There was something decidedly schizophrenic about two Government announcements made today. First, the Prime Minister foreshadowing next week’s budget with $30 million for the tourism industry. Second, Conservation Minister Kate Wilkinson officially opening the Oteake Conservation Park.
John Key, all decked out in his Tourism Minister hat, waxed lyrical about the huge value of the multi-billion dollar industry over which he presides. He painted his vision of growing tourism “far beyond what it is now,” off the back of NZ’s “world leading brand".
Rewind a couple of months to John Key speaking as Prime Minister about the Government’s plans to open up the best of our conservation estate to mining and the need to plunder our most prized and protected land for the good of the economy.
If I’m not mistaken there are two Johns roaming the 9th floor. While John Key Tourism Minister is aiming to grow tourism by investing millions to enhance our world leading brand, John Key Prime Minister is busy jeopardizing that very same brand with domestic mining policy.
There's no doubt the mining, and National's generally backward approach to economic management, will harm our reputation. You only need to read the Economist and Guardian pieces documenting the slow but sure demise of clean green NZ to know we're in the shit. How swiftly a reputation can be lost with some bad press, and once it’s gone it will take years, if not decades to rebuild.
100% Pure is a brand that took years to build and millions to consolidate. It was recently ranked the 21st most valuable brand in the world. A mere 1% decline in tourism would mean the loss of 1,800 jobs. A 10% decline would sacrifice 18,000 jobs. You’d need a damn lot of Waihi mine pits blotted across the land to re-employ 18 thousand people.
Meawhile, Kate Wilkinson gave herself and her Government a giant pat on the back this afternoon while officially opening the Oteake Conservation Park. That’d be the very same park that the Government carved land out of so foreign mining company could dig up dirty lignite coal. So what’s left in the Park might be beautiful but the neighborhood sure ain’t going to be.
These are perfect examples of a complete lack of cohesion in the Government's economic strategy. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing, or doesn't care to know. John and Gerry want to have their Pure NZ cake and eat their mining cake too. Arguably Gerry's had quite enough, and John, come on! It’s the same cake! Robbing Peter to pay Paul won't improve the ledger.