Kedgley Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Kedgley Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:617;Page:12759] 
6.  
SUE KEDGLEY (Green) 
 to the  
Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage 
: Does she stand by her statement that: “It is important that the Government is seen to lead by example in the way it cares for its heritage”; if so why? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage) 
: 
 Yes Government departments have in their care a large number of heritage properties. Last week I announced that the Government is developing a best-practice approach for managing those departmental properties. 
Sue Kedgley 
: Does she believe that the Government is leading by example when a Crown agency Transit New Zealand deliberately and systematically allowed a large number of heritage buildings in Wellington’s historic Te Aro precincts to deteriorate over a decade or more refusing repeated requests to undertake basic structural maintenance and threatening community groups and conservation architects with trespass when they offered to do the work for free? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Transit of course is not a Government department and is not covered by the policy. Transit acquired those buildings in central Wellington for the sole reason of being able to facilitate building a road if it ever got permission which it finally did after about 30 years of talking about it. 
Sue Kedgley 
: Is she concerned that under her watch as Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage that same Crown agency Transit New Zealand having neglected heritage buildings also plans to remove at least five heritage buildings that are not even in the way of the planned inner-city bypass despite repeated requests from the Environment Court to reconsider; and if she is concerned what will she do as Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage to try to save these buildings from unnecessary destruction? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: As Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage I take a great deal of notice of what the Historic Places Trust has to say on these matters. I note that in 2002 the trust approved the bypass subject to the relocation and restoration of the historic buildings. Of 23 declared heritage buildings on the bypass route I am advised that five will remain in place 16 will be resited and restored and one will be reconstructed using other materials. 
Sue Kedgley 
: How can her Government credibly claim to be leading by example in the way it cares for heritage when under her watch as Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage two of the most historic precincts in Wellington are about to be destroyed 15 listed heritage buildings demolished and relocated and a heritage “Disneyland” of buildings cobbled together from different sites created to make way for an inner-city bypass? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: In the old days before heritage was taken seriously I expect the buildings would have been bowled. As I said the Historic Places Trust has worked for a solution that it considers acceptable. The result is as I said that of these 23 declared heritage buildings five will stay where they are 16 will be resited and one will be reconstructed using other materials. 
Jeanette Fitzsimons 
: Is she concerned that the Historic Places Trust has never declined an archaeological authority for a major State highway project despite the impacts on heritage values and will she tell her board that it has her political support to stand up for the values in its Act? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: The Historic Places Trust does indeed stand up for the values in its Act. I understand that as part of the permission it was required to give it also required Transit to carry out archaeological research on the properties.