Election year is upon us
Hi there,
It’s election year! In less than 12 months New Zealanders will return their verdict on the current National government. Our challenge over the coming year will be to convince our fellow Kiwis that National hasn’t delivered on the promises they made and that Labour deserves another opportunity to govern our country.
Here in Rimutaka we’ll be expecting a very well financed and supported campaign from the National Party. Having come close to winning the seat last time, they’ll be back with bells on this time around. It’s going to be a tough race, but I know that with your support, we can hold the seat for Labour and increase our share of the party vote.
Since I was elected as the MP for Rimutaka just over two years ago I’ve been out and about working hard in the electorate. Whether visiting schools, attending galas and prizegivings or speaking at public gatherings, I’ve tried to keep a high profile and be as accessible to constituents as possible.
Through my offices in Upper Hutt and Taita I’ve helped hundreds of constituents to resolve problems. I know that the past few years have been very tough for some of our local families and I’m convinced that we can do a lot better.
There will be plenty at stake in 2011. National are continuing to raise costs on ordinary families and do nothing about rising unemployment. The government’s answers to NZ’s problems since 2008 have been to hold a pointless job summit and build a cycleway to nowhere. We simply cannot afford to have another 3 years of a visionless National government.
I know that this year’s campaign will be another tough one, and I’m ready for the challenge. But I need your help! We need more volunteers out on the streets delivering leaflets. We’ll need help with hoardings, door-knocking, cottage meetings, street corner meetings, and all the other things that go with an effective campaign.
We’ll also need to step up our fundraising so that we can compete with our big-spending opponents. In the next few months you can expect to see us organising more movie nights, dinners, auctions, raffles and so forth. We also welcome donations at any time.
With your help, I know that we can do it.
Chris Hipkins
MP for Rimutaka
Supporting disabled services
Just before Christmas I took some time to draw attention to the many services available for disabled people in the Rimutaka electorate to mark International Day of Disabled Persons. I visited Riding for the Disabled, a horse-riding facility in Silverstream.
A sign of a great community is one where the lives of its most vulnerable are enhanced. In the Hutt Valley we are lucky to have a whole range of services for the disabled members of our community such as Earthlink and Adaptive Technology Solutions, which actively employ people with disabilities and make it easier for them to lead productive lives.
There’s also H20 Xtream and the Upper Hutt Community Committee for the Blind, which run a range of programmes for the disabled.
Congratulations
I'd like to congratulate Kris Faafoi on being the new Labour MP for Mana! Labour had a tough campaign but we stuck to the issues and won.
John Key is trying to make National candidate Hekia Parata's loss look like a win. I hope they take losing this well again at this year's General Election!
Thanks to all those who went out to Mana to knock on doors, deliver mail, wave signs and contribute to a great Labour win!
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