Peters Winston: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumePeters Winston: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 20 May 2015. Volume:705;Page:3447. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]4.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) to the Minister for Tertiary Education Skills and Employment: What plans does the Government have in the Budget tomorrow to get the 146000 officially unemployed New Zealanders as measured by the Labour Market Statistics into work?Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Tertiary Education Skills and Employment): The Government will continue to operate the same sensible economic and fiscal policies that have delivered 194000 jobs to New Zealanders in 4¼ years and 23000 more jobs than the 171000 jobs forecast by Treasury in Budget 2011 with more than one quarter to run. In fact this Government and businesses around the country have delivered job growth in 16 out of the last 17 quarters and I am confident that the Budget tomorrow will project further job growth. I thank the member for his question.Rt Hon Winston Peters: What are the Government’s plans in tomorrow’s Budget for Māori and Pacific youth where unemployment under this National-led Government has increased by over 40 percent for Māori youth—Hon Dr Nick Smith: Rubbish!Rt Hon Winston Peters: —and almost 50 percent for Pacific youth—no no I am not dealing with your speciality: rubbish; I am talking facts.Mr SPEAKER: Order!Hon STEVEN JOYCE: I am not sure about the member’s figures but I certainly would agree with him that Māori and Pasifika youth unemployment is too high. I agree with him. We have got a number of measures under way alongside the Ministry of Māori Development to improve that situation including of course the Māori and Pasifika Trades Training Initiative which is a programme that is delivering great opportunities for young Māori and Pasifika in the trades around New Zealand. And there may or may not be more information about that in the Budget tomorrow.Rt Hon Winston Peters: How is his Government going to be able to claim to be working for New Zealanders when we have tens of thousands of youth who are currently unemployed yet his Government has approved over 47200 international student visas with work rights in our current financial year?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The member may not be excited about international education and I am reasonably confident from all his past statements that he is not but international education creates for this country around $2.85 billion worth of value a year and some 33000 jobs and a relatively small number of international students actually participate in the employment market. But I thank the member for his question and say that international education is very important for New Zealand’s future.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I did not ask about international education did I?Mr SPEAKER: Yes. [Interruption] Order! The member will resume his seat. If he wants to go back and look he included in his question the 47200 people here on student visas. That is the part the Minister chose to address.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I specifically said “student visas with work rights”—those are the critical words.Mr SPEAKER: The answer has certainly addressed the question. If it is not to the member’s satisfaction then that may be so. The way forward is to ask concise supplementary questions.Rt Hon Winston Peters: How will tomorrow’s Budget reduce the rate of “neets”—those not in education employment or training—among youth in Northland where the rate has now increased to one in five youths not in employment education or training since National became the Government?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: If I was the member I would be very very careful about the regional numbers for a small demographic. But nevertheless I agree with him that those numbers are too high and that is why the Government has a comprehensive programme to develop economic opportunities that positively affect Northland—for example the New Zealand - Korea free-trade agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership—and we would welcome obviously the member’s support in that regard. [Interruption] He may scoff but that is very important for the kiwifruit farmers and to the meat farmers and dairy farmers of Northland. Also we are encouraging tourism investment including of course the projected investment by the Chinese investor in the Carrington Resort—and I look forward to the member endorsing that because I understand that they plan to train up young Northland youth. And also of course there is the Ngāpuhi settlement and we look forward to the member’s positive report of that as well.Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. My point of order is that he is not answering the question. My real point is—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! [Interruption] Order! The member when I rise to my feet should resume his seat immediately. That question again was addressed. If the member wants a further supplementary question then he should ask it.Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It is not that the question was not in some way addressed—we know what the rules are—but you heard a long tirade and ramble that did not address the question.Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! If the member knows what the rules are I suggest he has a look at them. If he can make his questions more concise I can help him get an answer that might satisfy him. Does the member have a further supplementary question? Otherwise we will—Rt Hon Winston Peters: Yes I do as good as the last one. Why is the Government not filling the 5000 job vacancies in Christchurch with young trained Kiwi workers given that we have 76000 youth who are unemployed and that we are now in our fifth year since the Christchurch earthquake—instead of getting all the skilled people from offshore?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The member just needs to come and get a bit of information because there is actually a lot going on in Christchurch including for example the $3K to Christchurch which gives people the opportunity to shift to Christchurch. If the member wants to participate in that scheme I am sure we could line him up with the Ministry of Social Development and get him down to Christchurch so he can wield a hammer. We are also doing a huge amount of trades training in Christchurch. The Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation for example has record numbers of trainees and actually we would welcome more young New Zealanders to take the opportunity to head to Christchurch and in fact to the whole South Island which currently has very low levels of unemployment.