John Key heckled in Levin

Written By: - Date published: 1:29 pm, March 26th, 2010 - 14 comments
Categories: john key, national/act government - Tags:

The smile is wearing off.

John Key visited Levin today to open a new district court. The visit didn’t go to plan as he was heckled by 150 locals over health cuts – which will see the region lose 24 beds.

According to stuff:

Prime Minister John Key was booed by a noisy crowd protesting plans to cut 24 beds from Horowhenua’s $16.1 million health centre during a trip to Levin this morning.

Mr Key, who was in the town to open the new District Court building, was confronted by about 150 people who stood across the road waving placards to protest the planned cuts, which would leave just four maternity beds at the centre and force other patients to travel to Palmerston North or Wellington for treatment.

Protest organiser Katy Harding said the protest was arranged by locals upset at the cuts.

A MidCentral District Health Board advisory committee discussion document, leaked to The Dominion Post last month, suggests axing assessment, treatment and rehabilitation beds for elderly patients at the 28-bed centre, which opened 2 1/2 years ago. Axing the beds would save $2.3 million a year.

The DHB posted a $10.4 million deficit for the 2008-09 year, and is predicting a deficit of $8.9m for this year. The discussion document also suggested cutting 12 rehabilitation beds at Palmerston North Hospital, which would save the board $600,000 a year.

Get used to it Mr Key. I look forward to that slimy smile wearing off.

Just wait till the mining issue starts heating up.

14 comments on “John Key heckled in Levin ”

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  1. Zaphod Beeblebrox 1
    26 March 2010 at 2:15 pm

    Maybe he can talk to Obama and compare notes. This happens to all pollies from time to time. He must be grateful he lives in NZ not the US where every second loonie is packing a pistol.

  2. torydog 2
    26 March 2010 at 2:36 pm

    yes, but in america the loons tend to be right wingers……as they are here!

  3. DavidW 3
    26 March 2010 at 2:45 pm

    Hot damnm, do you mean that the honeymoon is over …….. AGAIN !!!!!!

  4. Lew 4
    26 March 2010 at 2:47 pm

    Levin’s in a marginal National electorate, too — Hughes lost it by less than 1500 votes as I recall.

    L

  5. willaspish 5
    26 March 2010 at 3:10 pm

    Don’t worry JK, it’ll just be more of those “muppets”!

  6. tc 6
    26 March 2010 at 3:35 pm

    No big deal…he’ll just go with the rent a crowd approach similar to Tolley’s staged consultation sessions if he chooses to expose himself that is. Style over substance people.

  7. gobsmacked 7
    26 March 2010 at 3:45 pm

    “Mr Key, who was in the town to open the new District Court building … ” (stuff.co.nz report)

    Since he became PM, Key has been busy going to all these official openings and spreading his special brand of bonhomie. He calls this “running the country”.

    What he neglects to mention (which is understandable) and the media also neglect to mention (which is not), is that these buildings, infrastructure projects, and general public services are usually the result of decisions taken by the previous government.

    Here’s why John Key could open the Levin district court today:

    http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0810/S00239.htm

    So an honest headline would be: “Key cuts ribbon on latest example of Labour’s public spending that his party constantly attacked”.

    John clearly loves having shiny new buildings to open. But what’s he going to do when we’ve stopped building them?

  8. Zaphod Beeblebrox 8
    26 March 2010 at 3:48 pm

    Next’s election could be interesting for a lot of reasons. I’m guessing parts of Auckland (Rodney, Franklin, parts of Waitakere, Gt Barrier) are going to be no go areas for National politicians. Hide won’t bother travelling outside Epsom. The terse tone of the Super City third bill Select Hearings are only a portent of what is to follow up here.

    Even the Howick residents are grumpy at the name of their local board.

  9. JD 9
    26 March 2010 at 6:48 pm

    How did Key react? Was he as staunch as Trevor Mallard was when he closed schools in his own electorate?

  10. gobsmacked 10
    27 March 2010 at 1:26 pm

    “How did Key react?”

    Well, there’s a wonderful photo of him reacting, here:

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/3514469/Protest-disrupts-PMs-day

    John Key, November 2008: “The people have spoken!”

    John Key, March 2010: “People, shut up!”

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