Newman Muriel: Land Transport Management Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
Newman Muriel: Land Transport Management Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
[Volume:613;Page:9674] 
Dr MURIEL NEWMAN (ACT) 
: 
 I did not have the opportunity to be on the select committee that considered this bill. But as an ordinary New Zealander who has a car who pays petrol tax and who in the past has had vehicles that incurred road-user charges I like most other New Zealanders thought that the money collected from road users actually was spent on improving roads. We thought this Land Transport Management Bill would solve the traffic problems around New Zealand—Auckland’s traffic problems in particular and the big problems here in Wellington—and what do we find? This is a piece of politically correct rubbish. I tell you what you know here we are talking about a bill— 
The CHAIRPERSON (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Please do not bring me into the debate. You used the word “you”. 
Dr MURIEL NEWMAN 
: Oh! I apologise Mr Chairman. I meant the Minister of Transport—the Minister sitting next to you in the chair who was falling asleep until you did what you did and woke him up. 
 When we look at this bill to see what its objective is we see that it is to protect and to promote public health. When we talk about transport petrol tax and road-user chargers most New Zealanders think we are actually talking about roads. I would like the Minister to stand up to take a call to explain to New Zealanders who see this bill as the answer to New Zealand’s traffic problems what protecting and promoting public health have to do with transport. The question is whether we need improved roads in New Zealand and the answer is a huge “Yes” as we all know because poor roading holds back progress and productivity. All those poor people sitting in traffic jams every day end up wasting their lives; they are not able to get on and drive their own productivity and the productivity of the country. 
Nowhere is worse off than Northland with the Orewa to Puhoi link road for the northern motorway sitting incomplete because this Minister does not have the courage to do something about it. 
The CHAIRPERSON (H V Ross Robertson) 
: The member will withdraw and apologise for challenging the Minister’s courage. That is not permitted in the Chamber. 
Dr MURIEL NEWMAN 
: I withdraw and apologise. I did not know that “courage” was a word we were not allowed to use in this House. However— 
Hon Lianne Dalziel 
: I raise a point of order Mr Chairperson. My understanding of the Standing Orders is that when a member has had a point of order drawn to his or her attention in respect of a matter there can be no reference to it. It is very clear in the Standing Orders that questions of courage cannot be raised in this House. 
The CHAIRPERSON (H V Ross Robertson) 
: A lack of courage. The member will continue. 
Dr MURIEL NEWMAN 
: The point is that the Minister being Minister has had the opportunity to try to help to push forward the completion of the northern motorway. He has completely and utterly failed in that regard. We have our major State Highway 1 weaving through a residential area and stopping dead in the middle of a paddock. It is costing the region $1 million a week—that is Transit New Zealand’s figure—in lost productivity. The Minister is busy telling everybody this bill will be the answer. That is an absolute load of rubbish and the Minister knows it. By the time the Government goes through this process—if anybody will go into a partnership with the Government to help to build a toll road—that bit of road will be about 10 to 15 years away. By then all the consents for it will have lapsed and we will have to go through the whole process again. The Minister is looking at a delay of probably up to 20 years before the northern motorway is completed and does not stop bang-slap in the middle of a paddock. 
The Minister just shook his head. I challenge him to get to his feet to take a call and to explain to the people of Auckland and Northland—that is millions of people who feel that this Government is stupid for not completing a major piece of roading infrastructure—exactly how this bill will help them. They know they are losing $1 million a week in lost productivity for this nation because this Labour Government is too stupid to prioritise that roading which clearly should be prioritised. What other country has a major State highway stopping in the middle of a paddock for goodness’ sake! Honest to goodness me! The point about that piece of highway is it was stuck before the Environment Court for 6 long years but all the consents are now through and the Minister has the opportunity and the ability to do something about that project and to have it fast-tracked forward. Under this bill he is condemning that project to remain stalled for probably another 10 or 20 years because this bill does not have the provisions in it actually to do what he has told people it will do.