Willis NicolaGENERAL DEBATENICOLA WILLIS (Deputy Leader—National): I move That the House take note of miscellaneous business. So much for working hard to get ahead. Under this Labour Government New Zealanders are working hard just to stand still because they are facing a cost of living crisis: the highest inflation in 30 years; sky-rocketing costs—literally moon-bound" in the words of ANZ; prices for everything are going up; and those prices are in a race with wages and they're running laps around wage growth. It's there at the supermarket: it's the price of cabbage; it's the price of cheese; it's the price of eggs. It's rents—up $50 a week in the last year alone. That's a record rental increase in our country. It's childcare costs. It's rates. It's everywhere New Zealanders look and it's going to get worse. ASB predict in the next year the average household will spend an additional $150 each week just to stand still. They will face diminishing living standards on this Government's watch.So where is the Minister of Finance? Where is he on all of this? Well he says "Let's blame Ukraine."; never mind that last year in the year ending December inflation in New Zealand was at a record high already—5.9 percent—before Putin was anywhere near invading Ukraine. Far higher than in Australia—only 3.5 percent—far higher than Singapore and just about every other developed country we compare ourselves to. But the Minister of Finance he says it's all about Ukraine. Never mind that when the punch-bowl was out and the money was being borrowed he was happy to take the credit for the economy wasn't he? "Oh I've done such a good job." But now it's nothing to do with him!So what's he going to do next? Well he's got a plan to do the record biggest spend up in New Zealand's history. He thinks this is the time to have an operating allowance of $6 billion in the Budget. Will there be a dollar back to hard-working New Zealanders? Will there be a dollar back to those taxpayers who aren't eligible for a benefit who aren't eligible for Working for Families? No no because Grant Robertson says he can afford to spend $6 billion on his pet projects but he can't afford to give tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders.What we're expected to believe is that that's because he's going to use every dollar as carefully as possible. What we're expected to do is judge him by the amount of money he is spending not by what it delivers. This is the same Minister of Finance who presided over a $1.9 billion boost for mental health that delivered not an extra specialist service that was poorly coordinated that didn't deliver outcomes. But yet he says "Trust me; just give me $6 billion more. I'll do better next time." This is the Minister who put billions into housing—and what do we have? The longest waiting list in history. We have thousands of children living in motels. But don't worry; the officials at head office found $24 million to do up their digs! And don't worry; Kāinga Ora has enough money to bid against first-home buyers to buy up State houses!We're expected to believe that this Minister will deliver when his Prime Minister said that her reason for being in politics was to reduce child poverty. Today as I stand here—today as I stand here—there are more children growing up in benefit-dependent households than when that Minister came to office and that is a disgrace.So that Minister may think that he can pull the wool over New Zealanders' eyes but they get it. They know that what is needed for the economy is a Government that knows how to get bang for buck; a Government that will use their money as carefully as they have to; a Government that knows when you add cost someone has to pay; a Government that will have the back of those who work hard—of the entrepreneurs of the innovators of the people who right now I'm worried about. Because they are looking over the ditch and they're saying "You know over there I'll earn more it'll cost less and I'll probably get a tax reduction too."And here they are today and I've got a message for them. I say to them: we know the management of this country is suboptimal right now. But there is a new Government coming. A National Government will get it. We get that your money needs to be spent carefully that the economy needs to be managed carefully that we should judge a Government by its results not just by its rhetoric. So hang on; National's on its way."