Finlayson ChristopherHon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (National): Nothing is more depressing and humbling than having to follow Tracey Martin in the general debate because there is a person whose greatest claim to fame was that she was a member of the board of trustees of Mahurangi College before she came into Parliament. As we all know she is utterly incompetent as a Minister.I was trying to work out the other day the dynamics of this coalition Government and then I worked out the answer because it reminds me very much of that excellent play by Christopher Marlowe Doctor Faustus. Doctor Faustus is the person who sold his soul to Lucifer in exchange for a few baubles but at the end of the day Lucifer demands his price. He wants the soul of Doctor Faustus. You Mr Speaker from your outstanding academic days at Onslow College would remember Faustus' last speech: Ah Faustus now thou hast but one bare hour to live then thou must be damned perpetually. O lente lente currite noctis equi!" because Satan has come to claim his soul.That is the dynamic in this coalition Government. [Interruption] Well I don't what they learnt at Petone Tech but that's what Greg O'Connor and I did at St Patricks College. I don't know that Greg O'Connor actually went to class very much because he was too busy down the front grounds smoking. But I digress.This is what happened in the negotiation with New Zealand First. They sold their soul to "Old Nick" to Lucifer whom we shall describe as the Rt Hon Winston Peters—the vanquished member of Parliament for Tauranga and Hunua and Northland—so that they could have the baubles of office. When they got there they said to themselves "Great we're here. What are we going to do?" And they had no idea because they weren't prepared for Government but slowly but surely "Old Nick" has called in the favours. [Interruption] I'm not talking about Dr Smith; he's "Young Nick". So we have the refugee debate. We have the debate about whether or not a building should be built behind Parliament. Everyone was in favour of it. Mr Peters was opposed to it but what Winston Peters says goes. That's the dynamic of this Government and it's a tragedy. I said to Russell Marshall the other day that the Labour Party has so much to be proud of in its history. Probably the best economic Government other than John Key's Government was the tremendous Government that you Mr Speaker were a member of between 1984 and 1987 which did some wonderful work to make the New Zealand economy actually grow and the Labour Party can be very proud of it.But what they have today is a party that has sold its soul to New Zealand First so they have to sit around the same table as the Tracey Martins of this world—she is demonstrably not up to holding the portfolios that she holds—who make a mountain out of a molehill when it comes to inquiries and so on. And Fletcher Tabuteau is poncing around the world on behalf of Mr Peters attending inaugurations—for example of the President of Chile. These are people who in most circumstances wouldn't even qualify as chairs of the rabbit board at home but instead they're holding ministerial portfolios—simply not up to it.That is why I feel so sorry for the Andrew Littles of this world—because people who can make a contribution are shackled with these dreadful people and indeed we have people like Clare Curran and others who have got into ministerial office who simply haven't got a clue about what they are to do—and the Meka Whaitiris of this world. It's a tragedy for the Labour Party. It's a tragedy for New Zealand. This is a Government that took office when it wasn't ready for Government—people who weren't ready for the great responsibilities that ministerial office demands of them. They haven't got a clue about what they want to achieve in terms of policies. They're reliant on old codgers like Michael Cullen to come up with ideas in the tax area and so on. All these reviews—it's hopeless."