Twyford Phil: Urgent Debates — Transport Funding—Replacement of Regional Fuel Tax with Increased Fuel Excise Duty and Road-user Charges 
Twyford Phil: Urgent Debates — Transport Funding—Replacement of Regional Fuel Tax with Increased Fuel Excise Duty and Road-user Charges 
[Volume:653;Page:1990] 
PHIL TWYFORD (Labour) 
: 
 This is a sad day for public transport and a sad day for Auckland. The transport package announced by the Minister—and I mention the Minister’s name out of interest because I would have thought that with a snap debate about transport the Minister would be in the House but never mind— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Eric Roy) 
: The member must be aware that he cannot mention the absence of someone from the Chamber. 
PHIL TWYFORD 
: I apologise Mr Assistant Speaker. For two reasons the transport package announced by Steven Joyce is bad: it is bad for public transport in Auckland and it is bad for governance in Auckland. It took a long time and a lot of patience and effort by central government local government and regional government to piece together a transport strategy for Auckland that was actually beginning to deliver at last on the aspirations Aucklanders have for a decent public transport system. The Auckland Regional Council had a plan. It had certainty it had a budget it had projects in place and it was funded and organised. It took literally years to put this plan together yet it has been swept away with the stroke of a pen. Now the Auckland Regional Council transport plan for Auckland is in complete disarray. 
Let us talk about what exactly is in jeopardy. There is a $152 million hole in the Auckland transport strategy. Let us talk about what is in there—Penlink for starters. A huge question mark is hanging over Penlink at the moment. A huge question mark is hanging over ferry terminals on the North Shore. Do members know what? A whole lot of railway station upgrades are at risk. The member for New Lynn will know that there is a hole in the ground in New Lynn at the moment. There has been a huge investment by regional government in the New Lynn development—$300 million has been developed and a $160 million railway trench is being dug through New Lynn—yet it may be left as a gaping hole because there is simply no money left to pay for it. I ask the Government what it will say to the people of west Auckland and the people of New Lynn about that project. Did members see in the  
New Zealand Herald 
 the hole in the ground at the Newmarket Railway Station with Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee standing in front of it? I ask the Government what it will do about that. 
I have a question for the member for Maungakiekie: what will he tell his constituents about the Onehunga line? My colleague Carol Beaumont has asked the member for Maungakiekie this very question: what will the Government do about the Onehunga line? It is a vital piece of infrastructure that the people of Onehunga need. What is the answer? We need some answers from this Government. For the Manukau spur the plans are there and the money was there—the funding was committed. That is another piece of infrastructure. The Government has basically given a one-fingered salute to the people of New Lynn the people of Manukau the people of Onehunga the people of the North Shore and the people of Helensville. 
What did the Minister of Transport Steven Joyce say when he was asked about funding for these projects? He said that the Auckland Regional Council will have to look at its resources. Well I have an answer for the Minister today: there are no resources. The Auckland Regional Council has calculated that to fill this hole in the transport budget would mean a 15 percent rate rise for the people of Auckland. There are no other resources. Funding from Auckland Regional Holdings is down because of the performance of international investments. There is nowhere else for this money to come from. 
When the Minister of Transport spoke earlier this afternoon he talked about the fact that 84 percent of New Zealanders travel by car and said it was arrogant to build a public transport system in Auckland because the reality is that at the moment people all travel by car. Well do members know what? To build a public transport system one needs vision and leadership and they are sorely lacking in this Government.