Williamson Maurice: General Debate 
Williamson Maurice: General Debate 
[Volume:655;Page:4829] 
Hon MAURICE WILLIAMSON (Minister for Building and Construction) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. Today I want to take my time in this House to try to get a message to Labour members. The message is not going to be too career enhancing for me as a member on this side of the House because it will get me into some trouble. The message is “Please listen to what your leader has been saying because in many cases he has been right and you should support what he has been saying.” I know Darren Hughes is looking aghast that a National Minister should be telling Labour members to listen to what the Hon Phil Goff has been saying but I am going to take members for a little jaunt through some of what Phil Goff has said along the way— 
Hon Darren Hughes 
: Because you were there! 
Hon MAURICE WILLIAMSON 
: Yes I was there I say to Darren Hughes and I thoroughly agree with these statements. My plea to the Labour members of this House is to start taking their leader seriously and to start listening to what he says because Phil Goff is right in so many respects. I will cover three portfolios. Actually Phil Goff is arriving; he will be able to listen to some of these statements because they are wonderful. 
I want to cover three headings: housing education and unemployment and job creation. The Hon Phil Heatley our fantastic Minister of Housing recently announced a policy in housing. National is going to sell some State houses to the tenants. The people who have been living in State houses for some time will be allowed to buy them. With the money that is freed up we can buy more appropriate houses. In some cases there may be an elderly person living in a four-bedroom home which is grossly inappropriate for that person’s circumstances and the demand is for one or two-bedroom homes elsewhere so we will let that person buy the house that he or she has lived in for a long time and does not want to give up. 
I tell members that Moana Mackey the Labour spokesperson on housing immediately attacked National for that. She said it was an outrageous policy. Well we would have to say that is the Opposition doing its job. But honestly Moana Mackey must start listening to her leader; she must start listening to some of the things that Phil Goff has said along the way. Some of the announcements from Phil Goff are just amazing. Let me give members an example from the Hon Phil Goff in October 1986. He said: “The sale of those houses and the purchase of replacement properties will assist the Housing Corporation to house more applicants off the waiting list in appropriate accommodation.” He was absolutely right. Well done I say to Phil Goff. He should go to the head of the class. He deserves the leadership of the Labour Party. It is a shame that its members do not support what he had to say. 
But wait just like at the Warehouse there is more. He said: “Lifting the ban is designed to give longstanding tenants whose houses have become their homes the opportunity to buy those properties.” Again well done I say to him. It is exactly what National’s policy is and it is exactly what Moana Mackey is attacking even though Phil Goff thought it was a great idea. He goes on—as I said there is more: “Because they are unlikely to vacate their homes the sale of those houses and the purchase of replacement properties will assist the Housing Corporation to house more applicants off the waiting list.” I think that is just spectacular. I thank Phil Goff for the endorsement and for supporting National’s policy. We totally agree with him and we totally disagree with Moana Mackey who has been rabbiting on about how the sale of State housing stock is not the answer it will not work and it potentially erodes the stock of those unsold. 
We now come to the next item I want to cover—education—and I know that in my last 40 seconds I will not be able to cover much. But again Phil Goff was the Minister and I have quotes from him from many times in the past. In the  
Hansard 
 of October 1989 Phil Goff said that he recognised the need for the country to live within its means. He talked about the need to maintain and improve national standards in education. Again I ask Labour members to please get to Trevor Mallard and ask him to start listening to some of the things that the Hon Phil Goff has said along the way. He was absolutely right.