Risk of separatism, says Mr Gerard

Press, 15 July 1985, Page 2

Risk of separatism, says Mr Gerard

Parliamentary reporter The feeling was growing that New Zealand was becoming a country with different standards, different laws and different opportunities, depending on one’s colour, said Mr Jim Gerard (Nat., Rangiora). People were asking whether New Zealand really did have one race, one creed, or whether the Government was creating two types of New Zealanders — one white and one nonwhite. Care must be taken to ensure the Maori language was not lost and that it was taught, he said. But at the same time New Zealanders had to recognise that there should be one basic language and that it should be English. Motueka port The Opposition was trying to make political capital out of the efforts of local authorities in Nelson and Motueka to solve the problem of Motueka Harbour, said Mr Phillip Woollaston (Lab., Nelson).

Proposals in new legislation came from the Waimea County Council and not, as the Opposition claimed, from the member for Tasman, Mr Ken Shirley.

Mr Woollaston it was wrong to suggest that a precedent would be set by making a local authority into a harbour board as well; he had been chairman of the Golden Bay County Council next door and it was already a harbour board. Land use

New Zealand had seen in the Budget a march from “big Government” to “bloated Government,” said Miss Ruth Richardson (Nat., Selwyn). The big winners had been administration and welfarism; the big losers had been those in land use. Government ignorance on agriculture was profound, she said, as evidenced by treating it as if it were an area that made a minimal contribution to the economy. Youth jobs In January, 1984, more than 10,000 school-leavers

were unemployed, said Mrs Margaret Austin (Lab., Yaldhurst). Today, 3700 school-leavers were out of work. The difference in the figures showed that the National Government had had no real interest in the young school-leaver. Many of the so-called programmes implemented by National for school-leavers had put up barriers to them and turned them away, she said. Fisheries

The Government had set out to destroy entire coastal communities with its fishing policies, said Mr Doug Kidd (Nat., Marlborough). Resource rentals were the Government’s way of taking another chop at the South Island as they would be imposed -mainly on South Island fisheries such as rock lobsters, oysters, and scallops, he said.