Cosgrove Clayton: General Debates 
Cosgrove Clayton: General Debates 
[Volume:610;Page:7666] 
CLAYTON COSGROVE (NZ Labour—Waimakariri) 
: 
 Before I get to the main part of my speech I acknowledge the comments of Mr Mark in respect of the tragedy in Indonesia but I remind him of one small fact which is that while he was in a coalition Government with the National Party it enacted the most savage and the deepest cut in the history of this nation in respect of the defence budget. Since we came in we have increased the defence budget by hundreds of millions of dollars. I acknowledge the intent of his speech and I respect his views but I say to Simon Power the defence spokesperson that it was his Government that cut the defence vote in a huge way. 
I want to reflect for a moment on Mr Sowry’s speech. Mr Sowry talked about a mess. It just shows since Mr Sowry was bowled demolished and wiped out from his seat in Otaki just how out of touch that deputy leader is and how lazy he and his party are. I am told that it is said of Roger Sowry that he is so lazy that he does not walk in his sleep but that he hitch-hikes. That is how lazy he is. That party on the opposite side of the House is coming apart at the seams. 
Stephen Franks 
: Oh! 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Do we have a doctor in the House? I think somebody in the ACT party is in pain. The National Party is coming apart at the seams. They are a lazy pack of whingers and they have no base or constituency. 
Members should look at the fiasco over Maurice Williamson. There are as colleagues have said two standards of citizenship in the National Party. Maurice Williamson tells the truth. For instance he stated in the  
Sunday Star-Times 
 on 13 July: “‘I haven’t criticised Bill ... I’ve talked about the fact that we need to deliver a performance that the public sees as credible.” That is a fair comment yet he gets bowled for telling the truth. 
And now we have Mr McCully whom I would have thought if I were a member of the National Party had committed the ultimate sin by suggesting that the best Opposition performer was not his leader his deputy leader or anybody on that side but Richard Prebble and that the best “demolition expert”—or however the  
New Zealand Herald  
put it—was not one of the National Party members but old Rodney Hide. That shows the division within that particular party. 
Hon John Tamihere 
: Pathetic! 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: They are pathetic as my colleague said. They are totally pathetic. 
Then we have the great idea of a grand coalition between ACT and National but the geniuses over there have not realised that if one takes the total centre-right vote and does a deal between ACT and National it does not get any bigger. If the ACT vote is combined with the National vote the total centre-right vote does not get any bigger. We have the “brains trust” opposite. 
Then we have the debacle with Nick Smith. I am told that Nick Smith will go down in history as the most sued member of Parliament. 
Simon Power 
: Careful. 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: The member should wait for this. I am told that Nick Smith is currently defending five to six lawsuits against him. I am told that by a member of his own party. He is the most sued member of Parliament in history. 
Hon John Tamihere 
: Big mouth. 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: He has a big mouth but he cannot back it up as my colleague Mr Tamihere says. Then we come to the seabed and foreshore issue. Here was a chance for the National Party to show some leadership and some consistency. 
Dr Wayne Mapp 
: And that’s the point. We have done precisely that. 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: The member for Bayswater Mr Mapp who has a flash pad an estate—he is a member of the landed gentry—on the foreshore of Auckland has a vested interest so I invite him to keep very very quiet. Members should look at the inconsistency in the National Party. Wayne Mapp says one thing and Bill English says another. There was a chance in that whole debate to show some leadership for Kiwis. This is a tough and complex issue. It is one that is very worrying for New Zealanders but it will be sorted and it will be sorted only by this Government. It will not be sorted by race-based remarks and policies or by members of this Parliament acting in a gross and irresponsible way by scratching at every ugly scab that may exist in a very very small proportion of red-necked New Zealanders. 
Those members of Parliament opposite do this place no service at all. They provide nothing by being in this place when they act in the manner that they do. What New Zealanders want is some leadership. They want this issue sorted. It will take time and negotiation but as John Tamihere has said every New Zealander knows that under this Government all New Zealanders will be able to take their kids to the beach. 
The debate having concluded the motion lapsed.