Dion is a proud New Zealander and from families that have been in New Zealand for 4 generations. He wants to help change the miss-conception that New Zealand First is an older persons party and believes the New Zealand First policies of raising the minimum wage, focused immigration, and dollar for dollar repayment of students loans are key policies that will entice many people to his demographic to stay or come back to New Zealand.  He strongly believes in keeping state owned assets.  One of the key issues specific to the Northcote Electorate is a second Auckland Harbour crossing. Traffic congestion is costing Auckland over 1 billion dollars (NZ Business Council for sustainable development) and affecting the quality of life through increased stress and anger and is detrimental to work or study performance (IBM Commuter Pain Index 2010).
More about Dion.
“I grew up the youngest of 6 children living in state housing in Rotorua and have had to work hard all my life.  I have represented New Zealand as a Duathlete (Run-Cycle-Run) at a number of World Championships with a best placing of 12th in 2005. I have represented BOP and North Harbour in Hockey and was the youngest participant ever to attend the New Zealand Hatch Cup Tournament in 1990 playing for BOP at just 9 years old.  I have developed my own successful Sports Event Management Company, which owns and operates New Zealand’s largest Fun Run Series – RUN Auckland and also the North Shore Marathon. My company was Highly Commended in the ‘Best New Start Up’ Category of the North Shore Business awards.  I am married to Crystal and we are expecting our first child on Election Day this year.
I have a strong interest in the Sport, Activity and Recreation portfolio having studied Sport and Recreation at AUT and my extensive involvement in sport as a participant and now through my events. Sport and Recreation tie in very closely to Health, Tourism and Racing”.

Top 5 Issues

1. We’ll have ONE LAW FOR ALL.
   
   Which means:
   
   • We all own our foreshore and seabed
   • We fly one flag
   • We have one court system
   • We follow one set of laws
   • We have one social welfare system
   • A NZ health system
   • A NZ education system
2. We will rebuild our failing economy with
   
   • Export plans to treble returns
   • Savings plans for economic freedom
   • NZ currency for NZ not Wall ST
   • Tax breaks for real wealth creators
   • Real research and development incentives
   • Rewards for the nation’s builders
3. We stand for a fair tax system, where everyone pays a fair share.
   
   So we are going to rewrite and simplify NZ’s mangle of tax laws so that they are understandable, unavoidable, and fair.
   
   Everyone will pay their fair taxes.
   
   That means:
   • Less personal tax
   • Less company tax
   • Less GST at 12.5 not 15%
   • Removing double tax on savings
   • Removing GST on rates
   • Removing secondary tax
4. Exporters create our real wealth. We have a plan to help them.
   
   New Zealand First will keep our currency pegged to that of our main trading partners.
   
   That way the exporters will be able to expand, increase exports and create new jobs, new wealth for the Family New Zealand
   
   We will stop the sale of state owned assets, and the control of our power stations and the lakes and rivers that feed them.
   Will stop the sale of our prime farmland to foreign interests.
5. We need to support our young people to stay, live and work in New Zealand. Here are just some of our policies:
   
   1) More trade training for our young people
   
   2) We will help pay the wages for apprentices using dole money and an employer top up
   
   3) We will help students pay their loans as long as they qualify and stay here
   
   4) And we’ll throw out fictitious national standards in early education opposed by 90% of the teachers

Personal Profile