Carter DavidRt Hon DAVID CARTER (National): Thank you very much Mr Chairman for the opportunity. I listened to the speech from Deborah Russell and she listed all the possibilities for exemptions that were tabled but in her short speech she didn't give one valid reason why we shouldn't accept them. So I ask the Minister in the chair the Hon Ron Mark whether he could explain to this committee why we are making an exemption for forestry. As the Minister thinks about his answer to that I'm going to help him with his answer because I know the answer. The issue is the bill was so rushed and ill-prepared in the hands of the Hon David Parker. It was about stopping foreign investment because the other side of the Chamber does not like foreigners investing in this country. Then the Hon Shane Jones finally at the eleventh hour realised that this would stop his forestry programme from planting a billion trees each year. So they've rushed in this Supplementary Order Paper 19 which has suddenly made a grand exemption for forestry and yet for nothing else.So I want the Hon Ron Mark to stand on his feet and tell us why and justify why we've got an exemption for forestry because I don't see any reason why it should be only forestry. I've got an amendment as Deborah Russell pointed out for horticulture. Why can't we welcome foreign investment in horticulture when the Hon Shane Jones wants to welcome foreign investment for forestry? So I look forward to that answer from Mr Mark.The second question I have for the Hon Ron Mark—and this is after an intervention by the Hon David Parker last night when he said that this bill is here so we can drive down the price of houses. I want to know from the Hon Ron Mark how much they intend driving down the price of houses. I can tell him that if they drive down the house prices in cities like Christchurch and Wellington and Auckland there will be a lot of people who will be very quickly in zero equity. A lot of people in recent years have struggled to buy their first house; they've mortgaged themselves to the hilt leaving them not a lot of margin of equity. If Ron Mark and this Labour - New Zealand First - Greens Government is intent on driving down the price of housing I warn him today that he's going to face a backlash from voters that will at least have one desirable effect: make sure we don't have to put up with New Zealand First in the 53rd Parliament of New Zealand.The last point I want the Hon Ron Mark on his feet for is to provide an answer to me around rural proofing the new concept in the House today at question time from the Hon Damien O'Connor. He gave a guarantee that all legislation advanced by the Labour Government would be rural proofed and I want to know how this piece of legislation has been rural proofed because I suspect it hasn't. If it's been rural proofed then the first thing the Ministry for Primary Industries should have picked up is that the real estate value of farms has now been lessened by this legislation. Previously there was a market where international buyers could have a look at buying a farm. They then went through a rigorous Overseas Investment Office process and ultimately they had to prove net benefit to New Zealand. That's good legislation modified by the National Government and it stood the test of time but what you've got now is the effective elimination of those foreign buyers. For any farmer who's heading towards retirement years about to consider putting his farm on the market I can tell the Hon Damien O'Connor that this legislation will affect the price that retiring farmer gets.So I want to know what process it went through with rural proofing. We've heard the Hon Damien O'Connor in question time saying every policy and piece of legislation will be rural proofed—well let's hear it today from the Minister now in the chair the Hon Damien O'Connor.