Dalziel Lianne: General Debate 
Dalziel Lianne: General Debate 
[Volume:628;Page:625] 
Hon LIANNE DALZIEL (Minister of Commerce) 
: 
 I have just three words for that member: Casino Control Authority. I have a question about the difference between the Prime Minister and the caretaker Leader of the Opposition. The Prime Minister is supported by her caucus and the caretaker Leader of the Opposition is not—and the numbers are being done as we speak. The Prime Minister is universally admired from one end of this country to the other. Admittedly it is a begrudging admiration from people who come from the other side of the political spectrum than Labour’s but they admire her strength and ability. The caretaker Leader of the Opposition is regarded as an enormous disappointment particularly by National Party supporters. He was funded to the nth degree to win the election not to lose it like he did. 
Phil Goff has already talked about the National Party’s spend which was illegal. I want to talk about the record spend on non-attributable advertising this election—from the billboards that included what could be described as an incitement to racial division in this country through to the Exclusive Brethren pamphlets. Who paid for the billboards? Will anyone from the National Party stand up and say who paid for the billboards? Who was the American who was touting for money for the National Party over that whole period of time? I understand that those billboards cost over half a million dollars for the time that they were up and we know that the money was collected overseas. How much? Who from? The return of expenses will not show that because it was not attributable spending. 
Then we had the Exclusive Brethren pamphlets. Dr Brash knew that the Exclusive Brethren were going to publish and distribute the pamphlets but when asked whether he knew who was behind those attack pamphlets he said that no he did not have a clue who was behind them. [ 
Interruption 
] It is a bit rich for anyone on the Opposition side of the House to comment about me when National’s own leader lied to the public of New Zealand. I understand that over half a million dollars was paid for the pamphlets which were distributed free into every letterbox in the country. Again we will never know the cost because it is not attributable. So over $1000000 was spent on an election campaign and the people of New Zealand will never know where that money came from. The maximum that any party can spend on attributable spending is $1000000 so National was ahead before it even got started. 
The bottom line is though that several of the National back-benchers who are here today—particularly some of the better-known ones—were told that this election was a “cincher”. They were told that they would be sitting on the Government side of the House after the election and that is why they are sitting there like stunned mullets on the Opposition side of the House day after day. They cannot believe they lost the election; they were promised they would win it. They cannot believe how hopeless the leadership of the party is and how unable it is to perform in Parliament. Don Brash cannot perform in Parliament. His absences are legendary. 
On a day when apparently the Opposition was all charged up and ready to take on the Government on so many issues its members failed to fire. The Christchurch  
Press  
stated this morning: “Opposition squanders embarrassment of riches”. Although I would dispute the underlying assumption I say that the promised fireworks were a fizzer. When those members cannot win at question time we get ridiculous points of order instead. It is absolutely pathetic. 
There are several stages in the grieving process and the stage of disbelief is where the National members are up to in that process at the moment. Anger is coming and there is only one person they will direct the anger to: Don Brash. That is why he is the caretaker Leader of the Opposition. 
The Rt Hon Helen Clark has done what no National Party supporter ever thought would be possible. She has put together a third-term Labour-led Government because she understands MMP because she is a great Prime Minister and because she believes in building a strong and an inclusive society—she does not believe in driving wedges between people. The National Party has done exactly what it thought would never be possible: Don Brash has led his party to an historic third-term loss. The National Party has been punished for its divisive campaign but it is clear that it has learnt nothing.