Bennett Paula: General Debate 
Bennett Paula: General Debate 
[Volume:640;Page:10258] 
PAULA BENNETT (National) 
: 
 That Minister Ruth Dyson stands up and she has a genuinely perplexed look on her face as she wonders why the public of New Zealand do not believe in Labour’s 20 hours free policy. It is quite simple. You are out of touch; you are utterly and completely out of touch with the public of New Zealand. They are turning around and they are telling you that now. You are out of touch—[ 
Interruption 
] 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Ann Hartley) 
: No no. I let it go the first three or four times but the member knows that she cannot bring the Speaker into the debate. 
PAULA BENNETT 
: I am sorry Madam Assistant Speaker; I did not mean to do that. This Minister will simply hear those voices saying this Labour Government is out of touch. 
This Minister herself stood up yesterday in the House and questioned how I could question that there was a blowout of 288 extra staff in the Department of Labour in the last financial year that 118 temps were used in the department and that over $8 million was spent on consultants. This Labour Government has forgotten that that is taxpayers’ money. This Labour Government has forgotten that every time it overspends every time it does not look at every dollar it wastes within its departments and on itself it is costing New Zealanders. This is costing New Zealanders. This is costing taxpayers as their mortgage rates increase and it is costing them as they struggle day to day to actually pay those interest rates. 
I am pleased that that Minister and Steve Maharey stood up today. They kept talking about National and its policy on 20 hours’ free education and if I can be so bold I would like to paraphrase the Minister. The Minister is constantly telling my colleague Katherine Rich that when it comes to how many children are actually going to receive 20 hours’ free education and when it comes to how many centres will have it perhaps she should “just relax”. So when it comes to National’s policy I say to the Minister: “I know that you are looking forward to it. I know that you are anxious. I know that you are worried.” In fact I know that the Minister is optimistic for us. I know that the Minister is quite excited about what National might be doing in early childhood education. But believe it or not National will bring its policy out on its own agenda and not on the Labour Party’s. 
The National Party will take the time to talk to and listen to New Zealanders; not doing so is a fatal fatal mistake that the Labour Government has made. As this Government moves it is out of touch and does not recognise the daily struggles of New Zealanders as they face interest rates that are just increasing and increasing which means that week by week they have less money in their pockets. This Labour Government continues to spend recklessly and has made no acknowledgement of that actual week-by-week spending that is costing New Zealanders so much. The mistake that this Government makes daily is that it is treating people as if they are stupid. It is treating people as if they do not know what is best for their families and for themselves in their own lives and this Government will be punished for that. 
In the House today we touched briefly on beneficiaries and those who receive a Work and Income subsidy. That is perhaps an example of how out of touch this Government really is. Those very people whom this Government keeps on trying to tell us it is looking after the most are the very ones who yet again are going to miss out under this Government’s policy. If they opt in to 20 hours’—supposedly—free education they will be worse off; it will cost them more on a weekly basis because they will get no assistance when it comes to optional charges. They will get no assistance when it comes to those optional charges that are going to cost them extra and that they are currently not having to pay. So their Work and Income subsidy will not pay for their childcare costs. Parents have written to me and in one case someone has said it will cost an extra $30 a week for this “20 hours’ free”. Another is saying it will cost $15 a week thanks to this 20 hours’ supposedly free education.