March 27, 2014
Labour betting on forests for iwi jobs
Labour leader David Cunliffe says state support for forestry initiatives can have a big effect on Maori and regional development.
Mr Cunliffe this week toured Northland looking at initiatives and pointing to the way ahead.
He says the Tai Tokerau Forest Partnership scheme, which allowed a lot of Maori land in the north to be planted, can be applied elsewhere in the country.
A Labour-led government would also create incentives for business to get into processing timber, and invest in roading to ensure logs can reach the mills.
Mr Cunliffe says Labour sees forestry as more than raw timber.
"For those who are trying to protect native forests, we are going to establish a new category of legacy forests and put a bit of putea up to help with the maintenance and looking after of those forests and that’s particularly important in the north with the beautiful stands of kauri forests up there that are really a legacy asset for all New Zealanders. We want to help those be managed appropriately, not just in the big national parks but in the small stands as well," he says.
Mr Cunliffe says Labour will also use a form of the Taskforce Green work schemes to give young people a taste of forestry work.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH DAVID CUNLIFFE CLICK ON THE LINK
http://www.waateanews.com/play_podcast?podlink=MTY1NjE=
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