Wednesday, 29 June 2005

Labour must scrap land grab altogether

Rodney Hide Press Releases - Rural

It’s not good enough that Labour has shelved its land grab, it must scrap it altogether, ACT Leader Rodney Hide and Rural Affairs spokesman Gerry Eckhoff said today.

“Property rights must be respected,” Mr Hide said.

“Gerry has run a fantastic campaign against Labour’s land grab, holding public meetings up and down rural New Zealand, and asking the tough questions in Parliament. He stopped the Fart Tax dead in its tracks, and he’s done the same with Labour’s latest attack on rural communities.

“I only hope the National Party follows Labour’s lead and dumps National MP Nick Smith’s Private Member’s Bill that also grabs private land for public access,” Mr Hide said.

“Labour has been completely out of touch on this issue. Unlike Helen Clark, most New Zealanders believe landowners’ property rights must be respected,” Mr Eckhoff said.

“They understand that access isn’t a problem, with most farmers happy to grant access through their land to waterways if asked first.

“Labour’s proposal to legislate away a farmer’s right to say who may or may not enter their property, without compensation, is theft.

“I urge Federated Farmers not to give an inch to Jim Sutton in their negotiations with him. He has proven time and again that he cannot be trusted to stand up for the best interests of farmers, who he is supposed to advocate for at the Cabinet table. They must demand Labour scraps its access plans altogether - no more, no less.

“Labour’s embarrassing back down shows why farmers must give ACT their Party Vote this election. Unlike the other parties who just pay lip service to the rural community, we stand up and fight for them,” Mr Eckhoff said.

ENDS

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