Ashburton Courier: March 12, 2020

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Page 34, Ashburton's The Courier, Thursday March 12, 2020 Local news at www.starnews.co.nz Ashburton mayor Neil Brown An honour investinginour district'sfuture Sitting around the council table is an immense privilege and one that brings agreat deal of responsibility – not only for our district as it is now but also for generations to come. The Ashburton District is very fortunate to have a number of crucial projects under way that will help set us up for the future and I'm honoured to be apart of the decisionmaking team that helps brings those projects to life. Mayor Neil Brown Idon't need to explain how important road safety is to our community, and our Speed Limit Review which closed for consultation last Sunday has been an opportunity to make positive outcomes for our people. More than 150 people and organisations have had their say on proposed changes to our road speeds, which is really pleasing to see. The council is now processing these submissions and will hold ahearing on April 2for those who want to speak to their submission, before afinal decision on our speeds is made on May 21. The future of the commercial heart of our district is also developing before our eyes, with Cass Street undergoing the first leg of upgrades as part of the CBD Streetscape Revitalisation project. Until now, progress has largely remained underground with new drinking water, storm and sewer pipes, but this week will see the first of the above ground upgrades getting under way. Across the way in Baring Square East, the new Ashburton Library and Civic Centre is also offering exciting and muchneeded upgrades for our district. Amodern library with room for performance areas, achildren's discovery centre and recording studio, as well as Importance Level 4 construction standards to house our local Civil Defence Emergency Operations Centre, and environmentally sustainable design features are all included in the new build. Draft development plans for the Ashburton Domain are now also out for consultation, and it was great to see lots of people popping over to speak to staff and councillors at the open day in the domain on the weekend. This 30year plan really is all about the future and ensuring we're making enhancements that will support our community down the track. Remember to have your say on the draft proposals by April 5. Of course, not all of our projects are confined to Ashburton: the Rakaia Salmon Site upgrades are coming along, with work on the toilets starting this month. This project will be abig upgrade for this important facility, especially given its prominence for tourists as they enter into our district across the Rakaia bridge. There are many projects taking our district forward, ensuring we can meet future demands. Labour List MP Jo Luxton Making sure everychild living in New Zealandcan thrive When Ivisit schools here in Mid Canterbury, Isee so many children full of energy. Ilike to think that’s because each of them has the essentials –enough to eat, warm clothes and sturdy shoes, and aplace to call home. They have what they need to thrive. But sadly that’s not true for every child. Around 150,000 New Zealand children (13 per cent of them) live in material hardship. That means having to go without six or more things most people consider essential. Not far off half of those 150,000 children live in severe material hardship, which is worse. They’re forced to get by without nine or more of the basics. Child poverty in New Zealand is completely unacceptable. We know we won’t eliminate it overnight, but we’ve laid the foundations for change, and we’re starting to turn things around. Last week, Statistics New Zealand released the latest figures on child poverty in New Zealand. These showed that over the past year we’ve lifted 18,400 children out of poverty. And in that time seven out of nine child poverty measures have shown improvement, where before seven out of nine had worsened. Iknow we still have along way to go. But it’s good to see we’re taking positive steps as acountry. Thousands of children, just like the ones Ivisit here in Ashburton, now have more energy to learn and play at school, because their parents are finding it alittle easier to get by – thanks to our government’s policies. That makes me pretty grateful. In future years we’re likely to see more improvement, too. Since we came into office we’ve introduced our Families Package, we’re steadily lifting the minimum wage, and very soon we’ll index main benefits to wage growth. The Families Package alone is forecast to lift up to 74,000 children out of poverty over the next few years. Minimum wage increases help tens of thousands of kids and their parents across the country. And the Children’s Commissioner has said indexing benefits like we are is the single best thing the Government can do to combat child poverty. When more families feel financially secure, fewer children go without. That’s why we’ll keep doing everything we can to lift incomes and reduce the cost of living for Kiwi families. Every child has huge potential. But they can’t fulfil it without the basics. That’s why this government’s work to lift children out of poverty is so important.
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Ashburton Courier: March 12, 2020

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