Cunliffe David: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Cunliffe David: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 15 November 2012. Volume:685;Page:6707. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
4. 
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Labour—New Lynn) 
 to the  
Minister for Economic Development 
: Has the Government changed its position in relation to the recommendations of the Pure Advantage green growth reports given its rejection of Pure Advantage’s first report? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Deputy Prime Minister) 
 on behalf of the Minister for Economic Development: No. The first report advocated shifting significant resources away from existing productive areas of the economy to subsidise the development of a small number of so-called green growth industries. I am happy to advise the member that the second report underscores the importance of a significant number of Government initiatives already under way and tends to reinforce the Government’s position that we need to pursue all our opportunities in a way that balances economic and environmental objectives. 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: Does the Government now concur with Pure Advantage and with London School of Economics professor and world climate change expert Lord Nicholas Stern who say that there will be a $3 trillion clean-technology market by 2050; if he does why does the Government put open-cast mining ahead of forestry carbon sinks new renewables and negotiating a successor to the Kyoto Protocol? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: Well the fact is that we need both and under this Government tree planting increased quite significantly after the chainsaw massacre that occurred because Labour messed up the Kyoto policy. It is a bit rich for the member to be saying that he is against open-cast mining at the same time as crying crocodile tears for coalminers who lost their jobs on the West Coast and who could get jobs in the open-cast coalmine if he and his fellow travellers would let it happen. 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: In light of the thorough analysis from leading economists including Vivid Economics the University of Auckland and Lord Stern which confirms the earlier findings of Pure Advantage will he now apologise to Sir George Fistonich Rob Fyfe Chris Liddell Phillip Mills Jeremy Moon Rob Morrison Geoff Ross Justine Smyth Mark Solomon Sir Stephen Tindall Joan Withers and Duncan Stewart for abusing their important contributions to the economic debate? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: No but the ongoing discussion after the first report has I think shown some benefits for the second report. But I might point out to the member that green growth is not just about groups of people getting together to write reports. It is about for instance this Government grappling with an issue that the previous Government completely failed to deal with and that is reform of the way we use water our most fundamental resource in this country. A 3-year collaborative process has yielded the Land and Water Forum report and over the next 6 months we will make some of the most important decisions in a decade about the balance of environmental and economic growth in this country. 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: Can the Minister assure the House that he has read in full the latest Pure Advantage report; if so in what chapter does the forward estimate of the $3 trillion export market reside? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: I would say that the Minister probably has; I would have to say I have not. But I would have to say that if I did read it I would be very sceptical about consultants’ estimates of massive new industries that currently do not exist. The fact is that businesses are not stupid. Where they see opportunities in improved environmental management techniques or running their own businesses in a way that is more energy-efficient they will take those opportunities. I find that businesses in New Zealand because of our clean green image have a high degree of awareness of those issues. 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: How does Tim Groser dumping New Zealand squarely in the camp of climate science denying countries by refusing to even negotiate a successor to the Kyoto Protocol enhance our clean green image? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: Because the clean green image is about what you do day by day week by week in the farms and workplaces of New Zealand and that is where our focus is. I do not think the Labour Party would benefit from a change from the moderate and sensible statements that we get from its current leader to extravagant exaggerated statements from the pretend leader.