If you think it’s expensive to travel around the country now, it’s about to get more expensive with KiwiRail ditching one of its ferries.

But even though flying isn’t cheap, KiwiRail can forget about me making any interisland ferry bookings. Because why would ya?

Two dungers —either of which can be out of service on any given day— no thanks.

This all goes back to the decision by the Government not long after it came to power to pull the plug on the mega ferry project that Labour seemed to have an open cheque book for.

Originally, the cost of getting the new mega ferries and bringing the portside infrastructure up-to-scratch was going to be around $1.5 billion.

But that blew out to $3 billion and Finance Minister Nicola Willis said “no” when KiwiRail came knocking asking for more money.

She said at the time that Cabinet wasn’t confident that there wouldn’t be further cost blow-outs. A bit further down the track, she washed her hands of the whole thing and handed-it over to Winston Peters who became the Minister for Rail with his number one job being to find cheaper ferries and fast.

And, as we now know, they're expected to be here in 2029. In fact, pretty much all we know. We don't know how much they're going to cost. We also don't know how much it has cost or is going to cost the Government to get out of the original ship building contract.

But this isn’t about the politics today. The conversation today is about KiwiRail running just two ferries on Cook Strait for the next four years, and what that’s going to mean.

What it’s going to mean for passengers, and what it’s going to mean for people shifting freight up and down the country.

Let’s start with passengers: there’s no doubt it’s going to get more expensive to cross the Strait. That’s just how business works.

The Aratere does two crossings a day and can carry up to 400 passengers. So there’s 800 passengers a day that won’t be crossing. To be fair to KiwiRail, they are saying that they think the most impact on passengers will happen during the peak season.

But, either way, it’s only going to lead to increased prices and decreased reliability.

Then there’s the freight issue. There’s already no shortage of people saying how unreliable the Interislander has become for them getting their products to and from the North and South Islands.

I see that road freight lobby group Transporting New Zealand is saying that the Aratere going out of service will create more risk for freight.

Chief Executive Dom Kalasih is saying today that it will be "fascinating” to see what happens with freight with no rail-enabled ferries.

But it’s not the lack of rail that’s going to be an issue, because guess how much freight in New Zealand is carried on trucks? Ninety percent. And a lot of them will be trucking operators that cross Cook Strait on the Interislander, competing for space paying higher prices.

And businesses paying more will mean everybody paying more.

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Get ready for what we now know will be a winter of discontent after the announcement by Nicola Willis that she is slashing government spending.

Which shows us once and for all, that the income tax cuts were a dreadful mistake. Because it’s not just ideology driving these budget cuts - it’s need.

The Government has much less money coming in the door through taxation - which means it’s got much less to spend.

And, maybe conveniently, the Finance Minister’s announcement yesterday came 48 hours before 5,000+ senior doctors go on strike wanting more pay.

But if the Minister was watching the news last night, she would have seen people asked in the street what they thought she should focus her spending on in next month’s budget. And it was clear, hands down, that most people thought it was health. And I’m the same.

If there’s one thing that affects us all in some way, shape or form - it’s the state of the health system.

I think the Government needs to take holistic view of the world when it comes to health and not just pour money into hospitals. But I think health spending or increased health spending needs to go into things from treating people who are really crook, people who need treatment to live productive and happy lives, but also things that help prevent people from getting unwell in the first place.

The bigger issue for the Government though, aside from the state of the books, is maintaining public confidence. Winter is always the hardest time for us to keep our chin up and the Government will be aware of that.

And no amount of cheerleading or writing-off its political opponents as moaners with no ambition is going to cut it anymore. Nor is some of the patronising talk we’re hearing from the Finance Minister, who is at-risk of becoming as patronising as Jacinda Ardern was by the end of her tenure.

We don't need to be told about household budgets and credit cards being declined to understand that the country is in the shtook. Just like we don't need patronising talk about Toyota Corolla ferries instead of Ferrari ferries.

Even if you think Nicola Willis is the best thing since Ruth Richardson, you must be getting tired of some of the talk.

The other thing that gets me is that a lot of people bang on about us needing governments with business experience.

You know, successful people who know how to run a budget. But it always seems to me that when these so-called successful people do get into government, they do the complete opposite of what people expect them to do.

For example: when you run a successful business, yes, you do keep an eye on costs. But there’s another thing you do as well when you run a business: you try to get as much revenue in the door, as possible.

But this government has done the complete opposite of that with its tax cuts.

No one’s better off. And the Government has way less money to spend.

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The Labour Leader is pushing back against criticism of emergency housing motels amid an increase in reports of concern to Oranga Tamariki.

It estimates its seen a 45% increase in reports in the year to April, and data shows that as of March 31st, there were 1,391 children overdue to be given a social worker.

Chris Hipkins is rebuking the idea the situation is a legacy of the previous Labour Government, telling John MacDonald that economic circumstances often result in a rise in negative statistics, as families are under a lot of financial pressure.

He accepts this kind of thing builds over time, but an increase of this magnitude cannot solely be blamed on the previous government, and the current government has played a role.

"If we've got more kids living on the streets and living in cars because they've booted everyone out of emergency accommodation and they're being referred to Oranga Tamariki as a result of that, which the government was told would happen, with their emergency accommodation policy, then yes, that is the government's responsibility."

Motels were one of the Labour Party's emergency housing solutions, and Hipkins admits that it's not optimal, but it's better than having people living in cars or under bridges.

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I reckon a lot of us in Canterbury won’t be as excited as people elsewhere in the country about the Government’s plan to let builders, plumbers and drainlayers sign-off their own work.

I say that because of the bare-faced lies a lot of us were told by builders after the quakes.

So this is going to apply to the construction of simple, standardised houses to try and reduce the need for so many council inspections and to speed-up building times.

The Government reckons there’s about 3,000 homes that will pop-up sooner through these changes.

But the only way I’d be happy to even consider going along with this, would be if the Government listens to what the NZ Certified Builders organisation is saying.

Malcolm Fleming heads it and while he thinks, overall, the Government is doing the right thing, he reckons the Government should go further and introduce a quality mark for builders. To give homeowners confidence that their builder is qualified to sign-off their own work.

I think it's a brilliant idea.

Before the earthquakes, we did quite a major renovation and I reckon, back then, I would have been quite happy for the builder to sign things off himself.

He was an ex-detective. A great guy. And we didn’t have any problems with him at all.

But that was back in the day when I was a bit more trusting. Not now, though.

Because from what we saw here in Canterbury, when there’s the lure of money and cashflow and a need to keep your people busy, it can be pretty tempting for tradespeople to cut corners.

And that’s what I see this new scheme being. A licence to cut corners.

There are very good and reliable and trustworthy builders, plumbers and drainlayers who probably think I need to get over it.

And maybe I do. But, when you get to the point of dreading seeing anyone in a high vis top coming down your driveway because you’ve been stung one too many times, then I can’t help feeling the way I do about this move by the Government.

I won't be the only person in Canterbury feeling this way. I won't be the only person in the whole country feeling this way.

Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk, though, thinks he’s onto a winner.

He’s saying: “Making it easier and more affordable to build would open the door to home ownership for more kiwis and support growth and job creation in the construction sector.”

He says: “We can’t achieve this vision while the building consent system remains slow and overloaded. Even simple, single-storey homes must go through around 12 inspections before they’re finished, with costly delays when demand is high.

“At a time when many kiwis are locked out of the housing market, that’s simply not good enough.”

But what I would say to that, is that failing to learn from past mistakes isn’t good enough, either.

And, surely, if we have learned anything from Canterbury's earthquake recovery experience it’s this. That, when it comes to building, more safeguards are needed - not less.

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I reckon a lot of us in Canterbury won’t be as excited as people elsewhere in the country about the Government’s plan to let builders, plumbers and drainlayers sign-off their own work.

I say that because of the bare faced lies a lot of us were told by builders after the quakes.

So this is going to apply to the construction of simple, standardised houses to try and reduce the need for so many council inspections and to speed-up building times.

The Government reckons there’s about 3,000 homes that will pop-up sooner through these changes. But the only way I’d be happy to even consider going along with this, would be if the Government listens to what the NZ Certified Builders organisation is saying.

Malcolm Fleming heads it and while he thinks, overall, the Government is doing the right thing, he reckons the Government should go further and introduce a quality mark for builders. To give homeowners confidence that their builder is qualified to sign-off their own work.

I think it's a brilliant idea.

Before the earthquakes we did quite a major renovation and I reckon, back then, I would have been quite happy for the builder to sign things off himself. He was an ex-detective. A great guy. And we didn’t have any problems with him at all.

But that was back in the day when I was a bit more trusting. Not now, though.

Because from what we saw here in Canterbury, when there’s the lure of money and cashflow and a need to keep your people busy, it can be pretty tempting for tradespeople to cut corners.

And that’s what I see this new scheme being. A licence to cut corners.

There are very good and reliable and trustworthy builders, plumbers and drainlayers who probably think I need to get over it.

And maybe I do. But, when you get to the point of dreading seeing anyone in a high vis top coming down your driveway because you’ve been stung one too many times, then I can’t help feeling the way I do about this move by the Government.

I won't be the only person in Canterbury feeling this way. I won't be the only person in the whole country feeling this way.

Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk, though, thinks he’s onto a winner.

He’s saying: “Making it easier and more affordable to build would open the door to home ownership for more Kiwis and support growth and job creation in the construction sector.”

He says: “We can’t achieve this vision while the building consent system remains slow and overloaded. Even simple, single-storey homes must go through around 12 inspections before they’re finished, with costly delays when demand is high.

“At a time when many Kiwis are locked out of the housing market, that’s simply not good enough.”

But what I would say to that is that failing to learn from past mistakes isn’t good enough, either.

And, surely, if we have learned anything from Canterbury's earthquake recovery experience it’s this. That, when it comes to building, more safeguards are needed - not less.

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I’ve surprised myself with my reaction to this plan to open a bottle store right across the road from the bus interchange, in central Christchurch.

But I think it’s a terrible idea. And it’s a gut thing.

Seeing all the stuff that goes on in the central city, my gut tells me that that’s probably the last place you’d want a bottle store.

I’m surprised by the way that I feel about it because, normally, I’d probably look at this proposal and think that if people are going to buy booze, they'll buy booze.

And, normally, I’d probably say that there’s already booze available in town, so why have a problem with a bottle store?

But I’m different on this one. And I’m not alone. The police. Health bosses. They're all against it.

So is Liz Gordon, who is with the Communities Against Alcohol Harm group.

She says the bus interchange is one of the most crime-ridden areas in the country and it’s not an appropriate location for a bottle store. I don’t know about that claim about the interchange being one of the worst places in the country for crime. But I agree with her with that it’s not the area to have a bottle store.

She’s also opposing another proposed bottle store just down the road on the ground floor of an apartment block on the corner of Manchester and Cashel streets.

And I’m with her on that one too.

Where this has come from, is the owners of the Fresh Choice supermarket in The Crossing want to open-up a bottle store next door to their existing business.

I know the people who are pro the bottle store will say that there’s an alcohol ban in the centre of town so it's not as if people would be able to buy alcohol and start guzzling it outside.

My response to that would be, yes, there is an alcohol ban. But there’s also a ban on people having their dog in town with no lead - but people still do it. All sorts of things are banned - but people still do them. And it’s not as if there’s a dire shortage of places to buy alcohol in the centre of town.

Another person opposed to the new bottle shop is Medical Officer of Health Dr Cheryl Brunton.

She says there are already 10 other off-licence locations within one kilometre of the proposed site and 19 locations in close proximity where drinks can be bought over-the-bar.

The argument in favour of the bottle store is that there are way more people living in the central city these days and it makes sense to be able to buy the type of alcohol that you can’t get at the supermarkets.

So your spirits and your RTDs. And I get that argument. But there’s enough going on - particularly in that part of the central city - without needing to add a bottle shop into the mix.

It’s being reported today that, in their licence application, the supermarket owners say they don't anticipate any alcohol-related problems from the bottle store, if they get approval to open it.

But they would say that, wouldn’t they? As if they'd say anything different.

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Is it ever-so-slightly ironic that, on the same day that the first highway in the South Island had its speed limit increased to 110 kph, we had the Government announce that it wants to make it easier for people to get their driver’s licence?

The highway is the main drag that runs between Christchurch and Rolleston. And the proposed driver licence changes are a range of things to make it easier and quicker for someone to get their full licence.

There’s some good stuff in there. But I’m not liking this idea of doing away with the second practical test.

We’ve got a few weeks to tell the Government what we think of its ideas through a consultation phase that starts today.

There are some good things in the plan. I like the idea of new drivers having to behave themselves if they want to graduate to their full licence. The Government wants to halve the number of demerit points new drivers can get before having their licence suspended. At the moment, it’s 100. The Government wants to reduce that down to 50 demerit points.

I like the idea of zero alcohol for all new drivers. At the moment, this only applies to new drivers under 20. The Government wants to apply that rule to new drivers - whatever their age.

So they’re some of the good ideas.

But this idea of only having one practical test, instead of two - it doesn’t get my tick.

And I know Transport Minister Chris Bishop is saying New Zealand is a bit isolated in that regard. But doing something just because it’s the way everyone else does it has never been a great justification for anything.

Just like it’s not a great justification in this case. Because when someone is starting out as a driver, surely that’s the time when you want every opportunity to iron out any bad habits.

Because, like any bad habit, the sooner you nip it in the bud - the better.

But under this proposal, a person would have one practical test to get their restricted licence and never be tested again until they’re well past retirement age.

Here’s Transport Minister Chris Bishop’s explanation as to why the Government is doing this. He’s saying today: "We've heard for a while now that the system just hasn't been working as efficiently as people would like, and that there are particularly young people out there who are really reluctant to go and get their full licence because it is stressful, it is anxiety-inducing, and it is costly as well.”

Stressful and anxiety-inducing? Don’t you think that, when it comes to something as important as a driver’s licence, feeling a bit stressed about it is a good thing?

That might just be me. But there’s probably a truckload of things we could do away with on the basis that they cause stress and anxiety for people.

And, surely, if someone does one practical driving test - they’re going to be just as stressed about that one. So I don’t see how reducing it from two is going to address that issue.

Remember too that, apparently, having a driver’s licence is a privilege - not an entitlement.

But, for me, the overarching reason why the two practical tests need to stay, comes down to bad habits.

Anyone who drives has bad habits. There is no perfect driver out there.

And, whether we’ve been driving for 12 months or 12 years, we all have bad habits.

I surprised a few people when I told them that I sat-in on the practical driving tests two of our kids did. You can do that - you sit in the back if you promise not to say anything.

And when I did that, I was amazed to find from the examiner some of the things that you can be failed for.

And there were some of those things that I do all the time. And that’s why the second practical test is so necessary.

Because it’s an opportunity for someone to have any bad habits they might have developed while on their restricted licence pointed out to them.

Especially if it’s a bad habit that leads to them failing their practical test.

If they fail, they’ll remember.

And I think we’d be making a serious mistake if we took away this backstop, if you like, from the driver licence system.

Just because it causes a bit of stress and anxiety. And just because it makes it a bit more expensive.

Unless, of course, you think a driver’s licence is nothing more than a rite of passage. Unless you think that a licence is an entitlement, not a privilege.

Making it easier for someone to get their full licence and doing away with the second practical test doesn’t sound like a privilege to me.

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There's a lack of enthusiasm for a ferry service between Wellington and Lyttelton.

According to Local Democracy Reporting, Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon believes the Government should consider reinstating the service, which ran from 1895 to 1976.

National Party's Vanessa Weenink told John MacDonald the idea is harking back to the old days.

She says she’s unsure what the business case would be, and is unsure if it would work out.

Labour's Tracey McLellan says it's a romanticised idea.

She told MacDonald she can’t see this one working, and it’s still taking three years to get the Cook Strait Ferries sorted.

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