Veterans’ Package – Domestic Air Travel – Das-8 Crash – Trevor de Cleene
- VETERANS’ PACKAGE: The Government has announced that war veterans, including Vietnam veterans and their families,
survivors of Japanese POW camps and witnesses of British nuclear testing will get more help. For now, cleft palettes and
spina bifida are the only conditions in Vietnam Veteran’s children affected by Agent Orange recognised for compensation
by the Government, leaving some suffering different conditions angry. The Prime Minister said Japan should apologise for
its treatment of POWs during WWII. 300 Dutch veterans living in NZ won’t qualify for the 30,000 payment being offered to
prisoners of the Japanese during the war. The Veterans Affairs Office will become a one stop shop, with veterans
pensions transferring over from social welfare.
- DOMESTIC AIR TRAVEL: The future for a competitive flying market in New Zealand is still up in the air, with Air NZ
being the only major carrier operating for now. Qantas Australia will offer Air NZ some immediate relief to help shift a
backlog of domestic passengers left stranded by the collapse of Qantas NZ.
- DASH-8 CRASH: The High Court manslaughter trial of Gary Sutherland, the pilot of the Ansett Dash-8 plane that crashed
killing three passengers and one flight attendant, started today.
- TREVOR DE CLEENE: Former Rogernomics-era Labour MP Trevor de Cleene, who helped launch ACT, has died after suffering
from cancer.