Carter David: Financial Review Debate — In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Carter David: Financial Review Debate — In Committee 
[Sitting date: 01 May 2012. Volume:679;Page:1792. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon DAVID CARTER (Minister for Primary Industries) 
: 
 I am going to attempt to explain to Mr Shearer again the necessity for New Zealand to have a national convention centre. Mr Shearer needs to realise that these things have been a huge success and have had a huge economic impact in any country that has been able to create one. That is the first point. The second point that Mr Shearer needs to understand is that these businesses do not make money on their own—these businesses do not make money on their own. So the Government went through a very transparent process— 
Jacinda Ardern 
: Oh! 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: The Helen Clark aspirant there keeps yelling at me but the Government went through a very transparent process and the difference between this proposal and the other four is that one was proposing to build the national convention centre without expecting the Government to pay $350 million.  
There are three options here. One is that you decide not to have a national convention centre in which case it costs nobody any money. The second option is that you allow the Government to build it and put up $350 million. Well this Government has not got a spare $350 million. From Labour’s record over the previous decade it would just borrow $350 million and it could not care less about the ability to pay it back. Well that is not what the National Government is prepared to do. 
Hon Phil Goff 
: National’s borrowed $300 million a week. 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: The third option Mr Goff was to see whether somebody else would do it. What we found of the five proposals was that only one was prepared to do it and it was asking for things like an extension to its current licence. It was asking for an increase in gaming tables. Mr Shearer quotes a figure of 500. Those negotiations are still ongoing; he is making it up Mr Faafoi—he is making the figure up.  
The important thing for me is that this will bring 1000 new jobs during its construction—1000 new jobs. How many times do we hear Jacinda Ardern saying that there are no jobs? Well if you do not create economic opportunity and economic activity Jacinda Ardern—I know this is hard for you to understand—there will not be jobs. There will be 1000 new jobs while they build it and then there are 800 jobs while they run it bringing hundreds of millions of dollars into the Auckland economy. 
Kris Faafoi 
: Who for? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: Who for? For the New Zealand economy Mr Faafoi. These international visitors will likely travel on Air New Zealand. They will likely dine out in some of the restaurants in Auckland. They will likely travel to places like Queenstown Mr Faafoi. That is what international conference delegates do. That is why it delivers economic opportunity.  
I know that it is difficult for this Labour Opposition to understand anything about the economy. Labour left it in a mess. This Government is absolutely determined that we will not leave the economy in a mess. We are determined to lift the economy. We are determined to balance the books and we are determined to deliver jobs so that young New Zealanders will see this truly as a land of opportunity. 
Report noted.