The government has forgotten about the plight of people who lived in retirement villages wrecked by the Christchurch earthquake, a Labour MP says.

Lianne Dalziel is going to accept a petition to parliament on Friday which appeals to the government for help.

The villages are in the red zone, where they can't be repaired or rebuilt because the land is unstable.

"There is real concern that the government has adopted an `out of sight, out of mind' attitude to these residents," she said.

"The government has adopted a narrow definition of ownership, ignoring the fact that these were people's homes which they were otherwise entitled to stay in for the rest of their lives."

Thousands of red zone home owners have accepted the government's offer to buy their houses and Ms Dalziel says an offer should also be made to the retirement village residents.