Andrew Dickens Afternoons

So Shane Jones has been in the select committee this week, facing questions about the Provincial Growth Fund.Of course, he faced rigorous questioning as to whether he’s using it as a political slush fund to reward New Zealand First’s friends and win favour in the party’s heartland.It’s an easy accusation to make, so far the prime beneficiaries of Shane’s largesse has been in the North where both he and Winston Peters have their power base.His answer was, to the winner goes the booty and that the North was first up and best dressed. Shane fancies himself as an orator and he’s fond of a flowery flourish but I’m not a fan. It diminishes his authority and reduces my confidence.But that said there is no doubt that the North is starting to feel a little bit better about itself. In fact, it was the star of the latest ASB regional growth survey. They’ve seen Four-point-six per cent employment growth, 5.2 per cent in retail sales, 10.3 per cent house price growth and a 19 per cent growth in construction.So it’s worth