10. Question No. 10—Broadcasting and MediaMELISSA LEE (National) to the Minister for Broadcasting and MediaQuestion No. 10—Broadcasting and Media10. MELISSA LEE (National) to the Minister for Broadcasting and Media: How much has he been advised the merger of TVNZ and Radio New Zealand will cost and how much ongoing taxpayer funding if any will the new public media entity he is creating receive?Hon KRIS FAAFOI (Minister for Broadcasting and Media): The Government recently announced that it will create a new single public media entity. This as I said in my response to question No. 7 is to ensure that our public media is fit for the future challenges of audience change and international content via online platforms. Cabinet's decision also included funding of $14.6 million to begin establishing the new entity. Any further costs are part of the Budget process. Further funding decisions for the new entity are also a subject of the Budget process so the member will just have to hold on to the remote for a little bit longer. But I can assure the member the new entity will see more opportunities for New Zealanders to access quality local content. That is in stark contrast to when her party was last in power when public media budgets were flatlined and two TVNZ channels were taken off air.Melissa Lee: What tangible benefits are the public going to be burdened with if the new public media entity is unable to retain the levels of commercial support upwards of $300 million a year from advertising revenue expected to be retained from TVNZ's existing customers?Hon KRIS FAAFOI: I think the question actually shows the National Party's kind of attitude towards public media where they think it's a burden on New Zealanders as opposed to this side of the House who sees the benefit of making sure that quality local content is available to New Zealand audiences that are changing the way they access that and are also finding their revenue—the overseas content being a large challenge to their long-term survival. I thought the Opposition would have realised that over the last five years.Melissa Lee: Obviously the Minister hasn't actually heard about the cost of living.DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order!Melissa Lee: Sorry I was thinking to myself apologies.DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yeah well I was about to give you an extra question but there you go.Melissa Lee: Thank you Mr Speaker. Will the Minister commit to shelving the establishment of a new public media entity and his flawed merger of RNZ and TVNZ if the cost of a merger will mean taxpayers spending upwards of $150 million or more every year in additional public media spending?Hon KRIS FAAFOI: Again it's the same old National Party trope when it comes to the public media: they don't like it so shut it down.Chris Bishop: Point of order. There was no attempt there to even address the question. That was just a broad political attack on a very reasonable question in relation to public media.Hon Grant Robertson: Speaking to the point of order if only what the shadow Leader of the House just said were true. The question contained an assertion a pejorative statement and used the word flawed" and so therefore I think it probably got as good as it offered. [Interruption]DEPUTY SPEAKER: No I don't need any further—what I am going to do I will go back to my original thought because I think the previous question wasn't answered or addressed properly and that was about the amount of advertising revenue. If you want to use an extra opportunity you can do that now.Melissa Lee: Point of order Mr Speaker. Did you want me to repeat that question—I have an extra?DEPUTY SPEAKER: It's up to you. If you wish to but you can use it to address it again or a new question. It's up to you.Melissa Lee: So I have one supplementary left so I get another one so I have two.DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes.Melissa Lee: Thank you Mr Speaker. Does the Minister agree with New Zealand Media and Entertainment CEO Michael Boggs who said—and I quote—"Additional government investment into this new entity can only add to the intense competition and cost pressures that are already exist across New Zealand commercial media"; if so will he end the merger?Hon KRIS FAAFOI: I have spoken to Mr Boggs about the Government's intent and assured him that one of the key factors in establishing it is to make sure that the state of the wider media sector is solid. Given the last couple of years and the challenges that the media environment has faced I think that would be a good thing. I am also a little bit confused as to why the National Party who are all about competition don't want to make sure that a public media entity can compete with the others.Melissa Lee: How much if any has he been advised it will cost to rebrand TVNZ and Radio New Zealand; and does he believe rebranding two of the most well-known media entities in the country would represent good value for taxpayer money?Hon KRIS FAAFOI: I think again the question shows a misunderstanding of the mission. We need to fundamentally make sure that our public media is fit for the future because of the challenges that audiences face and offshore platforms face. If this is just about a rebranding that would be shallow and that's the kind of policy that we've seen from the Opposition when it comes to public media.Melissa Lee: How can the people of New Zealand trust this new public media entity will offer something more and not be yet another cost blowout for taxpayers—the latest in a long line of wasteful spending by a Labour Government that has cost taxpayers billions of dollars?Hon KRIS FAAFOI: On this side of the House it is patently clear that we actually believe in the importance of public media. If I think what the member is saying is that the National Party policy at the next election is to gut public media I look forward to the debate."