According to Environment Canterbury, spontaneous combustion caused a fire that has been burning at the Owaka Holdings site since last week. Over the past few days I have been in constant contact with the Fire Service, the Medical Officer of Health, Environment Canterbury & Chair of the Riccarton-Wigram Community Board Mike Mora about the fire and logistics of putting it out. MDF at the site has been burning and releasing small concentrations of formaldehyde, which produces a pungent smell causing understandable distress to local residents. I have received assurances that the concentrations produced in the smoke are not harmful. Despite these assurances, Environm...

While it's great to see a surge in rebuild activity and a strong economic revitalisation across the Wigram electorate, recently I've been hearing from many local residents with grave concerns about increased traffic volumes and parking provisions. As a result I sent out a survey to Addington residents asking for their experiences and views on local traffic issues. So far over 250 people have responded and more forms are coming in every day. Concerns are shared by many residents about the volume & flow of traffic at peak times, parking on narrow streets, the speed of vehicles and potential for accidents. I am currently working with the Chair of the Spreydon Heathcote...

Research that ranks Christchurch as the 5th most congested city in Australasia shows how important it is to get our transport infrastructure right. A recent TomTom study reported on by The Press (5 April) shouldn't surprise Wigram residents. The aftermath of the earthquakes is an opportunity to rethink transport in Christchurch. Getting it right is not a nice to have, it’s critical to ensuring we have a modern, world-class city. We need to think about connected modes of transportation, prioritising active transport and ensuring adequate provisions are in place to connect the inner-city with the suburbs. I was encouraged to hear the council’s new guidelines for the d...

A huge congratulations to Emma Moffett who has been selected as the Wigram Youth MP after a highly contested selection process and a fantastic speech to community members. All finalists spoke with passion about what it is going to take to rebuild our city, young people having a greater voice in decision-making and stressed the need to tackle youth unemployment. Youth Parliament is a great opportunity for Emma. She is a remarkable young woman and understands the needs of the electorate, Christchurch and the country. I’m sure she’ll do us all proud and I wish her all the best. The 2013 Youth Parliament is a two day event held in Wellington on the 16th and 17t...

David Shearer recently announced a portfolio reshuffle and designated myself as Labour's tertiary education spokesperson. I'm determined to get stuck in and make sure Labour's voice is heard in what is a hugely important sector. Some of the recent developments in tertiary education are quite troubling and will have a significant impact on the Wigram electorate, including the recovery of the University of Canterbury and Steven Joyce's continuing restructuring. The University of Canterbury recently revealed a $67m deficit. Vice-Chancellor Rod Car says that it is critical the Government comes to the University's aid. Labour's position is clear, the Government must ...

The Ministry of Education's restructuring of schools in Christchurch has made for a difficult few months for the teachers, parents and principals of Wigram. I want to acknowledge the many people who have put a lot of time and effort into standing up for their schools. On the 28th of March communities around Branston and Manning Intermediates had to lodge their final case for schooling in their areas to the Minister of Education. Final decisions on their fates will be announced in May. I will keep you posted.

Here's a clip from the debate at the Committee stage of the Environment Canterbury legislation. It's another step closer to passing and the Government is another step closer to taking away our right to vote for another three years. (Click the image to play)

Wigram MP Megan Woods is currently on the lookout for ambitious and enthusiastic young people, aged between 16 and 18, to form a Youth Advisory Group in the Wigram Electorate. From this group, one local youth will have the unique opportunity to participate in the 2013 Youth Parliament held on 16 and 17 July, experiencing New Zealand’s democracy first hand. Youth Parliament, first held in 1994 to mark the 20th anniversary of the lowering of the voting age to 18 years, is as close as possible to the real thing, says Ms Woods. “Youth Members of Parliament have the opportunity to debate legislation, sit on select committees and ask oral questions of Cabinet Minis...

The Government should count itself lucky that the Salvation Army only gave it a ‘D’ rating for its “singular failure to address entrenched youth unemployment”, Labour’s Youth Affairs spokesperson, Megan Woods says. “The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report lays bare the fiction that this National Government is concerned about rising youth unemployment. “In dishing out its ‘D’, the report notes National’s failure is made more disappointing by its Youth Focus Programme. It doesn’t matter how many times the Government tinkers with the welfare system if there are still no jobs for our young people to go to. “Bill English can make all the excuses he likes. But ...

As the number of young Kiwis out of work or not in training or education continues to grow, the ink also appears to have dried up on the Prime Minister’s letter writing campaign to get more trainees into work, says Labour’s Youth Affairs spokesperson Megan Woods. “John Key made a huge noise in September about the fact he was personally writing to 175 employers with a request they take on a Limited Service Volunteer graduate. “It was, he said at the time, ‘a new initiative to get more young people into work’. He would continue to write to employers over the coming months. “However answers to written parliamentary questions show he hasn’t followed up on that promis...