Ian McLean Green candidate for Tauranga

Thank goodness, a support package for businesses affected by the Rena disaster is finally on the table. The issue of business loss was raised at the first public meeting, and comes up regularly.

The 'we are working on it” response routinely given by Maritime NZ at those meetings was generally uninformative, inadequate and downright insulting. It was yet another example of their poor preparation for the multiple consequences of this event, and their impressively bad communication strategy.

Sadly, it turns out that the table on which the package is lying is very small, and further, is ring-fenced by some rather high walls. $360k is up for grabs, to apply for a 6-week period if by some chance one is lucky enough to qualify.

Presumably the Rena consequences will be over in 6 weeks. That is the first good news we have had for a while.

The package provides wages support only. It does not help with base costs such as rent, equipment maintenance or administration charges. Unfortunately, these costs don't go away just because the business is unable to trade. One still has to put in the GST return, even when it says zero.

Last Saturday (in the BoP Times) we heard about the first businesses who have failed to qualify. They are in the target group (marine-based operations), but are still generating just enough turn-over to be excluded.

Lesson learned. If you are going to fail, do it properly and with enthusiasm. Only then will you be considered worthy of support.

Hmmm. The taxpayer subsidised South Canterbury Finance to the tune of $1.6 billion. Canterbury is estimated to cost a minimum of $5 billion. PSA has been given a support package of $50 million (although to fund research, not to stop businesses from going under). The final costs of Pike River and the Rena cleanup are still unknown, but both will be in the multi-millions.

It makes $360k look just a bit paltry doesn't it, despite the suspiciously bland commentary from the Chamber of Commerce. Why is the Chamber being so secretive about the report it wrote on this issue?

The notion of 'too little, too late”, comes to mind. This government purports to have small business as part of its key constituency. The evidence from Tauranga moana suggests otherwise.

Want to know more? Got to http://www.tauranga.org.nz/editorials/news/chamber-comment-on-rena-business-recovery-package.html