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4 — Times, Tuesday, June 2, 2020 ADVERTORIAL JH16039
Thank you, Howickians Rices Mall, its retailers and businesses, sincerely thank our Howick Village customers who loyally supported us throughout lockdown. Now with Alert Level 2 in place, it is heartening to see the buzz and vitality in
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and around the mall, and our shops and businesses welcoming you back as friends and community. By shopping local you are enabling us to recover and keep on going, making Howick Village Shopping
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Rates freeze is needed
MP for Botany
V
ery few households or businesses have managed to escape the financial impacts that we have experienced, and will continue to experience, off the back of Covid-19. Billions of taxpayers’ money right now is being used to prop up wages and dampen the impacts. It’s not sustainable long term, but crucial right now. The annual burden of rates levied by councils will soon also add to increased costs for everyone as councils around the country signal their continued plan to increase rates. I recently proposed in Parliament that we should use legislation to step in to help households and businesses struggling with dayto-day costs by legislating for a rates freeze. At no time in recent
history have ratepayers needed more relief from annual rates increases than now. Just as most other entities are going through the process of reassessing costs within their organisations, local authorities also need to review how they finance and debt-fund essential work. Organisations like the Property Council and Taxpayers Union have made similar calls for rates freezes, backed up by a petition signed by thousands. Local government is a creature of statute so the Parliament can lead the way on rates freezes. Leaving it to councils to make these decisions ignores the legislative problem councils face where consultation requirements will be used as an easy excuse to box on with rates
Jami-Lee Ross
increases. It will be unpalatable to mayors and councillors for Parliament to require a rates freeze. But equally it’s unlikely ratepayers will get the relief they deserve if we just rely on councils to make that decision for themselves. Unfortunately, so far, the National Party joined the Government and used their numbers in the House to block a rates freeze proposal. Only myself and ACT’s David Seymour voted in favour. Delivering a rates freeze should not be a difficult issue for MPs from across the aisle to unite on before the Parliament dissolves for the election. Jami-Lee Ross, MP for Botany
Some services resume
5 Rices Mall, Howick Phone 09-533 0442 michaelsemporium.co.nz mwardtrading@outlook.com
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➤➤ From page 2 it a little special. was the Feast of PentecostFather Craig Dunford of Rev Warner says that the coming of the Holy St Lukes Catholic Church while they will be resum- Spirit and the birth of the on Te Irirangi Dr says they ing normal worship quite Church. It’s a beautiful day resumed mass on Sunday soon, singing might not be to begin again. and in order to accommo- encouraged “though lack of Being restricted to no date the numbers, they singing would hardly lend more than 100 people at an added extra masses every itself to a meaningful wor- worship gathering, they hour — from 8am-12pm. ship experience”. temporarily introduced The last time they did a Father John Fitzmaurice two additional masses on mass count in November, parish priest of Our Lady, Saturday 5pm and Sunday they had more than 1400 Star of the Sea Catholic 11am, in additional to the churchgoers attending over Parish in Picton Street, usual Sunday programme three masses. Howick said the parish of four masses. “The liturgy was a short advisory body held a plan“This is so we can make mass that was held in ning meeting on Thursday our Church both safe and the Sancta Maria College night to prepare for the first hospitable as we return Chapel as we are currently weekend back. He says that home to the parish Church building our new church parishioners were over- we love,” says Father John. Parishioners were on Chapel Road. A lot of our joyed that they could begin parishioners were in tears celebrating mass together emailed to advise of the Sunday mass times, and because they couldn’t come again on the weekend. to church for a long time. It “Our normal weekday social distancing, hygiene, has been a difficult time as masses resumed on Mon- and contact tracing requirethe church is an essential day. For Christians, Sunday ments. pillar of their lives.” Rev Brett Jones, lead pastor cession community and To monitor the moveexecutive member of the East Auckland Ministers ment of worshippers they Association, says that on Sunday churches of Howick were asked to sign in and offered a safe, warm experience of exploring spiritual enter from one door and connection with God. exit from the other. “Churches are excited to be able to see each other Rev Warner Wilder of St in person just as families of all shapes and sizes have Paul’s in the Park says that enjoyed reconnecting with people close to them,” he they have decided not to says. resume church service just “Community is a significant part of Christian practice yet. and while churches have been innovative in maintain“We had a recent vestry ing connection through online means, this will be a meeting to discuss the liftmeaningful time for many. The essential experience of ing of restrictions on numchurch will be very similar but when in larger groups bers and decided not to there will be including contact tracing, hygiene protomeet as a congregation this cols and physical distancing where required. Sunday. We want to ease “Adjustments have been made for some of the more into it and make sure we do up-close and personal moments such as Communion, it properly. Besides, there with different methods being used to create a ‘contactis still reluctance amongst Secondhand furniture, less communion’ option. For some churches, the gathmany of the congregation bric-a-brac ering limit is requiring creativity including multiple to meet in large groups antiques, and clothing. smaller services across the weekend. which I can understand. “There are still a number of vulnerable people in our “For our YouTube clip communities who will continue to do church online and this week, we met in the churches are generally retaining an online presence. church with all those tak“There are some churches that are taking a little ing part. It is part of our longer to open to make sure they are well prepared transition back into the to take care of congregations particularly where they church for worship. Being start this week. have high percentages of vulnerable people.” Pentecost Sunday, we made Deliveries
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Deliveries start this week.
jacquesv@eastgatecc.org.nz
Deliveries start this week.
jacquesv@eastgatecc.org.nz DE0190
Now with an online store!
jacquesv@eastgatecc.org.nz
