It has been a busy, but extremely rewarding couple of weeks. I was privileged to attend official events at Ratana and Waitangi, as well as attending a number of local celebrations for Waitangi Day and in the run-up to Chinese New Year. I also made a visit to McGehan Close in Auckland.

McGehan Close

Many of you will have seen the media coverage of my recent speech in Burnside and my concerns about some of the communities in New Zealand which I feel are becoming increasingly marginalised from society.

To illustrate my point I mentioned one place in particular, McGehan Close, which I visited last weekend.

Unsurprisingly, I was initially given a quite a hostile reception. Naturally residents were unhappy that I had chosen their street as an example of what I view as some of the real problems facing our society - long-term unemployment, drug use, street gangs and violence.

However, once we started to talk it became clear that many of the residents share my concerns and fears. Parents are striving to do the best for their children, but the hurdles they face on a daily basis can make this extremely difficult. Most of the gang members who terrorise the families I met in McGehan Close do not live there – they simply come to cause trouble.

These are deep-seated problems which cannot be solved overnight. But they should be ignored at their peril because they do not just affect the residents of one street in New Zealand, they impact on us all.

Waitangi Day

It was only my second visit to Waitangi, but in spite of the weather I was extremely pleased to attend the celebrations there earlier this week.

It is important for all of us to remember the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and the period of 160 years of stable democracy which we have enjoyed since, but which many of us take for granted. Maori are the tangata whenua of this country, but we are all New Zealanders and we should celebrate our national day and our achievements as a nation.

On this occasion, I was also given the opportunity to view the event through the eyes of Aroha, a young girl from McGehan Close who I invited to accompany me. Her own observations and reflections gave me a fresh perspective on the day.

Return to the House

Last week, I led our three-day caucus meeting in Gisborne. It was a fabulous location, and an opportunity for all National MPs to get together and set our direction and goals for the year ahead. There was robust debate as always, but the atmosphere was upbeat and we left feeling optimistic and focused for the return to Parliament next week.

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