1. Question No. 1—Prime MinisterHon PAULA BENNETT (Deputy Leader—National) to the Prime MinisterORAL QUESTIONSQUESTIONS TO MINISTERSQuestion No. 1—Prime Minister1. Hon PAULA BENNETT (Deputy Leader—National) to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her Government's statements policies and actions?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN (Prime Minister): Yes particularly my statement that Our instinct was … that New Zealanders were being fleeced at the pump now the Commerce Commission has confirmed that [it] is true." with the Commerce Commission finding that New Zealand has the third-highest petrol prices in the OECD before tax and that "The core problem in our view is that an active wholesale market does not exist in New Zealand." I note that the last Government could have acted but decided it wasn't easy and decided to do nothing. It seems to me that was their general philosophy in Government.Hon Paula Bennett: Can she confirm then that her Government will be increasing fuel taxes by 24c by the end of their three-year term whereas petrol company margins have gone up by just 0.1c and that actually it's her Government that are doing the fleecing?SPEAKER: Any two of the three may be addressed.Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I actually refute what the member has said in terms of the calculation of margins by the fuel companies. In fact depending on where you look at the comparison in some cases the margins made up as much as 40c at different points last year. In particular long-term trends—and this is directly from the Commerce Commission—have seen margins for petrol increase 187 percent since 2008. That is significant. It outstrips what has been seen with just excise and as I note it was something that started in 2008 and that Government—all they did was write a sternly worded letter.Hon Paula Bennett: Will petrol taxes in Auckland rise by over 20c by the time her Government has been in power for three years?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I find it interesting given the last member oversaw an increase of 24c while in Government—24c while in Government. They also remember increased GST while they were in Government—24c. They've now abandoned the idea of excise altogether. I don't know how they'll build their roads. But the point is that unlike that Government we are not taking the side of fuel companies and allowing New Zealanders to be fleeced at the pump.SPEAKER: Order! Before I ask the member to go on I think generally I've been asking the members on my left to be quiet in order that Ministers can be heard. I am now going to apply that to the people on my right.Hon Paula Bennett: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I asked a very short and specific question which was "Would her Government be increasing fuel taxes by over 20c in Auckland within the three years of this Government?" and she did not answer that at all.SPEAKER: I think she addressed it.Hon Paula Bennett: Ha! Does—sorry sir I just thought she would have to answer that. Can she acknowledge—SPEAKER: Order! Order!Hon Paula Bennett: Well I—OK. Can she acknowledge that more than 50 percent of the price of petrol is actually tax?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: If the member is referring to the 24c that her Government increased it by as well and the fact that excise has been a consistent part of fuel prices for decades what has not been consistent is that in the last decade margins that have been collected by fuel companies have moved 187 percent. This Government is not going to stand by and let that continue. The other Government of long past believed that that was OK and did nothing except write a sternly worded letter. We stand on the side of consumers. We are going to act because we know it will make a big difference to them at the pump.Hon Paula Bennett: Can she confirm the facts which are that after over nine years the National Government actually increased it by 18c; her Government will be increasing it by 24c within three years and if they were ever around that long—which they won't be—that would be an increase of about 90c?SPEAKER: Order! Right does the member have a further supplementary?Hon Paula Bennett: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I've taken three answers which have been about the National Government and not actually about the responsibility of the current Government. I think I have a right to actually ask that question.SPEAKER: Well the member then asked a question about a Government she asserted wouldn't exist and there can't be responsibility for that.Hon Paula Bennett: No that's very fair; it won't be existing.SPEAKER: Order!Hon Paula Bennett: Does she agree then with her commerce and consumer affairs Minister Kris Faafoi who said that "A lot of New Zealanders are struggling to make ends meet at the moment and if that money can be spent on making sure you can afford your rent or food on the table then I think that that's what most Kiwis would prefer to do." and if so why doesn't she reduce the taxes that she has implemented on New Zealanders and increased the price of petrol more than any fuel company has done?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: If the member wishes to ignore that up to 40c is down to margins by fuel companies and wishes to ignore that the Commerce Commission has said New Zealanders aren't getting a fair deal—if the member wishes to ignore that that is the member's prerogative. On this side of the House we will not ignore that New Zealanders are being fleeced. We will not write a sternly worded letter. If required we will change the law because that is what an active Government who is not willing to ignore the hard issues does.Hon Paula Bennett: Will the Prime Minister then continue to ignore that it's the increases in taxes that she has put on everyday New Zealanders that she could take off tomorrow if she really cared about the cost of living for them?Hon Grant Robertson: Can the Prime Minister confirm that the average increase in fuel excise duty proposed by this Government is in fact just less than the average increase that happened under the National Party?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: In fact I can. The average increase under National was 5.76 percent. The average increase under this Government is 5.6 percent. I might take that side of the House a little more seriously if they weren't being hypocritical on the use of excise.SPEAKER: The Prime Minister will stand withdraw and apologise.Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I withdraw and apologise.Hon Paula Bennett: Can the Prime Minister confirm that the last time a regional fuel tax was cancelled in New Zealand was under the National Government in 2009 and New Zealanders are going to be relying on us to be cancelling it again next year when we're in Government?SPEAKER: Well there's just not a question that's the responsibility of the Prime Minister in that.Hon Paula Bennett: Can the Prime Minister outline actually what she will be doing to the petrol fuel companies since it won't be just writing a letter and she's at the moment got such strong convictions about how she's going to stop them from fleecing New Zealanders?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Again the member is demonstrating that she would prefer to defend the fuel companies on this rather than actually listen to the Commerce Commission. [Interruption]SPEAKER: Order!Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: The Minister has already spoken about greater contractual freedom. If the member opposite was aware that there were options beyond writing a sternly worded letter she might have looked at the market constraints. She might have also looked at access to the joint infrastructure and terminal access. There are things that could be done; it's just a matter of having a Government willing to do it. That member's Government—in particular the Leader of the Opposition proved all that he could do was write a sternly worded letter.Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It's fascinating to get an answer from the Prime Minister telling the Opposition what they could or could have done. The question was "What will she do?" and I think it's only reasonable that you require that she gives an answer along those lines rather than having a free go at the Opposition.SPEAKER: The member will resume his seat. He interrupted the answer. You cannot complain about having an incomplete answer when one interrupts it. He knows that.Hon Grant Robertson: Mr Speaker. [Speaker sighs] It won't be that bad.SPEAKER: Well—the Hon Grant Robertson.Hon Grant Robertson: What is her response to the statement from the former Minister of Transport the Hon Simon Bridges that the reason nothing was done on fuel prices under the previous Government was "There was nothing easy." and does she think that only looking for easy things to do is the way to approach an issue like this?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I do not but that kind of philosophy would probably give rise to the idea of simply writing a sternly worded letter instead of doing something actually about the issue at hand.Hon Gerry Brownlee: What's the Government going to do?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: While the Commerce Commission is still finalising its report we're already stood at the ready and—as I pointed out Mr Brownlee—there are options available.Hon Member: Tell us what you're going to do.Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: I just did. We are a Government who stands ready to deal with access to infrastructure the lack of a wholesale market and contractual freedom. Those are issues that would make a difference.Hon Paula Bennett: Since the Prime Minister has outlined that she won't be writing a stern letter can she tell the House what she will do to reduce petrol company profits in New Zealand?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: If the member reads the Commerce Commission report she'll see that there isn't a decent wholesale market operating in New Zealand. As I've already said access to the infrastructure is part of the issue. Contractual freedom for retailers is part of the issue. Ask anyone who lives in the Hutt whether or not having competition in the market makes a difference and they'll tell you it does. We are waiting for the final report from the Commerce Commission. Once they do that we are ready to act. We're not sitting back and saying it's too hard.Hon Paula Bennett: Is the Government looking to nationalise the infrastructure?Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: The member may wish to simply sit back and then say there are no options. There are options and I've outlined them three times now. But equally the Commerce Commission will give a steer of exactly how that last Government failed New Zealanders.SPEAKER: Mark Mitchell supplementary.Hon Mark Mitchell: No. It's the next question.SPEAKER: It's question three. The member is far too premature—far too premature."