Bikers protest ACC levies during Key visit

A group of bikers were among those at the launch of the new Whale Watch vessel, wanting to do their bit to let the Prime Minister know their feelings on the steep increase in ACC levies for motorcycles.

Janenne and Bruce Blackler, Bill Beasley and Anita Trewin took the opportunity to stage the protest as Mr Key arrived at the boat, holding up a sign which read "We're getting killed by ACC levies".

The group said they were not there to upset anyone but they wanted to let Mr Key know how they felt so they would feel they had done something, rather than sit back and accept the increase.

They would be following other protests around the country although they were not optimistic about changing the minds of those in power.

Last month ACC minister Nick Smith announced that the government wanted to cut the cost of the accident compensation scheme and build up enough money in the fund to cover New Zealanders in the future.

This meant an increase in all ACC levies, but the hardest hit would be motorcyclists as it was believed they were 16 times more likely to be involved in road accidents than other vehicles.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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