1. Question No. 1—Prime MinisterDAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime MinisterORAL QUESTIONSQUESTIONS TO MINISTERSQuestion No. 1—Prime Minister1. DAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her Government's policies and actions?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN (Prime Minister): Yes particularly the Government's decision to extend the reductions to fuel excise duty road-user charges and half price public transport by more than five months until the end of January next year. Petrol and diesel prices have increased by 32 percent and 74 percent respectively in the year to June 2022 as the global economy enters this new phase of the pandemic and ongoing impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine is felt. Extending the 25c per litre reduction reduces the cost of filling up a 40 litre tank of petrol by over $11 and for a 60 litre tank over $17. Half price public transport sees an average person save $25 a week. From Monday New Zealanders will start to receive the cost of living payment to help them through the peak of the global inflation storm. An estimated 2.1 million people aged 18 and over are eligible for an extra $27 per week over a three-month period paid in monthly instalments. There is no easy fix for the cost of living but we're taking a range of actions to ease the pressure on families. David Seymour: Does the Prime Minister accept that those three policies of extending the fuel excise and road-user discounts the public transport subsidies and the cost of living payment will make the Government's deficit larger than it would have otherwise been therefore increasing the fiscal impulse and adding—rather than reducing—inflation to the New Zealand economy? Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Two responses: the first is that of course Treasury has already—and this is in the public domain—made clear their position that it is possible that certain forms of untargeted stimulus that particularly is putting money into people's wallets if it is untargeted and long term—like for instance a tax cut for those on $180000 or more or perhaps the kinds of tax cuts proposed by the ACT Party—yes would be inflationary. Of course the cost of living payment is targeted and short term. I also—generally when it comes to Government spending—would refer to the statements made by the Treasury at the time of the Budget which talked about the fiscal impulse for each year being slightly more contractory than forecast at the half-year update as the Government's year-on-year contribution to aggregate demand decreases more relative to each preceding year indicating that overall fiscal policy is dampening inflation pressures. David Seymour: So do those three policies of extending the fuel excise and road-user charge discount subsidising public transport and a cost of living payment add to the Government's deficit and therefore make the fiscal impulse and inflation larger than it would otherwise be? Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Again I refer to the first answer that I provided. Secondly I would point to the fact that when it comes to Government spending overall we have maintained the position of reducing down of course Crown spending relative to GDP and have kept it relatively in line with previous Governments and it is set to return again to that as a percentage. And finally I would also point out the fact that we are looking to return to surplus a year earlier than for instance the National Government after the global financial crisis and many would argue that this is a larger and more impactful economic crisis. David Seymour: Does she believe that her finance Minister's monetary policy remit to the Reserve Bank is timely and specific enough in its goals for returning to under 3 percent inflation and if so how would she define the medium term"?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: In answer to the first part of the member's question of course when it comes to the remit around inflation that remains unchanged. We of course after previous reviews have added the role of the Reserve Bank looking at unemployment. We are not the only country of course to have dual mandates but it is still for the Reserve Bank and its implementation of monetary policy to achieve those goals and those dual mandates. David Seymour: So is the remit to the Reserve Bank specific and timely enough and if so how would she define "medium term"?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: When the member asked whether it is specific and timely enough of course it is set down that we have these reviews of their remit. They are going through that process. Whether or not the member believes this will give an opportunity for the Reserve Bank to look at some of its monetary policy through COVID well that is ultimately a decision for the bank. They are not constrained in their ability to review their own decisions and use of monetary policy through that period. The review of the remit is a specific process that is already set down.David Seymour: Does the Prime Minister stand by her decision to visit the UK Spain and Australia opening up opportunities for New Zealanders to live and work more easily in those countries and if she does was she dismayed that migrants worldwide picked New Zealand as the second-worst place in the world to migrate to under her Government while she was away?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I stand by ensuring that New Zealanders have opportunities to increase their skills and of course bring those skills back to New Zealand an opportunity that I note the member took up—I believe residing for a period in Canada—in the same way that I did. New Zealanders have consistently asked for though increasing access to the UK through the working holiday visa. That is what we have fulfilled and I note that it has been widely welcomed.David Seymour: Will the Prime Minister accept that there is a labour crisis in New Zealand right now with sectors from schools to hospitals to horticultural harvesters screaming out for workers and if she does accept that why does she think it has happened?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: The member references the skills shortages that I note many countries are experiencing presently and that was one of the things that I took out of the time that I spent in the UK and Australia. They are experiencing similar issues. In the UK I saw some estimates being reported recently of up to 50000 nurses short of what is required to fulfil their needs within the NHS. The question is: what can we do about it? We've worked very hard on ensuring that we encourage those who are already registered for instance in New Zealand to return to the nursing workforce. We've done a lot of work to increase those who are in the construction and housing sector. We've increased the number of apprentices. We've subsidised employers to take apprentices on. We've made the first year of trades training and post-secondary education free. We've created the accredited employers scheme to make it easier to access and to go through the immigration process. We're not the only one but we are doing things to improve the flow of skilled labour into New Zealand.Hon Michael Wood: Does the Prime Minister think that labour force pressures would be eased by policies such as lowering wages for migrant workers and lowering the minimum wage?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I do note that those are amongst some of the policies of ACT. I also do not believe that we will be able to answer some of those domestic skills gaps that we have in New Zealand if we were to make it more expensive to train and get post-secondary skills. And that is exactly what the ACT Party has proposed.David Seymour: Does the Prime Minister accept that practically every sector in New Zealand is facing a critical labour shortage and if so why does Immigration New Zealand require each and every accredited employer to individually demonstrate that there's a labour shortage for them with their own labour market test?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: And once they're an accredited employer they go through a shortened process to ease what previously had been a very bureaucratic process. But if the member is arguing that we should return to the policy of old where we have no regard to our own domestic workforce we do not work with our sectors to increase the training of New Zealanders we have no regard to whether or not we have the infrastructure or housing to support a growth in population—in fact our entire economic strategy is growth in population and growth in housing prices—that is not a strategy that is good for New Zealanders and that is why we have changed it.David Seymour: Why does the Prime Minister defend immigration policies set up when hundreds of thousands were queuing at the border still when those queues ain't there the world's changed and New Zealand is desperate for workers?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Because I reject the claims that the member is making. Our goal and indeed our policy is to support employers who are seeking levels of skills that we do not have access to in New Zealand and to make it easier for those employers. Where we are putting in greater tests is where we have traditionally seen lower-skilled low-wage work which does not help the rest of our overall population if we continue to seek low-skilled migrant activity in New Zealand. It's not good for migrants; it's not good for New Zealand.SPEAKER: Before we go on to the next question I am going to remind people in the gallery that being there is a privilege and part of the rules are that people wear masks. The masks should be worn over noses and certainly not as necklaces as in some cases they are being."