Demolition companies and building owners in central Christchurch hope efforts by the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority will speed up the city's rebuild after it's been languishing for weeks.
A Christchurch City Councillor is worried the wishes of local residents and the council could be by-passed once the Earthquake Recovery Authority takes over rebuilding the city.
A Christchurch couple has been told they can't use a driveway that no longer leads to any houses because the Earthquake Recovery Authority may need access to it.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, is offside with the business community in Christchurch over the decision to permanently relocate nearly 500 public servants outside of the central business district.
The Christchurch City Council has received a strong warning from the Earthquake Recovery Minister to speed up its processing of building consents or lose its power to authorise consents.
As Christchurch prepares to mark 10 years since its deadly earthquake, the impact of that day continues to be felt differently. The less affluent eastern suburbs, which bore the brunt of the damage, continue to lag behind the rest of the city in their recovery. The former dean of Christchurch and fellow east sider, Peter Beck, told Conan Young that while government agencies such as EQC often failed people in their hour of need, what did not fail was the willingness of people to help out their neighbours.
Topics - The Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says it is important to be realistic about the demolition of Christchurch's heritage buildings following the powerful earthquake there last month. Motorists should prepare themselves for more increases in the price of petrol which, the AA warns, is likely to reach a new high.
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee has backed off on his threats to the Christchurch City Council and one of the New Zealand Greenpeace activists is freed from a Russian detention centre.
The Christchurch City Council says it has reached a compromise with the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, and voted unanimously to support a plan to intensify housing in the city.
The rebuild of central Christchurch has been taken out of the control of the city council and will now be managed by a newly formed unit within the Government's Earthquake Recovery Authority.
People living in Christchurch's orange zone will have to wait longer than expected for a decision on whether they can remain in their homes, after the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority missed one of its deadlines.
The newly elected Christchurch City Council had its first meeting with the Earthquake Recovery Minister last night, and councillors say it was the beginning of a much better working relationship.
Law experts have criticised the Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Act for creating a dangerous precedent. Our political editor Brent Edwards weighs up the arguments for and against the emergency legislation.
The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister has been forced to concede he's received official advice on the Christchurch City Council selling some of its assets to help pay for rebuilding the city.
Shift to quake recovery operation devastating for survivor;Brother of missing woman speaks out;Police say end of rescue effort sad day for all concerned;Other families trying to come to grips with rescue's end;Hundreds struggle on with life inside Christchurch cordon;Christ's College spared from large scale damage;Gang patches can return - Hells Angels lawyer;Botany to elect new MP tomorrow;Earthquake Minister on shift to recovery operation.
The government's looking overseas to get more hands on deck to help with the rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle. A new short-term Recovery Visa will bring in specialist foreign workers through a similar pathway used after the Christchurch and Kaikoura earthquakes. The visas will be fast-tracked with officials aiming to get applications through within seven days. Corn Dann spoke with immigration minister Michael Wood.
People in Christchurch fighting to save their Port Hills homes are astounded the Earthquake Recovery Authority is set on spending millions of dollars to buy them out when a cheaper option exists.
The Christchurch City Council's control of the earthquake recovery plan has been taken out of its hands, to the delight of business leaders, but to the chagrin of some local councilors.
Donations to the Canterbury earthquake fund now total about $11 million. It comes as the Government announced early details of a recovery plan for people wanting money to fix their damaged homes or start rebuilding.
The Christchurch City councillor in charge of council housing says he accepts trenchant criticism from the Earthquake Recovery Minister that the council has been woeful in fixing its quake-damaged housing stock.
Questions to Ministers 1. Hon PHIL GOFF to the Prime Minister: Is he satisfied that actions to address the Christchurch earthquake are an adequate response; if not, what are his areas of concern? 2. AMY ADAMS to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the economic impact of the earthquake in Christchurch on 22 February 2011? 3. Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Is he satisfied with the level of support being offered to the people of Christchurch in the wake of the earthquake on 22 February 2011? 4. NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What is the Government doing to support Canterbury businesses and employees through the earthquake recovery? 5. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: Is she confident that the Ministry of Social Development has responded adequately to the Christchurch earthquake? 6. METIRIA TUREI to the Minister of Finance: Has he considered raising a temporary levy on income to help fund the rebuilding of Christchurch; if so, how much could it raise? 7. AARON GILMORE to the Minister for Tertiary Education: What work has been done to help the families of tertiary students and tertiary institutions affected by the 22 February 2011 earthquake in Christchurch? 8. Hon JIM ANDERTON to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Will he ensure that Christchurch homeowners and businesses are able to access insurance cover from existing policies or new cover they require since the 22 February 2011 earthquake? 9. Hon JOHN BOSCAWEN to the Attorney-General: Has he asked the Māori Party to agree to amendments to the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Bill that would make it explicitly clear that customary title holders would not be able to charge individuals for accessing a beach, and require any negotiated settlements to be referred back to Parliament for validation; if so, what response did he receive? 10. Hon DAVID PARKER to the Attorney-General: Does the Government intend to proceed this week with its legislation to replace the existing Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004? 11. RAHUI KATENE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Did he agree with his spokesman's response to the situation for residents in Christchurch East following the earthquake of 22 February 2011, that, "It is apparent, given the scale out there, that there just wasn't sufficient hardware out there, loos and the like", and what urgent actions have been taken to give priority to communities in the eastern suburbs? 12. COLIN KING to the Minister of Civil Defence: Why was a state of national emergency declared on 23 February 2011?
The Earthquake Recovery Authority is knocking on the door of every red and orange zone resident in Christchurch to check on their welfare and offer them temporary accommodation if they need it.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says officials have tried for months to help the Christchurch City Council but it's consistently failed to make the necessary improvements and is still taking far too long to process applications.
Former editor of the Financial Times, and more recently was director general of the Confederation of British Industry, Sir Richard is New Zealand looking at earthquake recovery in Christchurch and to speak about climate change in a business context.
The Minister for Earthquake Recovery, Gerry Brownlee, has been accused in the High Court in Christchurch of abusing his powers and doing deals which allowed councils and Christchurch Airport to get their own way over zoning decisions.
The public policy think tank, the New Zealand Initiative, says this country is still under-prepared for the next big earthquake. The group of economists has reviewed the policy response to the Canterbury earthquakes and has just released its report: Recipe for disaster: Building policy on shaky ground. It says recovery from the quakes was hindered by avoidable policy mistakes that still haven't been addressed. One of the report's co authors Dr Eric Crampton joins Susie Ferguson to discuss the issues.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, says he is confident that Fletchers is vigilant about fraud and is doing what it can to prevent it in the Christchurch rebuild after accusations from New Zealand First.
Nick Rogers, project director, Canterbury Land Assessment for Tonkin & Taylor. Tonkin & Taylor is the environmental and engineering consultancy doing the Canterbury land damage assessment work for EQC and the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority.
Some Christchurch residents say the Christchurch City Council has been too slow to resolve the threat of rock fall to their homes, and they now hope the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority will take over the job.
The Earthquake Recovery Minister, Gerry Brownlee, has made plain his frustration with the performance of the Christchurch City Council, calling the mayor, Bob Parker, a clown and saying that he's at the end of his tether.