Menéndez March RicardoRICARDO MENÉNDEZ MARCH (Green): Thank you Madam Speaker. I'm really pleased to see the Mt Albert electorate getting a bit of love today and rightfully so because the electorate is a network of communities each with their identity. We've got so many families who have long deep roots in the community and who are deeply invested in the changing electorate.Indeed it is an electorate that is changing with housing developments and young families raising children changing the landscape. This is why it's so important that we all get behind supporting the many schools and organisations who are calling for the Inner West Projects to be resumed. It is a project that has a seven-year - plus history receiving commitment and funding from both National and Labour Governments yet Auckland Transport hasn't gotten on board with actually doing what is needed. It's a project that will deliver improved cycleways in areas such as Grey Lynn Westmere and Point Chev. It was due to start last year but unfortunately it was recently paused and is now in peril of actually not going ahead in the way that was planned.The problem though is that as our schools communities and other advocates are calling for improved transport infrastructure the project stalled at a time when 34 mature trees were felled—at a time when we know the importance of tree protection in our communities and the importance that good transport infrastructure and tree protection plays in protecting our communities from flooding events which Mt Albert saw at the beginning of the year. So now our communities are faced with the challenge of having mature trees being felled for the project. Yet without the cycleways—that would have actually given greater safety for the children of Mt Albert who in a great proportion walk or cycle to school. The children themselves who cycle to school and the young adults who cycle to school have spoken out in favour of this project and how important it is for them to be safe.I did want to quote a Mt Albert local Radha Patel who studied at Western Springs College who talked about the need to move on quickly with this project to prevent further tragedies and for young people to not be injured on their way to school. They talked about the fact that We can't wait for a tragedy to happen before we start valuing and prioritising the lives of students in our community." Back then when she was advocating on this project she delivered a petition with several thousand signatures to her local board. This project has support from schools such as the Newton Central School Grey Lynn School Westmere School Western Springs College Pasadena Intermediate School and Point Chevalier School. It just shows that there's a deep level of investment from our communities for council to move on in partnership with central government alongside local businesses and communities to provide decent transport infrastructure.This is important. Having a connected city and a connected Mt Albert electorate is important particularly when there are housing projects that will bring new families into the area with places like Carrington Road seeing greater density of housing which will be good for the climate and good for the people. Yet without the transport infrastructure in place it actually risks not creating the cohesive communities that we need. It is more important now than ever that we all rally behind improved infrastructure projects. In relation to the housing projects nearby it is really important that as we build greater density central government also provides funding for community venues to go alongside it. Often with Kāinga Ora projects what is happening is that there's commercial spaces to go alongside the public housing projects and then communities have to compete with commercial entities to be able to provide the social services and goods to create thriving cohesive communities.Those are key solutions to the general feedback that people just want safe communities around them. As other members may want to talk about whistle-blowing comments on crime and justice it's the good infrastructure and safe communities and listening to the young adults the children and the schools who are calling for this that we all have to listen to and we will continue—hopefully all of us—advocating for decent infrastructure in Mt Albert."