Joseph, from Hawkes Bay, was brought up in poverty as the son of farm workers who experienced hard times due to the 1989 share market crash.
A self-confessed high school dropout, he left school with no qualifications to work in orchards, in forestry, on fishing boats, on building sites, in retail stores and on ski fields. He then went to university to obtain an Honours Degree in Law and became a trial lawyer. Joseph grew to realise that most of his defendants in court, and in prison, could not read and write. He is consequently passionate about youth and education and supporting them.
Joseph’s interests include skiing, mountain biking, hiking, paragliding and kayaking including with his children. He is Patron of the Queenstown Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
In 2020 Joseph stood for parliament, foreseeing the challenges that lay ahead. He was selected for our Southland electorate and won the seat. He is currently opposition spokesperson for Tourism, Agriculture, Water and ‘Space’.
Joseph talked about his electorate falling on hard times due to the pandemic, in particular tourism and hospitality but also agriculture with the loss of the immigrant work force. He feels for the people affected and spoke of the challenges facing businesses and their staff.
Joseph spoke of the 3 key issues that are very important to him and that he is trying to address:
- The accommodation supplement issue - the difference between rural and urban zoning and payments with Queenstown’s newer urban areas needing to be reclassified
- Hospital facilities – the need for better Central Otago-Lakes medical and surgical capability with less dependency on the over-stretched facilities in Invercargill and Dunedin
- Accommodation – issues remain with high demand despite extensive residential construction.
Questions from the floor sought comment about export earnings, tourism, educational standards and fuel/energy costs.
Guest Speaker MP Joseph Mooney (centre) with (from left) Rotarians Lisa Pond, Ross Beal, Tim Wilshire, Fiona van Waveren Wilshire, Nell Hunter, Lee-Ann Lines
