OPINION: They're not going into Pike River mine today.
All the hype, all the hope, then they press the hold button - it's not right.
It shows how complex this is and how much work they have done. Meticulous, never done before, work and still there's an unexplainable issue with the air.
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The issue could take days, weeks or months to fix - or it may never be sorted.
The Government simply can't risk lives. They can't even have a 0.0001 percent chance of an issue.
Every unusual event must be explained because they are responsible and ultimately accountable for what happens.
That's why Worksafe has been crawling over the place for months, little wonder no other West Coast mines have been opened up for a recovery mission - they've all been sealed dating back decades.
It's early days and information is fluid, but Andrew Little will not take any chances.
I think there's a very real chance they may never go in and they'll have to make a call sooner rather than later because dragging it on will be costly and unrealistic.
The blank cheque can't stay blank forever and I think the families will understand that, too. They have had a more than fair hearing from Labour.
If the whole thing falls over, Bernie Monk and his Coaster mates, I expect, will shake Little's hands and hug him and say thank you for treating us properly and listening.
We tried, and couldn't.
Now we have to move on, for everyone's sake.
Duncan Garner is host of The AM Show.
