Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:613;Page:9841] 
3.  
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she have confidence in the Minister with responsibility for Auckland Issues; if so why? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Deputy Prime Minister) 
 on behalf of the 
 Prime Minister 
: Yes because she is a hard-working and conscientious Minister. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Before I ask the next question can we have a brief time to stop laughing at that answer? I cannot hear myself. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: If the member raises that sort of point of order he will not be asking any further supplementary questions today. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: How on earth can the Prime Minister have confidence in a Minister with responsibility for Auckland Issues who in spite of the Auckland Regional Council’s current plea that: “A lack of Government policy on population is putting added strain on already stressed resources.” said this morning on National Radio that the Government is doing its bit to help Auckland to cope with a burgeoning population; and can she explain what this “bit” is that she is talking about? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: The “bit” includes very substantial additional funding across a whole range of Government areas—not least in particular the work going on between Government officials at central and local government levels on the Auckland transport plan. 
John Key 
: How can the Prime Minister possibly have confidence in a Minister who has under her watch saddled Auckland ratepayers with a dilapidated rail system failed to make any progress whatsoever on a credible roading infrastructure and seen massive regional council rate rises that have prompted a rate revolt? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: To take simply the first question the dilapidated rail system is largely the result of the privatisation of New Zealand Rail by the previous National Government. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Does this “bit” as the Minister put it include helping the hundreds of Aucklanders with diabetes-related eye diseases who are going blind waiting for treatment the 40000 immigrants arriving in Auckland in the last year alone Auckland cancer patients who for the first time face a wait for lifesaving chemotherapy or migrants wasting valuable time and money by missing hospital appointments because they cannot understand letters advising them of check-ups although they are meant to have an understanding of English to arrive here in the first place; and with translation costs to the Auckland District Health Board reaching more than $4 million in the last year which “bit” of that story is helpful to Auckland? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Before the Minister replies I will give my only warning today—there will be no interjections while questions are being asked and that is it. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Considerable extra resources have been devoted to the Auckland health system. The introduction of population-based funding will certainly assist Auckland in particular. A great deal of work has gone into cooperation between the three Auckland district health boards. Those are all positive progress issues in Auckland. Generally migration adds to New Zealand’s wealth and value. I suggest that Mr Peters ask the member next to him about that. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Despite not taking up the Minister’s invitation to ask the member next to me about that—he having been profitably employed since the day he arrived unlike the tens of thousands whom the Minister brought in—I ask this: does this “bit” include the Government’s instruction to doctors that they cannot refuse to treat illegal immigrants or residents regardless of the comment made by Auckland District Health Board chair Wayne Brown that: “It is not fair that the taxpaying locals are missing out on health care because their money is being used to treat illegal immigrants.”; how can she possibly have faith in the Minister with responsibility for Auckland Issues who clearly ignores Aucklanders completely other than that she is some sort of soulmate? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: The Minister assisting the Prime Minister on Auckland issues is not responsible for such details as the relationship between district health boards and doctors in Auckland.