Hudson Brett; Mallard TrevorBRETT HUDSON (National): Thank you Mr Speaker. What is quite remarkable is the complete disjunct between the words that we hear from Government members and their actions. They're actually scrambling around. They already seem like a tired worn-out old Government that's desperately trying to sell a message of greatness and hope to New Zealanders but what New Zealanders are experiencing doesn't match up with the rhetoric because what they're experiencing in reality is a Government—a centre-left Government—that doesn't appear to care.It certainly doesn't care about hard-working Kiwi taxpayers because what do they do? They come into office and they legislate away some tax relief and benefits that the previous National Government had put in just to leave 1.7 million Kiwis worse off—worse off. Many of them are worse off by a thousand dollars a year of tax relief that they were legislated for under the previous National Government. They try to say they care and their actions are different but that isn't enough for them. It isn't enough for them. They really want to sock it to New Zealanders.They talk about helping New Zealanders to stand on their feet. I actually think they may mean that but the only reason they want to help New Zealanders on to their feet is because that makes it easier to get to their back pockets because what are they doing? What are they doing? They're imposing more taxes and lifting the cost of living so that New Zealanders are worse off.What have we seen? They cancelled those tax changes. The Amazon tax making Kiwis pay more for the goods they consume; the brightline tax changes; and that dog's breakfast of a bill that will change the Overseas Investment Act—those changes are seeing rent rises. What's more on top of that—because that's not enough for them—there are nationwide fuel excise increases that over three years will see hard-working Kiwis paying 12c a litre more for their fuel.But that's not enough. Regional fuel taxes—Auckland have got theirs already. Fourteen other regional councils around New Zealand are expressing an interest to get a piece of theirs just as soon as they can including the Greater Wellington Regional Council. They'll get it. They'll apply for it they'll get it and on 1 January 2021 Wellingtonians and many other New Zealanders will also be paying an extra 11.5c a litre for their petrol on top of those excise increases and it all adds up. It all adds up to a higher cost of living for New Zealanders not even just in the fuel for their vehicles but also in the goods they buy—particularly food.Rents going up and the loss of tax cuts all make life that much harder for the people in New Zealand that they've always claimed to represent over that side. They've completely lost their way because here's the thing—particularly with these tax changes around fuel. It has been acknowledged by the Minister responsible that it is a regressive tax and that it will hurt lower-income New Zealanders more than the wealthy but they proceed with it anyway. What is his answer to New Zealanders who struggle to get by and who will struggle even more because of the actions of that Government? What is his answer? It'd be good for them in the long run." How patronising. How patronising of a Government that has been in office for only nine months and that purports to care for the poor and needy of New Zealand and then smacks them every which way they can. It's an absolute travesty.On top of that we have to ask why. Why would they do this to these people? Apart from a lack of care and compassion why would they do it? It's because of poorly targeted and wasteful spending elsewhere. The Government inherited the books in great shape with massive surpluses and an economy that—until they got their hands on the levers—was looking to perform exceedingly well for the coming years. They waste $2.8 billion to get 900 fewer students they give Shane Jones a $3 billion slush fund and then they suddenly find the larder's empty. So what do they have to do? They have to find other sources of revenue to make up for the fact that they've wasted so much elsewhere.So this is a Government that is the architect of the misfortune of New Zealanders and the architect of its own misfortune. They want to tell New Zealanders that it's all rosy under the coalition Government but that's not what New Zealanders are feeling it's not what they are experiencing and it's not what the horizon looks like for those hard-working Kiwis. Just nine months into a change of Government every day and in every way this Government is trying to make Groucho Marx look like a wise man when he said "Politics is the art of looking for trouble finding it everywhere"—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Order! The member's time has expired."