Worth Richard: General Debates 
Worth Richard: General Debates 
[Volume:611;Page:8775] 
RICHARD WORTH (NZ National—Epsom) 
: 
 We see in the general debate today a significant shift in the Government’s position and scatological speeches from Government members. We also see a sea change in public attitudes towards the Government and the opinion polls are responding with diminished support for the Government. That is little wonder because pragmatism has yielded to principled decision-making and spin is triumphing over substance. I am reminded of the comments made by the Rt Hon Helen Clark at an election campaign rally in November 1999. She said: “If we elect Labour to Government then my commitment is that we will deliver a Government people can trust. It will be open; it will be accountable.” 
So let us look at the record of this Government in year 4 at the outset. It was a time when new partnerships were to be forged so let us look at those so-called partnerships. The partnership with local government is in tatters. The Local Government Act with its much-vaunted claims of the power of general competence was said to promise increased powers for local government. In fact those powers have been stripped away by consultation and accountability obligations that more closely circumscribe local government action. 
The partnership with business has collapsed. It was a partnership built on rhetoric by the Government and no substance. It has been unmasked by the failure of the Government to commit to the outcomes of the Knowledge Wave conferences; of broken promises not to raise taxes; by abandonment of the economic growth goals. The partnership with Maori is in serious trouble. Let us leave aside the conundrum as to who is a Maori and how it is possible to have partnerships with a particular ethnic group. The Government continues to dither on the resolution of the problem of the foreshore and the seabed. We see in vivid action do we not the consultation hui that flounder with point-blank rejection of the Government’s proposals. 
I would also say that our relationships around the world are under significant stress. The collapse of the discussions at Cancun has seen the United States move away from world trade solutions to bilateral agreements and New Zealand is very poorly placed as a result of foolish attacks by the Prime Minister on the United States to stand any real chance in the queue for preference. 
 So what about our relationships with Asia and particularly China? They have been damaged by failed marketing attempts by the Government in respect of English language teaching. That is small wonder really when we have Chinese teachers teaching Chinese students English and we also have in Auckland Indian teachers teaching Chinese students English. It is a very significant event in Auckland because 20 percent of the tenancy in the Auckland central business district is occupied by language schools. In China there is media coverage on New Zealand that is wholly adverse to our interests. 
So the Government fiddles in the tradition I would suggest of the Roman emperor Nero while New Zealand burns. But we also see a display of sickening double standards. We see for the first time a direct challenge to the independence of the police authorities in recent events that have occurred in this House. It is wholly unacceptable for the police to enter Parliament to interrogate an MP. We have an expectation—we in National we in Opposition—that the Government will take a strong stand in respect of those issues that touch the Speaker’s office and the integrity of that office. They are issues that are not going to go away. We see an inconstancy in police position-taking which is truly worrying. It is simply an incomprehensible outcome that there should be one standard for Mr Tizard and another standard for Mr Ardern. 
The debate having concluded the motion lapsed.