Prasad Rajen: Budget Debate 
Prasad Rajen: Budget Debate 
[Volume:654;Page:4174] 
Dr RAJEN PRASAD (Labour) 
: 
 I am pleased to take a call in this debate. It is my first speech on a Budget. When I read the Budget what do I look for? I think that a Budget reflects the very soul of a Government. It certainly reflects its perspective. It reflects its values. It certainly reflects a Government’s analysis of what is happening in our society. It reflects its understanding of our history. It represents the kinds of solutions that the Government has in mind and it reflects a number of things like that. So a Budget is an important thing. As I for the first time inquired into this Budget I was looking for those kinds of things. What did I find? I knew that I was looking for the Government’s direction and its blueprint and that I was looking for where the Government is heading and at its priorities. 
One of the comments that we have heard from members which emanates from this Budget—it is in the documents and has been used in the various debates—is the comment that the Government is eliminating low-quality spend. Government members have used those words time and time again. We would expect that the kinds of things that have been taken out must have been low-quality spend items. I am curious about what those low-quality spend items are. Who are the people behind them? What might be some of their experiences? When we do that kind of analysis and when we look at the details behind it what do we find in the Budget? Like it or not this is a Budget of failed promises. One simply has to admit that—not that Government members have been generous in doing so. It is a Budget with no real vision as to where the country might go to achieve the very goals that the Government at least espouses. But probably most seriously for me it is a lazy Budget and I will explain that as I go. That is quite serious. I find though that what Governments do at times like these—times of stress economic difficulties and demands on the nation State—is to use that as an excuse to push through many of their own biases under the guise of changed circumstances. Therefore it becomes an opportunity for the Government to push harder its ideological agenda that inevitably for this Government favours those in power and expects that by focusing attention in one particular area the benefit will trickle down to the rest. Well it will not. 
This is a Budget of failed promises. Everybody has spoken about the cancellation of the tax cuts. Not that we have seen from members opposite a genuine apology a genuine “sorry” to society and a genuine statement to say: “Yes we did get it wrong. We knew that circumstances were changing. We had all of the information.” But they got carried away and they won an election on that issue and now they should say they were wrong and they have to break that promise. Just let us acknowledge that. We have spoken enough about that. 
Many of the promises that were made affect the lives of young people. I will talk about two or three of them. During the election campaign there was a plaintive call from Te Puna Whaiora the children’s health camps. Here was a genuine request from one of the most effective organisations that I know of—I am reasonably well informed about it. It said: “We have a $5 million shortfall and we need to address that.” Let me tell members opposite a little bit about Te Puna Whaiora the children’s health camps. This to my way of thinking—and we have analysed the details—is one of the most avant-garde programmes in the country looking after children who are under stress for various reasons and their families. Te Puna Whaiora makes a real difference in the lives of children and families when they enrol in its services. This organisation has been around for a very long time and is often forgotten but the new leadership over the past 5 to 7 years has turned this organisation round to make it one of the leaders in this field. What do the results show? A decreased risk of poor physical and mental health of poor educational outcomes at school and of social exclusion. The organisation has decreased the risk of those things happening. It has decreased antisocial behaviour and criminal offending amongst those to whom it provides services. There is improvement in identity confidence positive self-image and self-control increased social awareness improved capacity for relationship building enhanced life skills increased individual and family protective factors and a reduction in violent tendencies and antisocial behaviour. That is the organisation we are talking about. There was a plaintive cry during the election campaign and one Ms Judith Collins said National would provide the $5 million when they were in Government. I read and read the Budget documents but the organisation’s budget is exactly the same for this coming financial year as it was for the last one. 
Behind that failed promise are thousands of people many poor families many communities working hard and many professionals who put their professional lives on the line day by day to provide for those children and those families. Failed promises in a situation like that affect people’s lives. An amount of $5 million will not make one iota of difference to the tunnel or road that the Minister of Transport is building. The sooner he plants fewer trees or whatever he has to do the sooner he can take $5 million out of that budget and put it into Te Puna Whaiora and organisations like that. That would be leadership. That would be saying: “I’m not lazy. I will go and find the money.” The Government in this Budget has missed those kinds of opportunities. I find that very sad because of the effect on the lives of the people behind those missed opportunities. It is no wonder people draw the conclusion that they cannot trust politicians and Governments when they make those kinds of promises during election campaigns. That indeed is destructive. 
The second matter I will raise which also affects the lives of many of our families time and time again is one that all of us spoke about a lot during the election campaign. The National Party now in Government campaigned hard on the issue of family violence. We have been worried about this for a long time. Since 2004 the Taskforce for Action on Violence within Families has done an enormous amount of work on trying to address the problem. The most powerful programme developed from 2004 some way through the life of the last Government was the Taskforce for Action on Violence within Families. It is New Zealand’s most powerful programme. It is well designed. It has been effective. It leads the It’s Not OK campaign at the present time. It is a multi-year programme. I know that it is struggling for a guarantee of resources. I have searched and searched the Budget documents but the resources are not there. I say that the funding guaranteed for that programme is not there. If members think that it is there let the next speaker get up and confirm that the funding is guaranteed and that the Taskforce for Action on Violence within Families will have the money it needs. It is much less than is required for building all of the other infrastructural developments that have been talked about. The Campaign for Action on Family Violence is important and ought to be supported. 
If we look at research into New Zealand we see that for the first time this country has the next generation of longitudinal studies called Growing Up in New Zealand. The present Minister for Social Development and Employment knows nothing about the purpose of longitudinal studies or what they might produce years down the track. We have to start the process now. But there is no guarantee of funding for that particular programme. If there is a guarantee then let the next speaker stand up and say so. The study is designed to examine 7200 families over the next 30 years producing the data we need for the next round of social policy. 
This Budget has no vision and failed promises. It is a lazy Budget. With just a little bit more attention the present Ministers could have ensured that the small amounts of money required would be made available. Not doing that means this is a lazy Budget. It is the people with the lives behind those failed promises who will experience their effects. Thank you.