1. Question No. 1—FinanceCATHERINE WEDD (National—Tukituki) to the Minister of FinanceORAL QUESTIONSQUESTIONS TO MINISTERSQuestion No. 1—FinanceRAWIRI WAITITI (Co-Leader—Te Pāti Māori ): Point of order Mr Speaker. Our primary question relates to the Government's responsibility to upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It was intended for the Prime Minister as he's responsible for the Government which is accountable to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It has been transferred to Tama Potaka as the Minister for Māori Crown Relations. Our question makes no reference to Māori Crown relations—negotiations nor settlements. Te Tiriti o Waitangi is the constitutional framework in which the Government exists; therefore we are requesting that our primary question be retransferred to the Prime Minister as it was originally submitted.SPEAKER: Well the issue of the transference or otherwise of questions—in fact the issue of who answers the question in oral question time is entirely a matter for the Government. Standing Orders makes that very clear. In this case the Government have determined that the best person to answer it is the Hon Tama Potaka.CATHERINE WEDD (National—Tukituki): Thank you Mr Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Finance. What recent reports has she seen on the economy?Rawiri Waititi: Point of order Mr Speaker. Just in your ruling—I'm not going to question your ruling—SPEAKER: No no can I just be clear with you—Rawiri Waititi: —but I do take it to the fact that Tama Potaka is not here to answer that question. So who best after Tama Potaka on Treaty issues is the best to answer it on behalf of the Government?SPEAKER: Well two things—two things. First it was not a ruling; it was an upholding of Standing Orders. The second upholding of Standing Orders was it is not appropriate for members to refer to the absence of other members. They may be detained for some short period of time. This is a question that's later in the day. It still remains the responsibility of the Government to determine who answers any question that is asked on any day—that's Standing Orders. The member is welcome to come to the Standing Orders Committee and begin a change to that if he thinks the Parliament is prepared to go along with it.1. CATHERINE WEDD (National—Tukituki) to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has she seen on the state of the economy?Hon NICOLA WILLIS (Minister of Finance): Last Wednesday Statistics New Zealand released the latest inflation figures. Members will know that New Zealand has been through a cost of living crisis in recent years with inflation being over 7 percent for most of 2022 when I recall the member was the Prime Minister. The latest figures show annual Consumers Price Index inflation falling from 4 percent in the March quarter to 3.3 percent in the June quarter and quarterly inflation easing from 0.6 percent to 0.4 percent. At 3.3 percent annual inflation is the lowest it has been for three years far lower than under the previous Government.Catherine Wedd: How did inflation compare to the market's expectations?Hon NICOLA WILLIS: Well inflation came in lower than most forecasters expected. It is firmly on a downward trajectory although it is still just outside the target band of 1 to 3 percent. A lot of the unexpected weakness in inflation came from tradable goods and services with prices actually falling in the quarter. Non-tradable inflation is proving stickier however with some large increases in items such as insurance and local body rates. Catherine Wedd: Where will inflation and interest rates go from here?Hon NICOLA WILLIS: Well the market's expectation and the Reserve Bank's expectation is that inflation will fall within the 1 to 3 percent target range this calendar year. When the Reserve Bank considers inflation pressure has declined sufficiently it will begin to cut interest rates. The timing of that is a matter for the bank.Rt Hon Chris Hipkins: Could have been there already.Hon NICOLA WILLIS: However market pricing and most analysts expect cuts to start happening in this calendar year. The member opposite is interjecting to say that inflation could have come lower quicker—he's 100 percent correct. If he hadn't done so much more wasteful spending we wouldn't be here now. Catherine Wedd: And why—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Just wait. OK.Catherine Wedd: Thank you Mr Speaker. Why is it so important to have lower interest rates?Hon NICOLA WILLIS: Current high interest rates are necessary to get rid of inflation but are a handbrake on the economy. Together with tax relief—which is coming next week—lower inflation and lower interest rates will give New Zealanders the real cost of living relief they deserve. When interest rates fall the economy will start recovering which means higher incomes and more jobs.