It cuts both ways, Mr Luxon

Our PM Christopher Luxon thought he had a great talking point on local councils. Alongside the Ministerial announcement that the Government would be taking steps to abolish regional councils, Luxon admonished district councillors to get rid of 'nice-to-have' vanity-type projects and concentrate on delivering the basics to local voters. 

I was therefore  surprised to read a Herald sob piece on the predicament of one  Loriza Ali and her unsuccessful attempts to bring her cerebral palsy son to this country from Fiji. Forgive me for not bursting into tears of hard-hearted Kiwi contrition, as it is not as if this health requirement was sprung on Ms Ali after she arrived. Ali knew this from the outset, but was also likely told privately that getting into the newspapers is a sure way of forcing politicians' hands.  Clearly this is a Crusade that the Herald wants to win and aligns with the current daily print media attempts to destabilise Luxon and his coalition government. As part of the guilt trip pile-on around Ms Ali's son, (whose own father abandoned the child), we are also told of a Indian Down Syndrome child who was granted residence as a result of intervention by Minister Chris Penk. If Ali could come up with cast iron guarantees that the boy will not be a burden on the state, especially when she is no longer able to be his carer, her case would have more merit.

Humanitarian ideals are fine, if they can be achieved comfortably within existing capacity. This is certainly not the case here. Mr Luxon should make this clear to his Cabinet as well. 'Nice to haves' are out for Central Government just as they are for financially-beleaguered District Councils.