Yule LawrenceLAWRENCE YULE (National—Tukituki): Mr Chair thank you for the opportunity to take a call. Clare Curran the last member that spoke spoke of a holistic sense of what's happening in New Zealand but I rise to speak on behalf of my own institution the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT). I ask for a carve-out under Supplementary Order Paper 433 in my name principally because the Eastern Institute of Technology has never run a deficit; every year it has had increasing numbers attending its courses; it has $30 million worth of reserves in the bank; and the land on which it sits was gifted by the Hetley family in Hawke's Bay. That's why I ask for a carve-out because all this is is nationalisation of a regional asset—a highly successful regional asset—to serve the political ideology of the day and to actually help solve the mismanagement of other institutions principally in large urban centres of New Zealand. I am strongly opposed to this change. This time—this very time—last week I sat at the Eastern Institute of Technology with the establishment unit as they did some of their consultation and I asked this specific question: what will happen to the $30 million of reserves that the Eastern Institute of Technology has and what will happen to the land? I was strongly assured by the head of that unit that the Minister assures us that that land and those reserves will be made available for the people of Hawke's Bay and its wider area. Minister I acknowledge you shaking your head. Maybe—Hon Chris Hipkins: No I'm nodding. LAWRENCE YULE: —you would take a call—maybe you are agreeing. Maybe you would take a call and tell me where in the legislation it says that because in my reading I can't see it. It was asked for in the submission from EIT. It seemed very sensible and practical to me but I actually can't find the specific clause. Equally in the submissions that were made by EIT to the Education and Workforce Committee they raised this point: in the make-up of the New Zealand Institute of Skills and Training council there is no guarantee of any form of regional representation. It is all controlled by the Minister. Minister you might think that that's a small deal but I will give you an example of what has happened recently in Hawke's Bay. The district health board in Hawke's Bay now has not one single representative from the city of Napier despite that fact that it has 75000 people living there and that is because the Minister of Health chose to ignore that city. EIT is actually in Napier. EIT and other regional centres need to be assured that they're not going to be left out of the mix in the representation for regional centres. I also note some of the comments from the union—the Tertiary Education Union—who represent EIT. They made this comment—and Minister I draw it to your attention—The loss of morale at The Eastern Institute of Technology is palpable and if the power imbalance is not addressed a lot of good people will leave the profession." Minister that is because EIT who I speak on behalf of is one of the best-run institutions in New Zealand. Yes you have some problems to fix across the sector but you don't have many problems to fix at the Eastern Institute of Technology and all the metrics say it is doing a great job. So Minister I ask you to answer the questions I have given—particularly about the reserves and the land—because like a previous speaker has said if they are somehow nationalised even in the future I would regard that as theft from the people of Hawke's Bay and I would rally and fight against that at any time in the future. I am opposed to this bill but I would at least ask that some of my questions are answered."