Along with many households affected by flooding in low-lying areas, there have been many that have been red-stickered due to landslips.
I wanted to pay tribute to the work done by Otago Civil Defence, the Dunedin City Council and the Otago Regional Council during this difficult time.
While it was a distressing time for many, I was encouraged to see all organisations work together in a fast and effective manner, to not only minimise the damage, but to also ensure the cleanup process wasn’t drawn out.
The DCC is working with affected households to help them access not only insurance claims, but also helping people access payments from Work and Income, to help cover food, clothing, bedding, accommodation, and in some cases a loss of income.
If you or anyone you know has been affected by the floods and is struggling to get assistance, then I encourage you to reach out to my electorate office for support. You can email Rachel.BrookingMP@parliament.govt.nz or call (03) 474-1973.
I must also pay tribute to the 35,000 people across Otago who turned out in protest of the new Dunedin hospital cuts just a couple of weeks ago.
Since then, we’ve seen more fight from the city, with the DCC purchasing an ambulance to drive around the region opposing the cuts, and silent protests like that of a resident who dressed as the Grim Reaper outside where the inpatients building is supposed to be getting built.
I encourage everyone to keep the heat on the current government to reverse its proposed cuts, including writing to southern government MPs, whose own constituents are desperate for a new hospital.
It’s been a real joy to be out and about across Dunedin in recent weeks with other Labour MPs. I was lucky to be able to meet several small businesses alongside finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds, before also meeting members from Business South.
I then attended several law-focused meetings alongside justice spokesperson Duncan Webb. These included a visit to Whakaparirau Ngā Taiohi Youth Justice and Community Law Otago.
Lastly, workplace relations and emergency management spokesperson Camilla Belich also visited, and was due to host a meeting on workers’ rights alongside Willie Jackson.
This, unfortunately, had to be cancelled due to the flooding, but we’ll be looking to reschedule this meeting in the coming months, so stay tuned.
