Cabinet looking forward to McCully visit

Raising the funds for the Aitutaki recovery and rebuild programme is proving more difficult than anticipated by Cabinet. The New Zealand government is the obvious candidate to assist with the project and would normally be able to do so with alacrity except that this time around, other Pacific nations have suffered disasters and also need their help urgently.
For instance, Samoa and Tonga have suffered extensive damage (by tsunami) and in the Cook Islands it is not only the island of Aitutaki but also that of Penrhyn (Tongareva). Thus it is a question of allocating their budget in such a way as to be able to assist all requests.
Thus the upcoming visit by three New Zealand Cabinet Ministers, to attend the two day Joint Ministers Forum 7-8 April 2010 led by Hon Murray McCully, is keenly awaited by our Cabinet. They are due to arrive on 6 April 2010 and will provide a chance for high level talks on a Minister to Minister basis.
The Forum is to discuss economic, infrastructure and social welfare issues and no doubt assistance to fund the rebuilding programme will be added to the agenda.