2. Question No. 2—Prime MinisterCHRISTOPHER LUXON (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 2—Prime Minister2. CHRISTOPHER LUXON (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her Government's statements and actions?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN (Prime Minister): Fakaalofa lahi atu and a warm and happy Niuean Language Week to the House. Yes particularly this Government's decision early on in the COVID-19 pandemic to invest in skills in training and deliver pipeline infrastructure work. On Monday the Minister for the Environment announced three more projects that have been referred for fast-track consent. All three were housing projects and if consented will provide almost 900 homes in Queenstown and Auckland—areas experiencing high housing demand. This builds on last week's investment in transport and water infrastructure to kick-start new housing developments in Lower Hutt Nelson Rangiora Ngāruawāhia Hastings Motueka Whanganui and Lake Hāwea estimated to enable across the board nearly 11000 homes. Between 2008 and 2011 residential construction activity halved and only returned to 2004 levels in 2018. In contrast our strong economic management and fiscal positions means we are well placed to invest in critical new infrastructure. Christopher Luxon: Does she regret increasing Government spending by a billion dollars a week more given one result is Kiwi homeowners having to pay hundreds of dollars a week more in mortgage payments?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I would note the member's spending plan would include $3 billion of unfunded tax cuts which would create an increase in debt probably drive up unemployment and would also likely definitely have an impact on first-home buyers given one of the areas he wants to impact are those where investors are incentivised to buy up houses. On the question of Government spending do I stand by extra investment in Pharmac? I do. Do I stand by 4000 more nurses? I do. Do I stand by half a million free mental health services treatment for those suffering mental health issues? I do. What the member needs to be honest about is what he will cut.Christopher Luxon: So much! When will she admit that that spend—[Interruption]. When you spend a billion dollars a week more there's a lot to cut a lot of waste. When will she admit that spending an extra $38 billion at the last Budget was a mistake given sky-high inflation and interest rates that are heading well over 6 percent by Christmas?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: And here I come back to the facts. As COVID-19 - related expenditure winds down Government spending as a share of GDP will fall from 35 percent to below 30 percent of GDP which is within the historic averages that we have experienced in New Zealand. So again I ask the member the question: what is it he will cut? Will it be the 10000 more public houses? Will it be the 2900 more teachers? Will it be the 26 weeks of paid parental leave? Will it be the 61 percent increase in apprentices? What will it be? Christopher Luxon: What does she say to the family of four I met recently at a budgeting service who had to refinance their mortgage and because of her Government's economic mismanagement their interest payments are now so high they're struggling to avoid a mortgagee sale?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I would say to them that they can be assured that under this Government we will not for instance spend $3 billion on tax cuts that will give someone on $300000 $150 a week and someone on $42000 $2 a week. Instead you will get in this Government responsible fiscal management that keeps unemployment down debt low and growth higher than many of other countries that we would compare to and the ability to invest in the services that they need and expect. Christopher Luxon: You're not doing it. You're just not doing it. Does she really believe—SPEAKER: Order! Yeah no more of that please. Ask a question. Don't give a narrative for anything else.Christopher Luxon: Does she really believe the economy is doing as—Matt Doocey: Well she's giving a general debate so it goes both ways.SPEAKER: Order! Matt Doocey will stand withdraw and apologise.Matt Doocey: I withdraw and apologise.Christopher Luxon: Does she really believe the economy is doing as great as she keeps saying when just this weekend there was a break-in at a food bank in South Auckland and instead of stealing laptops or cash they stole mince and butter because her Government has allowed the cost of living crisis to spiral so far out of control?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: You will never hear me deny that there are families in this country that are doing it tough which is why we have put tens of millions of dollars to support those very services that that member is now criticising the spending that we have put into it. I stand by the fact as well that we have increased benefits and finally restored the cuts that a National Government brought in the 1990s. I stand by the increases in the family tax credit the increases in the minimum wage the things that will try and reduce down the need on things like food banks and healthy and free lunches in schools. Meanwhile that member can't have it both ways. He stands in this House criticises that very investment for those families and then promotes tax cuts for the wealthy.Christopher Luxon: What about her response to the young couple I met a teacher and a nurse with good jobs and decent incomes who are saving for their first home but their weekly rent is up $50 their grocery shop is up $100 and they're spending $50 a week more on petrol so instead of looking for a first home in New Zealand now they're looking for one in Queensland?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: And that member would want to come in and incentivise investors to come back into the market and squeeze them out. This is what I say to them: there is more to do but we have increased wages for teachers and nurses. We have stood up and said that we will not stand by while we continue to see supermarkets take more profit out of Kiwis' pockets than they should. Equally we have grown the number of teachers and nurses in New Zealand. That member calls them bureaucrats and says he wants to cut them. I say to those families that we know it's tough but you can be guaranteed that a Labour Government will keep investing in them as public servants in this country. You cannot say the same for National.Christopher Luxon: Does she have anything to say to the migrant family I recently met who have saved for years to buy a small section to build a three-bedroom home but now their rent is up the mortgage cost is going up and with construction costs going through the roof they've had to abandon that dream sell up and keep renting?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: What I would say is that you can see that every effort we have put in—be it on the Resource Management Act be it on investing and infrastructure so that we can build houses be it on public housing closing off the tax loopholes for investors evening out the playing field for first-time buyers and first-home grants—that member has opposed. In fact the very economic plan that he stands up with would make their situation markedly worse. It is the Bermuda Triangle of an economic plan and that would surely see more people leaving these shores. And I can tell you we can see the way that plan worked in the UK.Chlöe Swarbrick: Will the Prime Minister act to address the estimated $1 trillion in wealth transfer to the wealthiest New Zealanders in the past two years driving the very inequality being complained about today?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: In all of our efforts you can see the work we have done to try and lift the incomes of those low and middle income earners in New Zealand and in fact rather than just pointing to the initiatives we can point to the outcomes. We have turned around the direction of all nine child poverty indicators in this country. Self-reported hardship has decreased. The number of people in hardship—Hon Louise Upston: That's not accurate.Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I see now the National Party questions Stats New Zealand but when it's negative they support those numbers. I'm actually pleased to see that New Zealanders are seeing an improvement in child poverty; it's sad that the National Party aren't.Christopher Luxon: Has she made the effort to go out and actually listen to a family who've seen their mortgage payments increase by hundreds of dollars a week while they struggle to afford basics like food and petrol and if so how can she continue to stand here each and every week and claim that everything is fine and her Government has nothing to apologise or be accountable for?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I am more than willing to stand up and be accountable on every policy we've introduced to support those families: the cost of living payment the investment to make sure that fuel comes down at the pump half-price public transport the family tax credit the winter energy payment. It is not the answer for everything that every family is experiencing absolutely not. But I am interested to know if that member's willing to stand on his record which is tax cuts for the wealthiest. Has that member stood in front of those families looked them in the eye and told them that they are worth $2—because that is his policy.Hon Eugenie Sage: Point of order. It's quite hard to hear all of the Prime Minister's answers because of the noise in the Chamber. SPEAKER: Yeah. I've tended to let things run and I also know what the previous Speaker was talking about when he was talking about getting complaints from the public. Since taking over as Speaker of this House I've taken on board the commentary from most of the parties in the House that they want a more robust question time. Robust doesn't always mean it's the loudest but it tends to be the narrative that is common during question time. I thank the member for making the point of order because she is actually correct. It is at the point where members cannot hear the answer. My general ruling about that is that the House doesn't want to hear the answer and that the Minister answering can pretty much say whatever they like in response to whatever the question is. The Minister could also just sit down and I will rule based on the fact that the House doesn't want to hear the answer that it's been addressed. It's really up to this House to decide what it wants. So if the House wants me to intervene every five minutes and blow the whistle I can do that. It won't be a very robust kind of question time but it will address that issue. I say to the folks at home listening to question time: direct your emails to the people you think might be causing your distress. But I will say to the House: it's really up to the House to decide how you want to move forward. I'm going to leave it there. Hon Gerry Brownlee: Thank you for your very reasonable response which would be perfectly acceptable if it were not for the fact that repeatedly today in answering questions the Prime Minister has raised questions. And when those questions get raised in general to the House—and not specifically because the Government cannot ask questions during question time unless it is by way of one of their allocated questions—then of course there's going to be a response from this side of the House.Hon Grant Robertson: If we were to take Mr Brownlee's view on board about the strict adherence to the Standing Orders in both answers and questions virtually every question the Leader of the Opposition gave today would have been ruled out for its inclusion of epithets and assertions and assumptions and so I think—Chris Bishop: Oh rubbish.Hon Grant Robertson: I think that in a point of order we still have silence Mr Bishop I don't think that's changed. I think Mr Speaker what you have outlined to the House is an approach that you want to take that gives a robust exchange. You've put it into the hands of members as to how far that goes. That's a reasonable position. We'll see how the public react to that.SPEAKER: I will respond to the Hon Gerry Brownlee. He does raise a point but I go back to my ruling on the matter: it's really up to the House to decide. If we get to a point where parties or members are telling me to intervene then I'm quite happy to do that. But as the Deputy Prime Minister has pointed out a great many supplementary questions that I've heard since taking over probably would have been ruled out of order by previous Speakers of this House.