Scott AlastairALASTAIR SCOTT (National—Wairarapa): Thank you Mr Chair. I'm going to focus on new section 65D in a minute but before I do that I'd like to ask the Minister Phil Twyford a question. He talked about the Auckland regional tax being for the region—and I appreciate that—so again I ask him: why does he allow the inclusion of other regions to follow? That's point one. He's partially addressed it but I don't think he has. The second point is that there will be not one penny spent of this tax on the light rail programme apparently—not one penny spent on the light rail. Where does it say that in the bill? We know that the Government has talked about road taxes being able to be used for rail projects but where in this bill does it explicitly say that this regional tax is not able to be spent on the light rail? I was quite confused because the Minister did say that this regional fuel tax will be contributing to an upgrade of the Waiheke Island ferry terminal. So if the regional fuel tax can be used to upgrade the Waiheke Island ferry terminal—and as I say the Waiheke Island ferry terminal is not excluded—what's to stop the money from being spent on the light rail project when as the Minister said earlier it could and will be spent to help fund the Waiheke Island terminal upgrade?The second point is that he said that it will be about a $5 increase on the average family. So given that this is going to be approximately a 10 percent increase in fuel—about 20 percent including the other taxes—that means that the average family is spending about 50 bucks a week on fuel. Well I don't know about you but I just find that an absolutely ridiculous assertion. Fifty bucks hardly gets you from A to B let alone to and from schools in the regions to and from the workplace to and from rugby practice when you've got to do 30 40 kilometres each way to do your supermarkets in regional New Zealand.Now I do acknowledge that there is an exemption in the select committee report. It does say that there is an ability for part of the region to be exempt from the regional fuel tax but I tell you what I couldn't find it anywhere. How is that exemption going to take place? How will the lines be drawn? Will it be on a district council basis? Will it be town by town? Will it be a certain number of kilometres away from a regional boundary? It's very unclear to me how the Wairarapa for example will be exempt from the regional fuel tax. Could it be all of the Wairarapa or just part of the Wairarapa given the distances and the regressive nature that the Minister points out and acknowledges? So there are a couple of questions for the Minister—and then why regions and not districts? Why not allow the district councils—because I've got five district councils in my electorate—to collect the tax? Has there been any thought put into that? But coming to new section 65D in clause 5 the regional tax has to be one or more capital projects—and it doesn't say roading projects"; it just says "capital projects" hence the Waiheke Island terminal example—that "would benefit the region [but] cannot reasonably be fully funded from sources other than a regional … tax". Well come on we can find borrowing—we can fund these things without any of these projects. We can go to anywhere and not require a regional fuel tax. The savings from Auckland Council are one source of funds that would disallow the need for a regional fuel tax. You can find efficiencies you can go to other sources you can borrow you can go to general taxation or you can go to general road-user charges so I'm not sure how the bar has been set that they cannot reasonably be fully funded from sources other than a regional fuel tax. I'm interested to hear from the Minister how that bar is set how that standard is set to fulfil the funding for the capital projects."