18 Thursday <strong>June</strong> 8 <strong>2017</strong> Latest Christchurch news at www. .kiwi <strong>The</strong> <strong>Star</strong> 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. <strong>The</strong>re 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. <strong>The</strong>se 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. <strong>The</strong> 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! <strong>The</strong>y grow their roots, push up the pavers, damage footpaths and roads. And still the council plant them on our footpaths, along our streets. <strong>The</strong>ir 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. <strong>The</strong> 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. <strong>The</strong> 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. <strong>The</strong> 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
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Star</strong> Latest Christchurch news at www. .kiwi Thursday <strong>June</strong> 8 <strong>2017</strong> 19 CHCH FANZONE CRUSADERS v THE BRITISH & IRISH LIONS 10 JUNE <strong>2017</strong> POPLAR STREET FROM 5PM BE THERE. BE HEARD. ccc.govt.nz/chchhostcity
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