"By Northland, for Northland"

Save our Northland Emergency Services Fund

$12 a year. That's what each Northland household pays to sustain the Emergency Services Fund, half of which goes to fund the Northland Rescue Helicopter.

The Northland Regional Council now proposes to eliminate this fund, to soften the blow of a rates increase…by $12 per household. 

But what are we losing?

As Northland doctors, Northland nurses, Northland patients, Northland whānau, and Northland residents we can tell you what that $12 dollars helps fund: 

Helicopters, paramedics, pilots and crew that have flown 28,000 missions since 1988, picking up people from all over Northland – from farm paddocks, roadside crashes, rural and urban homes, boats, forestry blocks, and every day from the outlying hospitals of Kaitaia, Dargaville, Kawakawa, and Rawene. 

They bring the critically sick and injured to Whangārei Hospital and when needed to Auckland City Hospital and Starship Children's Hospital, where they can get CT scans, inpatient specialist and critical care, surgeries, and other life-saving and life-changing treatments. 

While $6 per household goes to help fund medical rescue helicopters, the other $6 per household helps partially fund Northland’s search and rescue team, surf lifesavers, and other rescue services.

We the undersigned want politicians and members of the public to know that the sudden removal of the entire Emergency Services Fund is exceptionally short-sighted:

That $12 per household helps fund truly important care for a region dealing with large distances, rugged terrain, and significant medical need. 

Northland Regional Councillors have said this funding is not their core business, that helping fund Northland emergency services is outside the scope of the Northland Regional Council. And that it should be picked up by central government.  

But this fund was started by Northlanders, for Northlanders, ages ago. And it's been doing a great job of helping Northlanders for years: more than 28,000 Northlanders on the rescue helicopter alone since 1988!

To suddenly yank funding on 30 June just isn’t right. To suddenly eliminate this longstanding funding in order to make a rates increase look $12 better is frankly irresponsible.

Let your Councillors, and your friends, know all about this – as soon as possible. Because comments to the NRC end 19 April! 

Click here to submit your comment to NRC:

https://consult-nrc.objective.com/kse/event/4946/form/4946

We would argue that the $12 per household Emergency Services Fund is among the most important, effective, and valued things Northland Regional Council has ever done. 

NRC’s support over the years has been wise, and the Emergency Services Fund had been helpful (even lifesaving) to thousands of Northlanders. 

Truly “By Northland, for Northland".

Please, Northland Regional Council, do not cut the $12 per household Emergency Services Fund. It does too much good.

Signed,

The appreciative but concerned residents of Northland (and the supporters of the Northland rescue helicopter service) in strong support of the $12-per-household Emergency Services Fund!