Media press release from Ken Crispin. Secretary. Citizens Environmental Advocacy Centre in Napier.

Start;

Simon Bridges this morning on News hub said he now wants to work with Jacinda on “climate change”!!!!!!!!!
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/09/simon-bridges-jacinda-ardern-working-together-on-climate-change-plan.html

Quote;
“Simon Bridges says he and Jacinda Ardern have been working behind the scenes to develop an "enduring" plan to combat climate change.
He told The AM Show on Monday he's had one private meeting with Ms Ardern, and National climate spokesman Todd Muller has met several times with Climate Change Minister James Shaw.
"We talked about whether we can have an enduring framework that everyone signs up to. That's a different thing from saying 'the target will definitely be this and we need to do those seven things'."

Unquote;

We at CEAC say this is an un-believable change in Simon Bridges position, he has shown today on News hub as Bridges has been part of the effort to shut down our rail system and push all freight onto our roads that will increase the climate emission gasses five times faster.

Rail according to this report will save us $1.5 Billion a year and cut climate change emissions according to a rail study his Government produced back in 2016 and kept under wraps when he found out the truth in his report his government had ordered in 2016.
From his report we quote;

“Reducing carbon emissions by 488,000 tonnes a year – the equivalent of taking 87,000 cars off the road – saves $8.5 million.”

http://www.kiwirail.co.nz/uploads/Publications/The%20Value%20of%20the%20Rail%20in%20New%20Zealand.pdf

Facts at a glance:

• Rail contributes up to $1.5 billion in often unseen benefits to New Zealand each year.
• The value of rail to New Zealand far outweighs its cost to the taxpayer.
• Using rail reduces the number of deaths and injuries on our roads by a net 271 a year.
• Rail saves taxpayers money on congestion, road maintenance costs, injuries and fatalities and reduced carbon emissions.
Reducing congestion saves $1.3 billion, the equivalent of 100,000 fewer daily car trips and taking 30,000 trucks off the road for an hour a day.
• Reducing carbon emissions by 488,000 tonnes a year – the equivalent of taking 87,000 cars off the road – saves $8.5 million.
• Improving safety outcomes saves $60 million.
• Reducing road maintenance saves $63 million.
• Rail is also an important and sustainable economic contributor to the regions and links New Zealand to export markets overseas.

We at CEAC have no reasons to believe that Simon Bridges will reverse his “anti-rail - pro-road freight policies” in an attempt to help in reducing carbon emissions by at least 488,000 tonnes a year or more by increased use of rail freight to lower all those carbon emissions, unless we see solid evidence of this move back to restoring rail freight written in policies by him laid out before the voters of NZ.

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