Moroney Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeMoroney Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 18 February 2014. Volume:696;Page:15981. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]6.SUE MORONEY (Labour) to thePrime Minister: Does he stand by his statement in regard to proposals to extend paid parental leave “It’s an important time they bond with their children. Everyone acknowledges having more time with their infants would be an important thing to support”?Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): Yes I do stand by that statement. I also went on to say that the Government’s No. 1 priority was getting the books back to surplus because that provides greater strength for families overall. It is not just paid parental leave we support it is Working for Families access to early childhood education and many other initiatives. At the time the member wanted a substantial increase in paid parental leave when at that point the Budget deficit was $9.2 billion.Sue Moroney: Will his party support the second reading of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Six Months’ Paid Leave) Amendment Bill in my name or will he wait until the third reading to use a financial veto?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: The member will need to wait and see.Sue Moroney: Does he stand by his statement: “I’m not saying it’s not important and I’m not saying there couldn’t be some modest expansion.”; if so could he explain to Kiwi parents exactly what he is saying about paid parental leave?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: With pleasure I am happy to say that to New Zealanders. Currently for the 14 weeks of paid parental leave the Government contribution is $176 million per year. To increase that to 26 weeks would cost an additional $130 million to $140 million a year. Only about 40 percent of New Zealanders get paid parental leave. To pay for this it would effectively require we think along with the other policies that the Labour Party announced an increase in taxes as we saw in the weekend. Actually I do not think New Zealanders do support that in isolation. The Government will have its own contribution over time to this debate but it will be done in a way that is responsible affordable and is set against the other priorities like more cancer drugs more nurses and more support for many other areas in the community.Sue Moroney: What assurance can he give to women like Nicola—whom I met with recently in Hamilton and whose twins are due on 9 July this year—that they can plan for extended paid parental leave for the benefit of their children?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I can guarantee Nicola that there will be a scheme of 14 weeks or more depending on the outcome of the election and depending on any announcements that we might make. But I can also say this to Nicola and that is—Hon Member: Oh June now.Hon David Cunliffe: There’s a Freudian slip. It’s embarrassing. Never waste a Royal visit.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Well to be perfectly frank if you want to have it next month I am more than happy to have it.Sue Moroney: To the Prime Minister when he is ready—when he is ready Mr Speaker. What proportion of the additional $1 billion that his Government intends to spend in this year’s Budget is he then prepared to put toward important initiatives for families like extending paid parental leave?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: In the fullness of time the Minister of Finance will read the Budget and New Zealanders will get a sense of where that allocation goes. But the member actually raises a very interesting point. The new Budget spend under this Government for four of the five Budgets has for all intents and purposes been zero. Last year the Minister of Finance was in a position to spend an additional $1 billion. When the Labour Party made the announcements around paid parental leave it agreed that it would commit—Grant Robertson: What responsibility would he have for that?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: —well it is actually germane to the question that she asked—a further $572 million annually. The very point is that if the member is going to be part of a Government that would be fiscally responsible is she really saying that she is going to have all total expenditure at about $450 million? Every New Zealander knows—Sue Moroney: No.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Yes exactly—no. So the very point that the Labour Party is making is that it is going to spend a lot more money which means taxes are going up which means borrowing is going up which means interest rates—Mr SPEAKER: Order!