support continued, family and educational development” never questioned.

Close the door? I do not believe that.

Lesley O’Connell
Henderson

More houses needed
When columnists from left (Chloe Swarbick) right (Matthew Hooton) and middle (Brian Fallow) say that poverty cannot be alleviated, let alone eliminated, while the current high levels of homelessness or inadequate housing conditions persist, there is concern. And they more or less agree that Labor is not doing enough to fix the problem.

For all of Treasury Secretary Grant Robertson’s talk of complexity, Labour’s goal is simply to slow the rise in house prices … which are increasingly falling short of average annual earnings. Affordable housing for first time buyers shouldn’t be the priority. It should get people from motels, garages, cars, etc. to warm, dry homes. The number of new apartments has to be massively increased: state houses, community halls, commercial housing estates, iwi trusts, etc.

A long term commitment by this government to do so will give builders the confidence to take in apprentices and plan for the long term.

Bob van Ruyssevelt
Glendene

Inoculate the Pacific
I would like to see our government guarantee the Covid vaccine to the approximately 350,000 residents of the Cook Islands, Tonga, Western Samoa, Niue and Tokelau as soon as they are available to New Zealanders.

That would be an aid program worth supporting.

Larry Tompkins
Waiuku

Obesity health problems
After reading letters to the editor – July 4, 2019, June 16, 2019, and October 3, 2019 regarding obesity in New Zealand – it seems that even if orthopedic surgeons raise the problems of excessive number of knee surgeries due to morbid obesity, it appears that the hospitals and the future explosion in diabetes caused by both the government and the New Zealand public are now accepting this important health problem as the norm.

A few years ago I was waiting in preparation for urgent spinal stricture surgery and the nurses apologized for the long delays when the surgeon and team of staff tried to “close” the previous patient who was overly obese and struggled to keep the extreme fat under control. I sat on a table for an extra hour wondering how my surgeon could do my serious surgery after working so hard that late evening.

When will the government find out that both orthopedic surgeons and hospitals are unable to cope with the massive increase in diabetes-related diseases, orthopedic surgery, and gastric surgery?

The medical profession has already collapsed at the seams with Covid. So where is this government’s campaign to drastically reduce the problem of obesity?

Barry Cairns
Greenlane, Auckland

Get up, Australia
I would like to reply to the article by Heather du Plessis-Allan in the Herald of February 21 on Sunday. Our Prime Minister Jacinda didn’t play in front of her voters. Australia had made it clear that they did not want the woman to return to Australia. Scott Morrison said Australia’s safety is his top priority, which is fair enough, but that does not excuse Australians’ less transparent handling of the situation and does not absolve them of their responsibilities.

It is evident that the woman has more connections with Australia than with New Zealand. She moved to Australia when she was 6 years old. She used her Australian passport to travel. She speaks with an Australian accent. She was radicalized in Australia. Take responsibility Australia. It is your responsibility not in New Zealand. Jacinda is angry and rightly so.

Mindy Cheung
Pakuranga

Trump is fading
With the impeachment process of Donald Trump completed, the Biden administration can heal a troubled economy and face the ravages of Covid-19 that Trump did not. At a turbulent time in the USA. History, Joseph Biden, despite his years willingly stepped up to stop the destruction of democratic principles and the denigration of common law.

Have there ever been two opposing presidents with such different personalities? The Republican Party is likely to split and reform as a mainstream movement committed to the democratic process isolates the autocratic Trump faction with a radical base. Trump’s euphoria since the Senate acquittal could be short-lived as he faces multiple lawsuits. His problems might just unfold.

PJ Edmondson
Tauranga

Texas collapse
The collapse of Texas’ power and water infrastructure is illuminating to us. The U.S. pent-up expense estimate ($ 3 trillion) converts to $ 10,000 for every man, woman, and child in America.

On a comparable per capita basis, our bill to catch up on our spending on electricity, water and road facilities would be $ 50 billion.

It is to be hoped that this worst-case scenario will never occur in our country.

Larry Mitchell
Rothesay Bay

Actions by the MPs of the Greens
When the actions of a political party or one of its MPs are poorly received by the public, the standard tactic is to create a distraction. Is it a coincidence that Golriz Ghahraman did a song and dance about Air NZ at the same time as his colleague Ricardo Mendez March, who left NZ during the Covid restrictions, happened to be returning on the same flight as his partner from Mexico, who is here for one night? Six month stay in terms of residency while citizens wait months for MIQ rooms.

J Leighton
Devonport