News from Suze Redmayne

News from Suze Redmayne - August

06 Aug 2024

Suze Redmayne

Welcome to the August edition of News from Suze!

July provided a wonderful opportunity to spend quality time in the mighty Rangitīkei electorate, with three weeks of recess after a whirlwind of activity in Wellington.

In this issue -

Hon. Matt Doocey's visit to the Rangitīkei
Out and About in the Electorate July
Rural Exchange Podcast
Government News
Upcoming Public Events

Hon. Matt Doocey Visit: Championing Mental Health in the Rangitīkei

I recently had the pleasure of hosting Hon. Matt Doocey, New Zealand’s first-ever Minister for Mental Health, in our electorate. We had a jam-packed day, which really highlighted how crucial mental health services are for our communities.

We began the day at Palmerston North Hospital where we met with staff and were given a firsthand look at the new mental health unit, set to open mid-2025.

Next, we headed to Feilding to meet with Murray Holdaway, Dame Margaret Millard and Jeremy Neild from the Manawatu Rangitikei Rural Family Support Trust. It was good to hear their insights on the challenges and successes they’re experiencing on the ground. Their work supporting rural families is so important.

The Minister then spoke at the Rangitīkei Lunch Club. He shared about his journey into politics from his career in mental health, and about his vision for improving mental health services nationwide.

Afterwards, we headed to Focal Point Café to meet with Mike Bignall, Kelly Retter and Bill Tillick from Active+, a nationwide provider of physical and mental health support services. The main focus of the conversation was working with ACC to improve outcomes for patients.

Our day continued with a visit to Manchester House Social Services. Robyn Duncan and her team are doing incredible work providing addiction and mental health support services to the community. The Minister was impressed by their passion and dedication, and not the slightest bit phased when Robyn swiped his tie and asked him to sign it as a memento from his visit!

We concluded our day at the Bulls Medical Centre with Dr. Dave Baldwin, the rural GP behind the innovative (and unconventional) Healthy Bastards Campaign. Dr. Dave has a real passion for promoting health and wellness in rural areas, and a great sense of humour to boot.

In addition to his role as Minister for Mental Health, Matt also serves as Minister for ACC, Youth, Tourism and Hospitality, and Associate Minister of Health and Transport. He sure is a busy man! It was great to host him in the Rangitīkei.

Out and About in the Electorate in July

Flock House 100-year Celebrations

It was a privilege to attend the Flock House NZ centenary with my friend and predecessor Ian McKelvie. I was honoured to speak at the opening event for the weekend of celebrations, where I reflected on the legacy of Flock House and the lasting impact it has had on rural and provincial New Zealand.

For those who aren't familiar with it, the story of Flock House is a unique one. It was born from the visionary minds of Rangitīkei MP Edward Newman and public servant Mr. T. R. Lees, alongside the extraordinary generosity of sheep farmers. Woolgrowers across the Dominion gifted 237,000 pounds, equivalent to $33 million today, to support the dependants of Royal Navy and Mercantile Marines who lost their lives in WWI or were wounded while serving at sea. The scheme brought 759 young people from around the world to Bulls, positively impacting our farming community and the New Zealand economy for years to come.

Ian was the guest speaker at the gala dinner later in the evening. Elaine Wheeler, a member of the Rangitikei Executive, whose father was in one of the first intakes of recruits also enjoyed the celebrations.

Central Plateau Emergency Management Centre Opening

I attended the official opening of Te Whare Whakaora o Waimarino, The Central Plateau Emergency Management Centre, at National Park. The event was well attended by key stakeholders, including Hon. Mark Mitchell, Minister for Emergency Management and Recovery, who had the honour of unclipping the carabiner to declare the building officially open.

The new centre, five years in the making with nearly $1.2 million raised, is really impressive. It will play a crucial role in coordinating search and rescue operations, emergency management, and training for the Central Plateau area — one prone to natural disasters. Serving as a hub, it brings together the Ruapehu Alpine Rescue Organisation (RARO), Ruapehu Land Search and Rescue Group, and Ruapehu Civil Defence. It provides great reassurance for everyone who enjoys the natural beauty and adventure the region has to offer.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ladies' Night Out

I had a really enjoyable evening at the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ladies' Night Out at the beginning of July. It was all about celebrating women in farming, and we had the ever-inspiring Nadia Lim as our guest speaker. I was the warm-up act and enjoyed sharing the story of my journey into politics and our family business, Coastal Lamb. The evening was a brilliant reminder of the pivotal role women play in our rural communities and businesses.

School Visits

I love getting out to visit local schools and catching up with staff and students. We have 78 schools in the Rangitikei electorate and they're all working hard to inspire the next generation. Feedback about banning cell phones and the introduction of structured literacy has been resoundingly positive.

Linton Camp School Visit
I had a wonderful visit to Linton Camp School — right at the southern end of our vast Rangitīkei electorate. It was a pleasure to meet the team and see the students engaged in their learning. I enjoyed being in the hot seat, fielding excellent questions from the students. Principal Matt Costley gave me a tour of the school and I caught up with the staff over a morning cuppa.

Taonui School Visit
It was great to catch up again with the year 7 and 8 students from Taonui School who came to visit me at Parliament in March. They put me in the hot seat and grilled me for an hour on everything from what it’s like to be an MP and how you become one, to my thoughts on what happened to Donald Trump recently. I think there could be some future politicians in that bunch!

Feilding High School Interhouse Shearing and Wool Handling Competition
I loved attending the Feilding High School Interhouse Shearing and Wool Handling Finals. The school hall was buzzing with excitement – and what an incredible use of a school hall it was! Head Boy Hugh Thomas, and Student Councillor Abbey Grant, did a fantastic job running the show. Abbey also competed in both events.

Taumarunui High School Visit
It was great to stop by Taumarunui High School during a recent day out in the northern parts of the Rangitikei electorate. I met with Principal John Rautenbach and toured the school, chatting with a number of Year 9 and Year 13 students along the way.

Rural Exchange Podcast

It was a pleasure to chat with Dom from Rural Exchange about my journey into politics and our family business Coastal Lamb. If you're interested, you can listen to the full chat here.

Government News

Exciting Transport Infrastructure Investment Announced

July brought fantastic news for our region's transport infrastructure. I was thrilled to join Minister of Transport Simeon Brown and MP for Ōtaki Tim Costley in announcing that our government is investing over $800 million to upgrade commuter rail services. The current fleet on the Manawatū line has long needed an upgrade, and I know many of you have expressed frustrations over delays and reliability issues. This investment will provide a new fleet of 18 four-car units for the lower North Island, double peak services on the Manawatū line, and increase off-peak services. This announcement is a huge win for our region and local economy. Read more here.

Manawatu-Rangitīkei events get a $147,590 boost

Six Manawatu-Rangitīkei events have received a $147,590 boost from the Government's Regional Events Promotion Fund. These events include:

$30,000 to Armageddon Expo Palmerston North
$50,000 to Central District Field Days
$17,090 to Cross Hills Gardens Country Fair
$25,500 to Manawatu Tattoo
$10,000 to Palmy Drag Fest
$15,000 to Salud Festival

Growing tourism is vital for our region’s economy, and this funding provides a level of certainty for those organising events. The Regional Events Promotion Fund, administered by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and distributed locally via the Central Economic Development Agency (CEDA), will have another funding round open early in 2025. Read more here.

Inflation at the lowest level in three years

Inflation was 3.3% in the 12 months to July 2024 – the lowest in three years. This shows that our plan is working, but there is more work to be done in rebuilding the economy. Read more here.

Low and middle-income earners are now keeping more of what they earn, because we’ve changed the tax brackets for the first time in 14 years. See how much you are benefiting using the Budget 2024 Tax Calculator.

Other Recent Government Announcements

Overly prescriptive CCCFA regulations scrapped: Strict loan affordability requirements and arduous, overly prescriptive checks are a thing of the past. Read more here

Government introduces roadside drug testing legislation: The Government has introduced legislation that will enable roadside drug testing as part of our commitment to improve road safety. Read more here

Delivering pothole repairs on state highways within 24 hours:
We are identifying and fixing potholes on our state highway network within 24 hours, with 95 per cent of potholes on High Volume, National, and Arterial state highways to be repaired within 24 hours of identification. We inherited a significant backlog of road maintenance across the roading network – we are now catching up on the maintenance deficit to ensure that Kiwis and freight can get to where they need to go, quickly and safely. Read more here.

Government announces draft of second Emissions Reduction Plan:
Our Emissions Reduction Plan aims to both grow the economy and deliver on our climate change commitments. We are committed to meeting our emissions budgets and climate targets, including net zero by 2050. Read more here.

Ministers reveal consequences for unruly Kāinga Ora tenants:
We’ve made changes to how Kāinga Ora deals with unruly tenants because for far too long, Kāinga Ora tenants have caused fear and distress for their neighbours. This was because KO’s previous policy wielded no consequences for those who consistently behaved in threatening, abusive, or damaging ways. So far, KO have terminated 14 tenancies in three months, with another 25 in front of the tribunal compared to eight in the whole of 2023. Read more here.

Case managers to get young job seekers into work:
We are launching a new phone-based case management service that will initially provide 4000 more job seekers with case management support. The over-the-phone employment case management service will be targeted at people aged 18 to 24 who are new to the Jobseeker Support – Work-Ready benefit. This Government is focused on lifting New Zealand families out of hardship and giving Kiwis more opportunities to get ahead by helping all who can work into jobs. Read more here.

Faster consenting with remote inspections: We’re making remote building inspections the default approach in NZ, so building is quicker, cheaper, and easier. Read more here.

Government unveils five-point climate strategy: The Government has announced a five-point plan to reduce the impacts of climate change and prepare for its future effects. Read more here.

Taking action to reduce road cones: We're spending less on road cones and temporary traffic management while maintaining the safety of workers and road users. Read more here.

Government aligns Clean Car Importer Standard with Australia to reduce vehicle prices for Kiwis: We’re making changes to get the right balance between reducing transport emissions and giving Kiwis access to affordable vehicles. Read more here.

Government creates Ministerial Advisory Group for retail crime victims:
The MAG will engage directly with groups over the next two years to provide proposals to support victims and stop offenders. Read more here.

Keeping Kiwis safe is Govt priority in Q3 plan:
The 40 actions in the Q3 plan span the Government’s core priorities to rebuild the economy, deliver better public services and infrastructure, but a significant focus is on restoring law and order. Read more here.

Going for Housing Growth stage one unveiled:
Our Going for Housing Growth policy focuses on the fundamentals that have led to unaffordable housing for New Zealanders. Our programme of reform involves freeing up land for development and removing unnecessary planning barriers, improving infrastructure funding and financing, and providing incentives for communities and councils to support growth. Read more here.

Government delivers consistency for assessing Kiwi kids:
Currently, the first glimpse at student achievement is when children sit NCEA. It’s far too late to learn in Year 10 or 11 if they have not been adequately prepared with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. Read more here.

Targets will drive improvement in mental health:
The targets reflect our priorities to increase access to mental health and addiction support, grow the mental health and addiction workforce, strengthen the focus on prevention and early intervention and improve the effectiveness of mental health and addiction support. Read more here.

Government to tackle driver licence wait times:
Since the previous government’s decision last year to remove re-sit fees for theory and practical tests, demand for driver licence test bookings have increased significantly, as have test failure rates and no-shows. This has led to unacceptable delays for Kiwis trying to book a test for their driver licence. Read more here.

Upcoming Public Events

Whanganui Homes Show with Carl Bates
On Sunday 11 August from 9am to 1pm, I'll be at the Whanganui Homes Show with my friend and colleague Carl Bates. If you're heading along to Jubilee Stadium in Whanganui for the event, be sure to pop by the National Stand and say hello.

Feilding Repair Cafe
On Saturday 17 August from 10am to 12pm, I'll be at the Feilding Repair Cafe at The Senior Hub, 14 Bowen Street Feilding. The Repair Cafe provides a great opportunity to get together and solve mending and repair problems over a cuppa and a bite to eat.

Tukituki Electorate Visit and SuperBlues Meeting
On Friday 23 August I'll be spending the day with Catherine Wedd in the Tukituki Electorate. At 10:30am I'll be guest speaker at the SuperBlues meeting at the Havelock North Function Centre, 30 Te Mata Road, Havelock North.

Here to Help

My team and I are always available to assist you.

Reach us by emailing [email protected] or calling 06 323 7253 (Feilding) or 07 896 8008 (Taumarunui).

Visit us in person at one of our office locations.

Feilding Office: 47 Manchester Street, Feilding - Monday to Friday,10:00am to 3:00pm.

Taumarunui Office: 1/101 Hakiaha Street, Taumarunui - Monday 9:30am to 2:30pm and Thursday 9:30am to 12:30pm.

Please feel free to forward this email to friends and family who might like to stay in touch. I appreciate your help staying connected with the community. If you've had this email forwarded to you, you can sign up to receive regular updates here.

Best wishes,