Lees-Galloway IainIAIN LEES-GALLOWAY (Labour—Palmerston North): Jonathan Coleman wanted to be the leader of the National Party yet he could not even fill a 10-minute speech telling us about what the Government's plans are for this year. But he got one thing right: it is good to be back. It is good to be on this side of the House taking the real issues to this Government—the real issues that this Government is failing to deal with. We have had a wonderful start to the year. We have had the traditional start to the year with visits to Rātana and visits to Waitangi and we have got something a bit different of course. We have got a by-election happening in Mt Albert and we have had one of those new political set pieces or something that has become a political set piece and that is the Big Gay Out. They are all opportunities for our new Prime Minister to present himself to the public to demonstrate that he has a plan and to demonstrate that he is prepared to front up to the difficult challenges that New Zealand faces.So what did he do at Waitangi? He ran away. He did not even show up. OK—he did not want to show up to the political bit. He was too scared to face up to the kaumātua at Te Tii Marae. Fine—but did he even show up for Waitangi Day itself to celebrate with people at the Treaty grounds? No. Run-away-Bill" ran away from our national day. What about the by-election—a fantastic opportunity for National to take its record to the people of Mt Albert and talk about what a good job it is doing for New Zealand. What did Bill English do? He ran away again. "Run-away Bill" cannot face up to the real challenges. What about Rātana? Well he did go to Rātana. He even spoke at Rātana. And what did he say when he got to Rātana and spoke to the people at Rātana? He said: "We have reached the limits of what Government can do. There is no more we can do for you."Well Bill English I think that is a sign that it is time for you to run away because if you are out of ideas if you are out of passion and if you are out of verve and out of the ability to face up to the challenges New Zealand has then it is time to run away and hand the Government benches over to a team that is actually ready to take those challenges on. And of course he went to the Big Gay Out that political set piece but could he bring himself to speak to the crowd? No. Why not? What was the purpose of showing up and not speaking to people? What was so difficult about that? This is our Prime Minister—and he cannot even get on a stage and speak to people who are for him where people have invited him along and want to hear what he has to say to their community? No he could not even do that. Compare that with Andrew Little. He went to Waitangi and went on to the marae at Te Tii Marae. He had some things to say to the kaumātua there and he did it kanohi ki te kanohi exactly the way that Māori expect it to be done—face to face. Not running away—face to face he delivered the message.We are in the battle for Mt Albert and I tell you we are going to win it as well. We showed up at Rātana and we listened to what they wanted from the Government and we told them what we can do if we work together if Labour goes into Government. And of course Andrew Little went to the Big Gay Out. He got up on stage and he told them what Labour's plans are for eradicating HIV in New Zealand. That is what a real leader does. He listens to people he faces up to the challenges and he tells people what his party plans to do in Government. That is a leader that is a statesman that is a Prime Minister—that is Andrew Little and it certainly is not Bill English.But with Bill English of course we have gone from the Key team—John Key would have gone to all of those events—to the B-team led by Bill English but also we have got the new Minister of Finance Steven Joyce. Steven Joyce loves to use taxpayers' money to line the pockets of wealthy individuals. He did it with Mediaworks. There was a nice sweetheart low-interest loan for Mediaworks which he used to be an owner of. South Canterbury Finance of course—a $1.6 billion bailout of South Canterbury Finance. With Skycity it did not cost us anything in taxpayers' money; it just cost us our democracy but of course it did result in a 30 percent increase in profit for Skycity. Rio Tinto—a $30 million subsidy.Then of course we had the terrible deal where that well-known New Zealander Peter Thiel was able to get access to the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund to invest in Xero. He was incentivised to invest in Xero and you might say: "Well what's wrong with that?". There was no need to give him an incentive to invest in Xero. He had already done it. He had used his own money to invest in Xero. He thought it was such a sure thing that he put his own money in without any support from the taxpayer but Steven Joyce said: "Peter my friend we'll help you out." and Peter Thiel made a cool $3 million or a $30 million—sorry I underestimate—profit off the back of the taxpayer. Steven Joyce the B-team's finance Minister loves to gamble with taxpayers' money. He should not be allowed anywhere near the Government books.So we have got the B-team but let us talk about the A-team—Andrew Little's team ready to take the Government benches in September and ready to deal with the real issues. Housing affordability and everybody knows there is a housing crisis in New Zealand—everybody that is except for the Government. Those members cannot bring themselves to say the word "crisis". Only Labour will take the crucial steps to deal with the housing crisis. Ban foreign speculators build more houses raise rental standards—that is a real plan. That is a comprehensive plan for housing. Only this side of the House has one. Not that side not that Government—only Labour can deal with that.Health—I heard how Jonathan Coleman thinks that the health system is going brilliantly. Well I want Jonathan Coleman to come to my electorate and talk to two men who live in my electorate Russell and Kurt. Russell and Kurt went to the hospital last year—they went to the emergency department because they could not afford to go to their GP—because Kurt had a mole that he was concerned might be cancerous. The emergency department staff were not really able to deal with him. They looked at it briefly and they said: "We don't think it's cancerous but we really think you need to go to your GP to get it sorted out." They could not afford to go to the GP because the cost of going to the doctor has got completely out of control under this Government and sadly that mole left unattended did become cancerous. And they have been through all manner of turmoil not just with the health system but also with the way they have been treated by Work and Income and also with the way they have been treated by Housing New Zealand.That is what is really happening in New Zealand. Kurt will die soon. Kurt will die soon and that did not need to happen and it could have been avoided if we had a health system that really delivered for ordinary New Zealanders. So Jonathan Coleman—I take issue with him coming in here and telling us that everything is fine with the health system in New Zealand. But it goes on. It is not just the health system. I have got young kids. Many of us in here have young kids. We want the best opportunities the best future for our children and the best way that the State that we as a community through the Government can give our kids the best opportunity for the future is through having a world-class education system that everybody can afford. The education that our kids get should not depend on how much we can afford in parental donations or on whether we can afford the school uniforms whether we can afford to send them on camp or whether we can afford the sports kit for our kids to be able to play in sports teams. But the truth is that what quality of education you get in New Zealand even in the State system is now becoming entirely dependent on how much you can afford as a parent. Class sizes are getting bigger. Our education results compared internationally are sliding year by year and—Hon Gerry Brownlee: No they're not.IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY: Well Mr Brownlee look at the facts. Sue Moroney: The PISAs—look at the PISA reports.IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY: Look at the facts. Read the Programme for International Student Assessment reports. Mr Brownlee you might believe in alternative facts but on this side of the House we like to look at evidence and the evidence tells us our education system is slipping. That Government is failing our children.We have got the B-team—Bill English's B-team—failing New Zealanders. It is time—and September this year will be the opportunity—for New Zealand to go to the A-team. Go to Andrew Little's team. Elect a leader who is a statesman. Elect a leader who will face up to the challenges who will rise to the challenges that New Zealand faces who will deal with the housing crisis who will sort out our health system who will sort out our education system and who will do a proper job of law and order and not some watered down version that Bill English gave in his sad state of the nation speech.It is time for a change. Change the Government and elect a team that will work in the interests of all New Zealanders."