The Star

18 Thursday June 8 2017
Latest Christchurch news at www. .kiwi
The Star
Viewpoint
Well-deserved Jim
THERE IS one name
on this year’s Queen’s
Birthday Honours
List that I want to
especially celebrate.
And that name is
James Patrick Anderton.
Jim’s political exploits and
achievements on the national
stage are well known. But it’s
the local achievements of a man,
who understands to his very core
that all politics are local, which
I want to acknowledge. What
he saw in his own street and
throughout his electorate shaped
his views.
I was 10-years-old when
Jim became my local member
of Parliament. I still vividly
remember in 1984 watching Jim
holding a street corner meeting
outside our Spreydon family
home.
There was a buzz about that
election and I was captivated by
the idea that it had come to our
street. I was also pretty stoked
that someone I had seen on the
telly was standing outside our
house.
Throughout my childhood, I
watched a man with immense
courage and conviction stand
up for the people he represented.
These were hard times for many
in south Christchurch, as the
Addington rail yards closed and
other jobs disappeared. It was
these people that Jim stood up
for. No issue was too small for
Jim to get involved in.
When the council came up
with a plan to cut down the trees
in our street a group of local
residents, including my mum,
called in Jim. He came and met
with everyone and today those
trees are still standing.
When I began volunteering
on Jim’s campaigns in the
late 1990s, I met a kind and
caring man for whom political
decisions never seemed overly
tortured.
He knows what is right and
what is wrong. From Jim, I
have learnt many things –
among them the importance
of local people and what it is to
represent your neighbours, the
need to take a stand and to be
unwavering in your convictions.
Well done and thank you Jim
from all of us.
•Megan Woods is Labour’s
Canterbury spokeswoman
Mackenzie Kane had
given up on ever seeing her
little dog Baxter again. Yet
somehow the 10-year-old
bichon frise was returned
home after being lost for
more than a year
Denise Kerr – My son’s
[dog]went missing for a few
hours and we were devastated. I
can’t imagine what it was like for
a year. So pleased you have your
[dog] home. I bet he is too.
Coral Douglas – How can
someone keep a dog that doesn’t
belong to them. Did they not
think of the family in pain
missing their beloved family
member?
Snuggle Inn Boarding
Kennels – Another happy
story. Enjoy having your cute
boy Baxter home.
WELCOME HOME:
Mackenzie Kane’s
little dog Baxter.
PHOTO: MARTIN HUNTER
Caryll Craig – Look at
that face. I bet someone else
thought he was beautiful too and
‘borrowed’ him for a while.
The city council said
they will fix the cracked
and uneven tiles in Akaroa
township after pensioner
Sue Stewart tripped and
grazed her face
Dale Bradley-Page –
Good on you. So pleased your
injuries weren’t much worse.
You could have had a nasty
broken wrist or hip. Councils
spend too much time making
reports on what needs doing
instead of just getting on with
doing it.
Maree Clayton – Look
what’s planted there. Trees!
They grow their roots, push up
the pavers, damage footpaths
and roads. And still the council
plant them on our footpaths,
along our streets. Their leaves
block storm water drainage and
gutters.
Kim Mckinley – Good on
her, everyone needs to get on
board with this, it’s disgusting in
any town/city and so dangerous
for the elderly and mums with
prams.
Survey shows our well-being ‘continues to improve’
THE REGENERATION process
often focuses on physical things
– land, housing, infrastructure
and facilities – but the health
and well-being of the people
of greater Christchurch is even
more important.
That’s why the Canterbury
District Health Board and Ministry
of Health closely monitor
our social recovery. A key aspect
of the monitoring process is
CDHB’s Canterbury well-being
survey.
The survey monitors perceptions
of recovery and identifies
trends in the community’s wellbeing.
I’m pleased to say the latest
survey, released on Tuesday,
shows the well-being of greater
Christchurch residents continues
to improve.
As part of my ongoing commitment
to keeping the community
as up-to-date as possible, the
most recent Greater Christchurch
Dashboard features data
Nicky Wagner
from the well-being survey.
It shows 82 per cent of respondents
– or more than eight
out of 10 – rate their quality of
life positively, unchanged from
April 2016, but up from 74 per
cent in September 2012. The proportion
of people who say their
quality of life has deteriorated
also remains unchanged from
April 2016, at 13 per cent.
Stress is still a factor in greater
Christchurch, with 72 per cent
saying they’ve experienced some
negative stress in the last 12
months, but significantly fewer
are indicating distress and anxiety
associated with aftershocks,
or being in a damaged environment/surrounded
by construction
work (11 and 10 per cent
respectively). In the early days
after the quakes, these figures
were much higher – 42 and 30
per cent respectively.
The data tells us that although
there are definitely still earthquake-related
stressors in greater
Christchurch, the situation is
improving over time. Fewer
people are affected by ongoing
insurance and rebuild issues and
more people are responding to
tangible signs of progress.
Everyone in Greater Christchurch
has been stretched over the
last six years – we know that from
our own experiences and talking
to friends and family. A survey
like this provides a bigger, clearer
picture of our overall experience
and I think many people will be
reassured by the results.
•Nicky Wagner is
Minister supporting Greater
Christchurch Regeneration