McAnulty KieranKIERAN McANULTY (Labour): Let the people have their say. That's what we just heard from the last speaker: let the people have their say. And did they have their say at the last election? Yes they did. And that is why that speaker is over there and that is why we are over here. And that's why the people of New Zealand are enjoying an economy that has 2.7 percent growth—more growth than the USA more growth than Australia more growth than Canada and more growth than Japan—and more than many other OECD countries. And what does that side have to say about it? They have a whinge. They are whingers. They've been whingers from the day after the election and they are whingers now. Nothing has changed—negative Nats. And how's that working for them? The best they can come up with is a 10-minute sermon on things that people don't care about.They have an opportunity to have to speak about the Prime Minister's statement. Here it is—pages of what this Government is doing and what this Government's vision is for this country. And what have they been doing today? Whingeing—whingeing. They have been pretending that New Zealanders do not remember the nine years that they were in Government. They are pretending—when you look at the likes of Nikki Kaye who stood up today and talked about education and made it sound like they were the same saviours of our students despite the fact that there were 214 overcrowded schools under their Government and there were nearly 500 classes at risk of being overcrowded.They are not the saviours of education. They are the threat to education and the facts back it up. Compare their record to the record of this Government here—this Government that has been in for 2½ years and has built 726 new classrooms. Jan Tinetti: 726?KIERAN McANULTY: Yes 726. So compare that with overcrowded classrooms and students and schoolchildren learning in libraries and learning in gymnasiums. I've lost count of the number of schools that I have visited in Wairarapa and they've shown me what was their library but is now their new-entrants class because the previous Government did not invest in education. I am proud to be part of a Government that values education and has a fully funded plan for expansion and for catering for the expansion of population. Fully funded—isn't that an important word or phrase I should say: fully funded. We've heard a lot of talk about what they would have done and what they could have done if they'd got in. They said they'd do a lot but they didn't back it up by funding it. And they accuse us of empty promises. What is the point of saying you're going to do something if you don't back it up with funding? We hear a similar theme under health. We have heard reports of sewage running down the walls in our largest hospital in the country. And they stand there and claim that they were the Government of health. What a load of rot. There was $2.3 billion worth of funding stripped from the health budget in real terms. They claim that they funded health. What a load of rubbish. They say that they funded it every year more and more and more. Yet why did we as a Government inherit a situation where people were screaming out for health treatment? The reality was that they were all rhetoric.And now instead of standing here and offering solutions to the big challenges that we face in this country—because of course waiting lists didn't grow in two years. All the challenges that we're facing and addressing as this Government are the effect of the previous nine years of Government. And what do they do? They have a whinge. This is despite the fact that 1500 nurses have been funded in 2½ years of this Government. Six hundred doctors have been funded in 2½ years. What happened in nine years? Anahila Kanongata'a-Suisuiki: Nothing.KIERAN McANULTY: That's a good answer—nothing. And the same can be said for housing. Here we are in a situation where there are thousands of people on waiting lists all around the country. This is not a new phenomenon. Yet under this Government we have built more State houses than we've seen in generations. How do we compare this to the previous record of the previous Government? We built them. They sell them. They sold State houses. And then they have the gall to stand up and criticise this Government for not doing anything for the homeless. What a cheek. If that previous Government built houses at the same rate that this Government is we would not have a housing crisis. That is a fact. And the fact is also that they are sitting there and looking at their papers and their laptops not saying anything because they know it's the truth. They know that they refused for nine years to accept that there was a housing crisis believing that the market would sort it out. Well it's because of this belief—this belief in the trickle-down which was debunked generations ago—that we're facing the issue that we've got.And of course I mentioned the economy earlier. We have growth rates that would be the envy of many OECD countries. We have 4 percent unemployment—the lowest rate in over a decade. And what do they do? They whinge. They keep whinging because of course their plan is better—if you talk to them. What a load of rubbish. What did their plan deliver us in terms of employment? Where was their scheme like Mana in Mahi that was going to get people off the dole and into apprenticeships? If they have the gall to say that they are the party of apprenticeships I have a question: when we had the largest rebuild in the country after the Christchurch earthquake where were the Government-sponsored schemes to ensure that the people working on those rebuilds got apprenticeships? None. Nothing—because the market would have sorted it out. There was a prime opportunity for them to say to these large companies that took on Government contracts Yep good as gold. You do the building that we need you to do. But here's an idea. How about for every three or four migrant workers that you bring in to rebuild Christchurch you just take on an apprentice?" It's not much to ask. Nothing—and it put us back for years. This Government is doing something about it.What is their solution? The promise of tax cuts—the promise of tax cuts. We've been here before. Here they were throughout the last year saying we should have done tax cuts. They said "Last election if we got elected we would've cut taxes." And here we are again. Yet they were also saying when we were in negotiation with the teachers "We would've cut taxes. Oh but we would have paid you more. We would have cut taxes. We would have paid the nurses more. We're going to cut taxes. We're going to spend more than Labour National New Zealand First and the Greens on roading." What a joke. You can't have it both ways. That's what I'd put to them. You can't promise tax cuts and also promise to spend more unless you cut services. So what are they going to cut?Hon Poto Williams: What services are they cutting?KIERAN McANULTY: They don't know. Simon Bridges the leader of the National Party stood up there under much fanfare and said that he was going to cut taxes. Righto good as gold. The next question that the media asked was "What are you going to cut?" "Oh dunno. Haven't really thought that through." That's in the next announcement. Righto. So all right; they've sort of talked about the Provincial Growth Fund. They've called that a slush fund. So are they going to cut that? Perhaps they are. Perhaps they are going to go around the Wairarapa electorate and say they'll cut the $950000 put towards the youth in education and employment—things like that. Perhaps they're going to say that the money we put in to make sure that 6000 fewer trucks travel over the Remutaka hill to Wellington carrying logs will be cut—"It's not going to go on rail because that's the Provincial Growth Fund and that's a slush fund and we're going to cut that." Are they going to go around the Wairarapa electorate and say that the dark sky reserve can get their money taken off them? The Wairarapa primary sector skills development scheme—their money's gone. What about the $400000 dollars put into the Dannevirke rail hub or the upgrade of the Route 52? See you later—and all to pay for $20 a week tax cuts. If you think I'm pulling numbers out of the sky I do wonder why their spokesperson on finance went on to Radio New Zealand and talked about the figure of 20 bucks and then swiftly back-pedalled. He said 20 bucks and then he said "Oh woops. Uh—oh shivers. No no—I didn't actually mean 20 bucks." So what is it a couple of bucks? Where's the detail? They're promising a lot and delivering nothing. I would like to see—I would like to see—them go to their supposed support base in Wairarapa and say "In order to give you guys a $20 a week tax cut we're going to take away the $7.11 million that this Government has put into the water scheme."They say that they are the Government for farmers yet I'd put this to you: on page 6 and 7 on the Prime Minister's statement she dedicates to farming agriculture and rural communities. Here's a question for you: how many times did Simon Bridges the leader of the National Party mention rural communities regional economies or farmers? None—not once. He stands up there and screams at this Government about non-delivery for the regions. The Prime Minister dedicates two pages of her statement to them we have numerous examples of this Government investing in regional economies and they stand there and don't even mention it. Yet again that side of the House is taking rural economies and rural people for granted. We are the Government that is delivering for rural economies. We are the Government that is investing to make sure that people have real jobs with decent conditions on the back of a strong economy that is the envy of the world.So I'm proud to stand up here in support of the Prime Minister's statement. I'd rather be a winner than a whinger."