Ian McLean Green candidate for Tauranga

It seems Treasury forecasts made in October, used by National to promise balanced budgets by 2015, were overly optimistic.

Tax revenue will be lower than forecast and the deficit will be higher. That means more borrowing and an increasingly desperate search for income by government. Watch for more asset sales and job losses.

Another 21 containers holding toxic materials were ‘discovered' on the Rena.

They were apparently missing off the manifest held by Maritime NZ. An urgent investigation into how this could possibly occur is promised, but we have since heard nothing about that.

Coincidentally, both these newsy items appeared on Friday, November 25, too late to influence the election outcome. They have been downplayed by both government and the media, yet they represent serious issues for our environment and our economy.

We deserve better service from Treasury. And the regulation of coastal shipping clearly needs a complete review. What else is on that Rena?