David Bennett MP - Hamilton Bulletin

Hamilton Bulletin - February 2009

nospam@example.com (David Bennett MP) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 11:51:44 +1300

Welcome

Happy New Year and welcome to our first email newsletter of the year and our first newsletter as the Government. The year is already flying through and 2009 has started off with strong decision making and leadership by the Prime Minister.

Prime Minister John Key said in his opening address:
“Our task now is to build on the success of last year and tackle the challenges of 2009. We face some pretty difficult economic conditions as well as the concerns we identified in the election campaign. But I am confident that with a lot of hard work and your help, we can look through the global recession, deliver on our election promises, and build a brighter future for all New Zealanders.”

Some News from Parliament includes:

ReStart
The Restart package launched is a financial and job search assistance for people who have been made redundant, or are no longer self-employed due to the economic downturn. The three components of the package are:

• ReCover – a payment if you have a dependent child or children and you were eligible for the in-work tax cut before being made redundant, and/or
• RePlace – up to an extra $100 in addition to Accommodation Supplement depending on your circumstances
• ReConnect – help to get you back into a job

ReStart assistance will be paid for a maximum of 16 weeks or until you return to a full time job, which ever happens first.

Helping Small Business
We have announced a relief package to help small businesses. This aims to lighten the load on small and medium enterprises, help them get through these tough times, and prepare for the recovery that will follow. The initiatives in the package include a suite of 11 tax changes which will see the GST registration threshold increase to $60,000 in annual revenue from $40,000, GST payment thresholds increase to $2 million in annual revenue from $1.3 million, the Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) annual filing threshold will be raised to $500,000 in employer PAYE deductions from $100,000 and the FBT prescribed interest rate for low-interest employment related loans will fall from 10.90% to 8.05%. The Government will also be expanding the Export Credit Scheme, extending jurisdiction for the Disputes Tribunal, expanding business advice services, and requiring prompt payment by all government departments and Crown agencies. At a time when many small businesses are struggling to survive, we can’t sit back and wait to see what happens, this package will help keep the lifeblood of our economy flowing.

Upcoming Events

Relay for Life
The annual fundraiser for the Cancer Society is coming up on the weekend of 7-8 March 2009. As we have done in previous year’s we will enter a team and help fundraise for this worthy cause. Come along and support us or give the office a call if you’d like to join us. Call 07 834 3407 and speak to Victoria if you are keen.

Our electorate office is here to help you with any concerns or queries that you may have. The office can be contacted on 07 834 3407 or davidbennett@xtra.co.nz

Please also feel free to check out my facebook profile here: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1294225975

I welcome your feedback and suggestions.

nospam@example.com (Staff) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 15:58:15 +1200

We have had a very busy month here in the Hamilton East Electorate.

Truckies Protest

The big event of the past few weeks was the truckies protesting the increase in road user charges. I joined one of the Regal Haulage trucks as they drove through the city in support of their plight. While Hamiltonians had to tolerate the congested roads, there was a general consensus from the public that a message had to be sent to the Government.

The increase in road user charges of about 7% for a typical truck comes at a time when the trucking industry is really struggling with higher fuel costs. These costs will eventually be passed on to all New Zealanders in the form of higher prices for food, clothing, and every other essential good that gets transported by road.

The hike in the road user charges for diesel vehicles came on the same day that Labour hiked the ACC levy on petrol by 2c a litre, and increased vehicle registration fees by $40 per vehicle.

These new costs for motorists and truckies were introduced just before Michael Cullen admitted that Labour paid a "premium" to buy the railway assets of Toll.

Hiking transport costs when people are struggling with higher living costs and when Labour has paid several hundred million dollars too much for the trains and the ferries, is a slap in the face for every Kiwi road user, consumer, and taxpayer.

Survey

We have hand delivered, thanks to many generous volunteers, our annual surveys to all constituents in Hamilton East. We hope that you have received your survey and look forward to hearing your views on many national and local issues.

John Key, Leader of the National Party, recently spent a day in Hamilton. He visited many local organisations, schools and the University. A highlight of the day was the launch of Hukanui Primary School’s ‘Eco Classroom’. This is a New Zealand first and we are proud to see young students lead the way in energy saving initiatives.

National’s spokesman for the Environment, Nick Smith MP, was also in town and met with representatives of Environment Waikato to discuss local issues.

Live Like a Student Challenge

We have been challenged by the Waikato Student Union to forego our usual lifestyle and live on a student budget for a week. From Wednesday 16 July we will experience what it is to be a student again – albeit without the assignments! It will be an interesting challenge but a great way to get in touch with a large number of our local population. We’ll let you know how we get on!

News from Parliament

The National Party has this month launched its policy for getting kids back into sport. We see this as vital for the growth and development of our children. We intend to reprioritise government funding in this area so that more of it reaches our schools and sports clubs, instead of going towards advisors and reports.

This month we also launched our early childhood care and education policy. National will:

Keep 20 hours free ECE and maintain existing subsidies and fee controls.
Remove the six-hours-a-day limit.
Include playcentres and kohanga reo in 20 Hours ECE.
Provide 20 Hours ECE to five-year-olds.
Investigate more frequent payment methods.

We will also improve staff ratios, reduce bureaucracy and regulations, and boost participation rates.

Contact us

Our electorate office is here to help you with any concerns or queries that you may have. The office can be contacted on 07 834 3407 or davidbennett@xtra.co.nz. Please also feel free to check out my facebook profile here http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1294225975, I welcome your feedback and suggestions!

MP Visits

nospam@example.com (Staff) — Wed, 28 May 2008 08:33:34 +1200

Hello everyone and welcome to the Hamilton East Bulletin for May 2008. With the middle of the year and winter rapidly approaching, it has been a busy time both at home in the electorate, and in Parliament. There is certainly a pre-election buzz in the air, and also a sense of the size of the task ahead of us.

Budget 2008

The Buzz around the house this week has, of course, been the Government's announcement of the 2008 budget. After nine long years, the average New Zealand wage earner will only receive a $16 a week tax cut, coming into effect on the 1st of October this year.

This budget has quickly become known as the 'Block of Cheese' Budget, and rightfully so - it completely fails to deliver any signficant financial relief to hard-working New Zealanders and their families.

Emissions Trading Scheme

There has been considerable discussion recently with regard to the Government's proposed Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). New Zealand must do its part to reduce carbon emissions. However, in order for an ETS to be successful, it must strike a balance between New Zealands economic and environmental interests.

The Government is currently trying to push the ETS through before the 2008 election. However, National is committed to the introduction of an ETS that does not put New Zealanders' financial security at risk, and will not cut corners in order to push the legislation through in haste.

In the Electorate

Fieldays 11-14 June 2008 at Mystery Creek

It’s Fieldays’ 40th anniversary and we will be there boots and all. It’s a great event for local and national businesses and the large numbers it of people it attracts to the city has a positive impact on the local economy. Don’t hesitate to come and introduce yourself if you’re out there.

North East Schools Action Group Inc Public Meeting

The action group will be holding a Public Meeting at 7.30pm, Wednesday 4 June at the North City Apostolic Church, 79 North City Road. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss proposed schooling for Years 7 to 13 in the North East of Hamilton. You are welcome to attend and for those who have queries you can contact the group on nesag.inc@gmail.com

For my most up to date news and information, don't forget to check out my website www.davidbennett.co.nz.

We are still here to help you with any concerns or queries you might have. Our electorate office can be contacted on 07 834 3407, or david.bennett@xtra.co.nz.

Hamilton Bulletin - April 2008

nospam@example.com (Staff) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 09:35:47 +1200

E-Newsletter April 2008

Welcome everyone to the e-newsletter for April. A quarter of the year has passed already, and despite all the great activities and events that have already taken place, I’d like to think that the best is still yet to come!

News from Hamilton

Last month was Relay for Life 2008, an extremely successful fundraiser for the Cancer Society. We entered our team "the Blues Brothers" in the event and had a great time participating in the 24 hour relay and enjoying the provided entertainment and overall atmosphere. It’s great to see Hamiltonians doing their bit to support such an important charitable organisation and we express our thanks to all those who got behind the fundraiser.

We have also had another big event in Hamilton over the weekend, with the ‘Balloons Over Waikato’ festival which is getting bigger and better with each passing year. Held annually in Hamilton, this event drew over 100,000 spectators this year and attracted balloonists from all over New Zealand and the World.

News from the House

The Prime Minister last week signed the much-publicised Free Trade Agreement with China. This is a great opportunity for New Zealand to gain access to one of the world’s most important markets. We see it as important that New Zealand can compete well in the International market and our economic policies being rolled out over the coming months will reinforce this.

Coming up in the Hamilton East Electorate

We are very excited about the Hamilton 400 V8 Supercars event that is happening this weekend. If you’re around this weekend we hope you’ve got your tickets and are prepared to use the free public bus system as you’ll get nowhere fast by car!

We have a three week Parliamentary Recess starting from Anzac Day which will be a great opportunity to spend some solid time in the Hamilton East Electorate and meeting with constituents. We will also be making the most of this time to get out and about and visit local schools. We are continuing to push for education needs in Hamilton North and have been meeting with both Ministry of Education Officials and Hamilton City Council to pursue all avenues of fast-tracking developments.

We are still here to help you with any inquiries or concerns you may have. Please do not hesitate to contact us at our Electorate Office on 07 834 3407 or davidbennett@xtra.co.nz.

Hamilton Bulletin - February 2008

nospam@example.com (Staff) — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:54:25 +1300

E-Newsletter February 2008

Welcome everyone to February’s edition of the Hamilton Bulletin. I hope you have all been taking advantage of the longer days and warm weather.

News from the House

It’s been a busy few weeks with the House sitting again for the first time this year on the 12th of February, which has given us all the opportunity to look ahead and consider the challenges that face New Zealand. The Government’s opening speech for the year demonstrated once again that the Government is out of touch, out of ideas and out of excuses. The bottom line is that nine years have gone by under a Labour Government with no personal tax cuts and a number of missed opportunities to address the concerns of hard-working New Zealanders, including rising living costs, rising crime rates and one in five kids leaving school without adequate reading, writing and maths skills. The National Party aims to bring fresh leadership to the country, whilst concentrating on the issues that really matter to every-day New Zealanders.

John Key on Facebook

Last week John Key launched a special Facebook page.
The page is a place where you can register as a supporter of our campaign to take back the Government, and leave public messages of encouragement as we move toward that goal. As time goes on, content will be added to the page to make it easier for you to keep up with our progress and to share your thoughts.
Please note you do not have to be a member of Facebook to view the page or use most of its features.

University of Waikato Clubs Day

We had the pleasure of once again being present at the University of Waikato Clubs day recently. The weather was perfect and there was a huge turnout of students for this event. We would like to wish all the students in Hamilton all the best for the academic year.

Coming up in the Hamilton East Electorate

Next Saturday, 1st of March, Fairfield Park will be hosting Children’s Day 2008. This is a great chance for all community services and agencies to promote their services for the health and wellbeing of children in Hamilton. We will be present on this day and look forward to meeting everyone there.

On the weekend of the 8th and 9th of March we have a team participating in the Cancer Foundations Relay for Life. We have a great team of walkers/runners who will be going non-stop for the 20hr relay. We look forward to seeing some of you there and showing your support for a very worthy cause.

We are still here to help you with any inquiries or concerns you may have. Please do not hesitate to contact us at our Electorate Office on 07 834 3407 or davidbennett@xtra.co.nz.