Peters Winston: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumePeters Winston: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 08 September 2015. Volume:708;Page:6301. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]6.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) to the Minister for Economic Development: Does he stand by all his statements?Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Economic Development): Yes in the context in which they were made.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Does he stand by his statement in August 2014 that “the good news is that the regions are actually leading New Zealand’s economic recovery and I think that’s pretty exciting.”; if so why?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: Yes I do and I am pleased the member is acknowledging it.Rt Hon Winston Peters: How are the regions able to lead the so-called economic recovery when Northland Waste a local company up north lost its contract with the Department of Corrections for waste management to a Chinese-owned company with no tender process whatsoever being held? [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! I have not yet called the Minister.Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The good news for the member is that he may just be learning about Northland himself but the Northland economy is about so much more than waste management. It is a very significant processor in the oil and gas industry for example. It is very significantly involved in aquaculture. It is a significant region of the dairy industry and the meat industry. It has significant engineering companies. It has a significant tourism industry and a significant education industry. All of these things are contributing to Northland’s growth.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Besides the last by-election being waste management day for him how does it contribute to the economic development of the regions when a local company gets shut out in favour of a foreign-owned company and the decision to do this is not fair it is a not a free-market decision and it is not open to competition but instead it is done by decree from the Inland Revenue Department?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The member I know has been beating a drum against international investment for some time—in fact I think nearly 40 years—but actually most New Zealand regions welcome international investment. They welcome it when businesses put money into their regions. In fact the member himself may like to contribute by opening one of those parliamentary offices he keeps going on about now that he has won the by-election.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Answers have got to be terse and to the point. When you do not acknowledge that the MP up north has already got three offices—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! The member will resume his seat certainly if he wishes to stay for the balance of question time. That is not—[Interruption] Order! That is not a point of order at all. Does the member have further supplementary questions?Rt Hon Winston Peters: Thank you very much. Could I ask “Mr Fix-it” how it is that the regions are going to support the economic recovery when the Chinese are buying the Paeroa Racecourse and Paeroa—Hon Members: Oh!Rt Hon Winston Peters: I know you are groaning. There is every reason to groan down there.Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. He raised a point of order a minute ago suggesting that answers are meant to be concise. Equally questions are meant to be concise. Now—[Interruption] Order! I will give the member one more chance to ask a concise supplementary question. Otherwise we will be moving on.Rt Hon Winston Peters: You have got a point there. Can I ask the Minister for Economic Development as to how it supports the so-called recovery being driven from the regions if the Chinese are buying the Paeroa Racecourse and the Silver Fern Farms’ Paeroa plant?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: Once again the member is beating the anti-Chinese drum which he loves doing so much. But can I explain it to him. It works like this: when someone comes into a region and makes an investment in that region that is generally positive particularly if it is passed through the Overseas Investment Office and is shown to actually add jobs and growth to the region. I know that member is against that sort of economic activity. In fact he is against nearly all economic activity in regional New Zealand but this Government is in favour of it.