The Northland mayors standing up for their region in this morning’s Herald should be joined by the mayors of Wellington region. We’d then see whether Building and Construction Minister Shane Jones is genuinely concerned about affordability, or just jumping to meet the protesting mayors because they come from his rohe.

There is ample reason for the Wellington mayors to join the protest.  Northlanders are is complaining about the stupidity of forcing double glazing into their houses. It’s just as stupid here.

I’ve had to replace two complete sets of double glazed front windows at 10 year intervals. They fail because the seals can not withstand the flexing and pressures of Wellington winds. After a few years  it looked as if we’d chosen to block our harbour views with smoked toilet window glass. Our warranties were useless. Both times  the manufacturers had gone broke.

I complained to representatives of the joinery manufacturer association. “Bad luck” they said “no one can be sure that double glazing seals will last in Wellington exposed conditions. That’s why people go broke.”

Perhaps H Clark gave Jones his new ministry to keep her only right wing Maori MP small enough to fit his boots. Clayton Cosgrove has bequeathed him a hopeless position. Labour’s hysterical reaction to leaky homes has helped lock NZ’s poor out of getting homes, with the most expensive housing in the world.

Yet it has also created a new protected industry. Builders who have not exited in disgust at the stupid rules that now dominate their working days get the barriers-to-entry benefit of those same rules.

The sensible thing would be to scrap most of the changes of the last 5 years, ensuring instead that our court system worked cheaply and speedily to hold dud builders to account, and to enforce judgments against fly-by-nights.

But now Jones would face howls and dire warnings from those who want to enjoy Cosgrove’s new protections from competition.