Sio William: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSio William: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 21 May 2014. Volume:699;Page:18168. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]8.Su’a WILLIAM SIO (Labour—Māngere) to thePrime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that he has a “plan to deliver a brighter future for New Zealand.”?Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): Yes. That statement was made in the context of my walking into Westpac Stadium and talking about the number of New Zealanders going to Australia under a Labour Government. Of course if we decided to do that video again for the 2014 election I would hold it in a phone booth.Su’a William Sio: How have Pacific peoples enjoyed a brighter future under his Government when according to the 2013 census the median incomes of those living inMāngere have decreased to $19700 a year since 2006 while the incomes of those in Devonport have increased by almost $5000 to more than $35000 and that is without even adjusting for inflation?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I do not know where the member gets his numbers from but the New Zealand Income Survey shows that average weekly earnings for Pacific people in paid employment have increased from $670 in 2008 to $764 in 2013. That is an increase of $94 or 14 percent. But frankly I would not expect the member to get the numbers right. Labour does not have a Treasury analyst any more; it has a marketing consultant.Su’a William Sio: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! This is a point of order.Su’a William Sio: I am happy to table—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! That is just abusing the ability to raise a point of order to seek to table a document. Those figures are freely available. If the member wants to continue his political debate he does that by raising further supplementary questions.Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I seek your advice on where that leaves the Opposition asking questions when the Prime Minister begins his answer by challenging figures from in this case the census. We are left in the position whereyou say “Well you have to use further supplementary questions for that.” and we are then not able to table the information that the Prime Minister has effectively accused Su’a William Sio of making up.Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! I am on my feet. If the member resumes his seat I will assist. It is quite in order for any Minister to rise to his feet and dispute the figures and use some other figures. That is in order. It has been a practice that I have observed here for a long period of time. To try to then table census figures which are freely available to all members if they want further information is an abuse of the system. If the member wants to delve into these figures he should do it with further incisive supplementary questions.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Before I hear the member if the member is in any way attempting to dispute a ruling that I have just made I will take a serious view of it.Hon Trevor Mallard: Not at all.Mr SPEAKER: Good. Then I look forward to the point of order being raised.Hon Trevor Mallard: The suggestion that I would like to make is that I think probably because of the noise in the House the Prime Minister did not hear the question because he said “I don’t know where you got your figures from.”Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member is now just trifling and using the point of order system to do so. It was a political question that was raised. It was addressed by the Prime Minister. It has been answered. If the member wants to continue his line of questioning he should do it with further supplementary questions.Su’a William Sio: I will ask again. How have Pacific peoples enjoyed a brighter future under his Government when according to the 2013 census the median incomes of those living inMāngere have decreased to $19700 a year since 2006 while the incomes of those in Devonport have increased by almost $5000 to more than $35000 and that is without even adjusting for inflation?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I am glad the member asked how many Pacific people are enjoying a brighter future because the answer is that 45000 Pasifika children aged between 6 and 12 will get access to free doctors visits.Hon Annette King: It’s got nothing to do with the question.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: We know that Annette King is opposed to free doctors visits. When we look at tertiary training and the brighter future we expanded the number of Māori and Pacific training places from 600 to 3000. When we look at early childhood education participation for Pacific people it went up from 83.6 percent in 2007 to 89 percent. When we talk about a brighter future for young Pacific people in National Certificate of Educational Achievement it has gone up from 55 percent in 2008 to 71 percent for school-leavers very recently. If we look at the number of people on the unemployment benefit that has been falling in recent times. I think all New Zealanders are sharing in the brighter future.Su’a William Sio: How then does he explain that under his so-called rock star economy Pacific people are facing an unemployment rate of 13 percent with Auckland Pasifika people on 14.6 percent unemployment and all consistently in double figures in the last 5 years under his watch?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I would be the first to accept that Pacific unemployment is too high. That is why the Government has been working on a variety of programmes like trade training for people. That is why we are working on lifting education standards so that people have more qualifications. But I do say this one thing to the member and I think he should take it out into the Pacific communities when he goes out in his constituency on the weekend. Under this Government we will continue to welcome migrants from the Pacific; under his Government guess what? His leader is saying no tohis fellow Samoan friends and families who will be stopped under a Labour Government and its anti-migration policy.Su’aWilliam Sio: Does he still stand by his “brighter future” statement when under his Government only 18.5 percent of Pacific people own their own homes compared with 49.8 percent for the general population and 56.8 percent for those of European origin?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Yes. Of course we would like to see the level of homeownership among Pacific people increase which is why the Government is doing a number of things. But I will say this: the one thing we do know is that if Labour becomes the Government and it applies a capital gains tax—Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! This is a point of order and it will be heard in silence.Grant Robertson: It is out of order for the Prime Minister to inaccurately represent other parties’ policies.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: If I was inaccurately doing that the member would have a fair point of order but actually it is the member’s policy to have a capital gains tax.Mr SPEAKER: The member asked a question around how the Prime Minister stands by his statement about delivering a brighter future. The Prime Minister answered that and then certainly led into towards the end of his answer other parties’ policies. That is not an appropriate way to answer a question. I accept that and I was standing to my feet to try to conclude the Prime Minister’s answer as the member raised his point of order but it is a legitimate point of order.