FURTHER EVIDENCE OF THE GROSS INCOMPETENCE OF LOCAL MAYORS & USELESS MP JOHN HAZE, WASTING MORE OF OUR MONEY:
Wairarapa MP John Hayes and the region’s three mayors are bleating about $570,000 the councils have "invested" in not bringing a cuisine school to Wairarapa.
UCOL announced on Monday they were moving the planned Le Cordon Bleu cuisine school from Martinborough to Wellington.The decision comes despite the school being born out of a marketing project known as Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine – managed by the former Go Wairarapa and contributed to by the district councils, along with close to two million dollars from Trade and Enterprise regional development fund.
“It’s all very well for UCOL to toddle off into the sunset.”
South Wairarapa paid $150,000, Carterton $125,000 and Masterton $300,000 over three years – although the final $100,000 paid by Masterton last year was used to settle Go Wairarapa’s debts. “It’s all very well for UCOL to toddle off into the sunset,” Mr Hayes said, “but they need to pay back the money invested by councils and reimburse Wairarapa for the time and energy people freely gave putting together a syllabus that was going to be unique in the world to Martinborough.”
UCOL announced on Monday they were moving the planned Le Cordon Bleu cuisine school from Martinborough to Wellington.The decision comes despite the school being born out of a marketing project known as Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine – managed by the former Go Wairarapa and contributed to by the district councils, along with close to two million dollars from Trade and Enterprise regional development fund.
“It’s all very well for UCOL to toddle off into the sunset.”
South Wairarapa paid $150,000, Carterton $125,000 and Masterton $300,000 over three years – although the final $100,000 paid by Masterton last year was used to settle Go Wairarapa’s debts. “It’s all very well for UCOL to toddle off into the sunset,” Mr Hayes said, “but they need to pay back the money invested by councils and reimburse Wairarapa for the time and energy people freely gave putting together a syllabus that was going to be unique in the world to Martinborough.”
I doubt very much that "people gave freely", I bet they were paid handsomely for thinking up these nebulous, airy fairy "plans"!
Mr Hayes said the $2,000,000 regional development money also belongs in Wairarapa, not Wellington. Blah blah, ho hum from John Haze (very hazy what he actually does except pontificate impotently).
“What we should be doing now is saying “we want our money back here so we can have our own regional initiative.” (Isn't it pathetic?)
Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine was an MRI – Major Regional Initiative – started by Go Wairarapa and since transferred to Grow Wellington, as the Government has now changed its regional policy to fund bigger regions and Wairarapa councils have signed up to the Wellington Regional Strategy. Lets elect Kate Raue then we'll get a Cuisine School, Community Resource Centre, and we'll all have jobs instead of pouring money into this incompetent corrupt sink hole.
South Wairarapa Mayor Adrienne Staples was equally angry, saying she intends to bill UCOL for the money spent by South Wairarapa. Ha ha good luck, watch this space, what a waste of time, more impotent rubbish.
“I haven’t formally asked for (the money) yet, but I’ve been told informally that I won’t get it back,” Ms Staples said.
“This project was going to help the whole of Wairarapa, not just Martinborough.” And it would have if it had been on the Borough Farm in Carterton, but that oaf McPhee was too ignorant to realise that.
Masterton Mayor Garry Daniell said while he knows “in my heart” the school has been lost to Wairarapa, “we’re still in the boxing ring – right at this stage I don’t totally agree that the deal is dead yet.”
Mr Daniell said he had spoken to Tertiary Education Minister Pete Hodgson. It’s clear that UCOL had not consulted the Minister about (the move).”
Carterton Mayor Gary McPhee said he hoped Carterton would get its regional initiative money back, but he wasn’t sure how likely it is. “It’s ratepayers’ money put in for a purpose.”
According to Cuisine School project manager Christine Beech, in November 2006 New Zealand Trade and Enterprise approved $1.997 million to the Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine project over three years through its Major Regional Initiative fund.
Of this, $1.125 million was allocated to help establish the International School of Cuisine.
Ms Beech said the money paid by Wairarapa Councils had been used for projects other than the cuisine school, like showcasing at food and wine trade shows and building up a database of photographs presenting Wairarapa as a quality food and wine region.
“We have never spent their (Wairarapa Council’s) money. It was all under the same agreement, but the money was allocated for different parties to do different things.
“Wairarapa has still reaped benefits of what they have done as part of the project.”
Anna Head, Grow Wellington project manager for Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine, who began the project with Go Wairarapa, said she too is “gutted” the cuisine school had been lost to Wairarapa.
She said she did not now what would happen to the Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine initiative now the cuisine school has moved.
“I don’t know where my position sits.” (sic)
“What we should be doing now is saying “we want our money back here so we can have our own regional initiative.” (Isn't it pathetic?)
Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine was an MRI – Major Regional Initiative – started by Go Wairarapa and since transferred to Grow Wellington, as the Government has now changed its regional policy to fund bigger regions and Wairarapa councils have signed up to the Wellington Regional Strategy. Lets elect Kate Raue then we'll get a Cuisine School, Community Resource Centre, and we'll all have jobs instead of pouring money into this incompetent corrupt sink hole.
South Wairarapa Mayor Adrienne Staples was equally angry, saying she intends to bill UCOL for the money spent by South Wairarapa. Ha ha good luck, watch this space, what a waste of time, more impotent rubbish.
“I haven’t formally asked for (the money) yet, but I’ve been told informally that I won’t get it back,” Ms Staples said.
“This project was going to help the whole of Wairarapa, not just Martinborough.” And it would have if it had been on the Borough Farm in Carterton, but that oaf McPhee was too ignorant to realise that.
Masterton Mayor Garry Daniell said while he knows “in my heart” the school has been lost to Wairarapa, “we’re still in the boxing ring – right at this stage I don’t totally agree that the deal is dead yet.”
Mr Daniell said he had spoken to Tertiary Education Minister Pete Hodgson. It’s clear that UCOL had not consulted the Minister about (the move).”
Carterton Mayor Gary McPhee said he hoped Carterton would get its regional initiative money back, but he wasn’t sure how likely it is. “It’s ratepayers’ money put in for a purpose.”
According to Cuisine School project manager Christine Beech, in November 2006 New Zealand Trade and Enterprise approved $1.997 million to the Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine project over three years through its Major Regional Initiative fund.
Of this, $1.125 million was allocated to help establish the International School of Cuisine.
Ms Beech said the money paid by Wairarapa Councils had been used for projects other than the cuisine school, like showcasing at food and wine trade shows and building up a database of photographs presenting Wairarapa as a quality food and wine region.
“We have never spent their (Wairarapa Council’s) money. It was all under the same agreement, but the money was allocated for different parties to do different things.
“Wairarapa has still reaped benefits of what they have done as part of the project.”
Anna Head, Grow Wellington project manager for Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine, who began the project with Go Wairarapa, said she too is “gutted” the cuisine school had been lost to Wairarapa.
She said she did not now what would happen to the Wairarapa Cuisine and Fine Wine initiative now the cuisine school has moved.
“I don’t know where my position sits.” (sic)
- from an article in the Wairarapa Times-Age 8 May 2008 (Gerald Ford)
No comments:
Post a Comment