Mackey Moana: General Debate 
Mackey Moana: General Debate 
[Volume:631;Page:3156] 
MOANA MACKEY (Labour) 
: 
 For those listening who may be confused by the speeches they have heard this afternoon we can confirm that National will of course vote for the telecommunications package that it has spent the whole general debate opposing. 
I start by saying how nice it was to hear Katherine Rich speaking in the general debate. Katherine Rich who is so often muzzled by her own party—in the fear that she might say something liberal—often has very good things to say and I welcome her back to speaking in the House. 
It has not been a very good couple of weeks for the Opposition. It started with Judith Collins deciding that standing up for herself at a powhiri and sitting in the front row would win votes for the National Party. I was on the Social Services Committee in the last term and I visited youth justice facilities. It is not like going to the head office of the Inland Revenue Department. For the troubled young people who are there it is their home. The people who run those facilities do a lot of preparation and make quite an effort and I cannot imagine how difficult it is for them to organise those young people into doing a formal powhiri. They make a considerable effort to teach young people the values and traditions behind those customs. So when people go to such places they know they will not always do so on their terms. 
I cannot believe the arrogance of Judith Collins who thinks she can put up a challenge like that during a powhiri and not expect the challenge to be given back to her by the kaumatua. It was fine that she put up the challenge—that was her decision—but then she cried and huffed off with her handbag because the kaumatua stood up and challenged her straight back by saying that he was insulted. To describe her behaviour would be to use a word that we are not allowed to use in the House. I say to Judith Collins that she might want to explain why she is allowed to be offended by having to sit in the second row at a powhiri but a kaumatua is not allowed to be offended by the way in which she chooses to demonstrate her opposition to that. If Judith Collins was speaking up for Maori women everywhere then why was it that the Maori women at the powhiri were the most upset and offended by what she did? [ 
Interruption 
] Yes Judith Collins is a really good feminist—she is really big on that! 
Is it not interesting how Judith Collins was muzzled? During the first question time after that hearing of the Social Services Committee a question from Judith Collins to Georgina Beyer the chair of the Social Services Committee was pulled. Judith Collins was muzzled—and muddled. It just goes to show how divided the National caucus is. All its members are on their own paths and doing their own thing. 
Simon Power constantly goes on about New Zealanders needing to have confidence in the police force. I say to Mr Power that he should stop running it down. He is the biggest critic of the police force—often unfairly. He is always in the media running it down and then he complains about how people do not have confidence in it. I tell members that after Mr Ron Mark’s contribution we had a phone call from Mrs Cammell in Naenae who is listening to the debate. She said she is delighted with the announcement of $500 million for extra police. Her son is joining the police force this month and he is living his dream. That is what this Budget will be about: real issues facing real New Zealanders. 
Telecommunications is only one issue that National has backed down on. When the package was announced Maurice Williamson came up with the position that we all expected the National Party to take which was that it did not support it. Then all of a sudden it flip-flopped and now it does support the package. We have just heard a number of speeches that said how bad the package was but we have also heard that the National Party not only will vote for the bill going to the select committee but according to Mr Williamson probably will vote for it progressing all the way to completion. 
I turn to tax cuts. We finally have recognition of what Labour was saying all through the election campaign which was that the tax cuts that National was promising would not be affordable and that when it got to try to implement them it would have to cut social services. We have had a press release from Dr Brash saying that National would review its tax policy: “We probably can’t afford to do what we said before the election.” 
Regarding race relations who knows where the National Party stands on the issue of the Maori seats? Prior to the election it was all for getting rid of them. After the election Mr Brownlee said he was not really sure. Now National members are saying they are standing firm on that one. New Zealanders are no clearer on where National stands on race relations particularly following the muzzling of Judith Collins after the powhiri debacle. 
I turn to relations with the United States. The National Party now supports the nuclear-free policy that it is was so adamant it did not support—until it realised that the public supported it. It is no wonder that New Zealanders have no idea about not only what the National Party stands for but whether its members are rowing in the same direction. Don Brash’s days are numbered. 
The debate having concluded the motion lapsed.