David Seymour, MP for Epsom, leader of the ACT party spoke, mainly about the proposed Erebus Memorial to be placed in Dove Myer Robison Park, Parnell and briefly about the current political climate. The Erebus Memorial: Forty years ago 257 people died when an Air NZ plane crashed into Mt Erebus in the Antarctic. This is the largest peacetime loss of life in NewZealand. The Ministry of Arts Culture and Heritage decided on the design and siting of the memorial, and after much debate the local council approved their proposal. Seymour agreed that it was a 'rubbish process' that approved 'a questionable design'. However if there is to be a memorial it needs to be completed now as all ten people directly affected by the disaster are ageing. A proposal for an alternative design or site would become stuck in the same quagmire of consultation, objection, planning approvals and so on so it would takes too long to be appropriate. In these circumstances he supported its erection. There were issues raised by the audience, why any memorial, why there, why that design, etc. which Seymour spoke to. Naturally some attendees were still not satisfied but it was a logically presented alternative point of view. Politics generally: New Zealand has had the advantage of geographical isolation in defeating Covid but this advantage is now being squandered by the government's inaction. ACT believes that the private sector should be able to create their own MIQ facilities t allow more people into the country. "We need to be a lot more aggressive about reopening". Seymour referred to what he called 'ethno- nationalism' where citizens were unequal with their ethnicity being the deciding factor in their rights and responsibilities. |