FROM THE FLOOR: Wadestown residents take the opportunity to tackle the issue of climate change at an Ohariu candidates meeting.
CLIMATE change advocates hijacked the Ohariu candidates meeting in Wadestown on Monday night.
The Wadestown Resident’s Association hosted nine candidates, including the current MP Peter Dunne, at St Lukes Hall in Wadestown.
Members of the audience were surprised at how much weight was given to climate change for a meeting consisting of mainly over 60 year olds.
“I was quite taken by the fact they seemed quite concerned about climate change. I’m hardly young myself but most of them were older than I was,” Rodger Shepherd says.
Thomas Stokell was pleased to finally see people take an interest in the topic.
“Obviously the consensus is we need to do something about it and if we don’t we’re in trouble. I think a lot of the people there are concerned for their kids and grandkids, and rightly so,” he says.
The audience appeared pleased to see the issue getting an airing with some concerned that it had not been covered during the election campaign.
“I was so pleased and amazed that everyone in the audience was concerned on that topic and if those other candidates don’t see it, we’re being lead by exactly the wrong people I’m afraid,” Bruce Stokell says.
However, not everyone was happy with the amount of time spent on the topic.
Tony Vial felt the night got bogged down with questions about climate change.
“There’s not an easy answer to those questions and we got sidetracked,” he says.
Young Wadestown couple Jonathan and Lucy Elkin said the candidates did not talk about the issues that were important to them.
“There was about 80% on climate change. Which is good, we get the point, but it was repeating the same points over and over again. Stuff about raising a family would have been better,” Mr Elkin says.
The audience also took a surprise liking to Labour’s Virginia Andersen and the Green’s Tane Woodley, saying that despite being young newcomers they spoke well and engaged the audience.
“We were surprised how well the Labour lady spoke, because we didn’t know much about her at all and what we had heard wasn’t terribly favourable,” Alan Purdie says.
“His [Tane Woodley] personal sincerity came out, it was obvious he believes in it,” Bruce Stokell says.
Although Peter Dunne still had his supporters the audience didn’t appear to respond to him as well as expected.
“I just felt like Dunne seemed like the old guy suddenly. He spoke powerfully but it seemed a little tired, and there was these two young thrusters coming through from Labour and the Greens side with an interesting vibe,” Colin Hogg says.