Woodhouse MichaelHon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National): Madam Deputy Speaker that was a speech that would give warmth to every single Labour backbencher in the House today. I think I can see Willow-Jean Prime's eyes lighting up at that because that was from the Minister who talks about doing nothing and yet as Associate Minister of Health has done nothing. When I asked her in written questions how many briefings how many aides-mémoire and how many papers she has received or taken in the seven months to the end of June the answer was zero.Hon Members: How many?Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: Zero. That's what a do-nothing Minister looks like and that will give encouragement to every single backbencher over there. There's a reshuffle coming and I look forward to seeing who is on that list. But I want to also continue the theme of industrial relations because we did see a big gathering in the grounds of Parliament today and I must say that Dr David Clark must be back at his office thinking thank goodness for Chris Hipkins. Because he was the one that was under pressure from a nurses strike that seemed never ending and then along came Mr Hipkins and gave us the teachers. But remember it's only the primary teachers. We haven't got to the early childhood educators yet. We certainly haven't got to the New Zealand Post Primary Teachers Association so there's plenty more where that came from.Actually David Clark should not be complacent either because he's the one as Minister of Health and with the Minister of Finance who's written the cheque that the Government cannot cash. They have promised and they're not going to be able to deliver. The nurses: very grumpy with their 12 to 15 percent increase. The midwives: very grumpy with their 9 percent bump. In fact there was a review of the section 88 notices and the report has not been released. It's being hidden somewhere—we don't know why—but the midwives continue to leave in droves. We haven't got to the doctors. We haven't got to the junior doctors. We haven't got to the allied health professionals. Watch this space. Mr Hipkins and Dr Clark are going to be providing cover for each other for months to come and that's before we get to the Public Service Association. We have the IRD workers striking already. We have a number of others. This is the winter of industrial discontent that seems to have no end.I give credit to Cameron Bagrie albeit that he came to his revelation 11 months too late because last week he said not only was the $11.7 billion fiscal hole real; it was probably bigger. Now he should have said that in October/September last year when he joined a number of economists that got a bit confused about a simple message. That was this: in order for the Labour Party to commit to their promises they would need to spend $11.7 billion more than they said they would and he was right. He finally got to that and I can tell you that the cheque is going to be written.But despite that the Minister of Finance gloats about the Budget that was passed in the third reading speech yesterday. In that he said that he wanted to particularly note the major investments being made in the provinces and regions of New Zealand that will make the biggest difference of any single investment. Well I didn't hear them saying that in Lumsden this week and I didn't hear them saying that in Te Ānau or Whitianga or Rotorua or Roxburgh where health services and social services are being cut by this high talking well-meaning Government. Yet they cannot keep a small maternity hospital open in that very beautiful part of the country in northern Southland.Not only that at the same time that they closed down a primary maternity hospital in Lumsden they take away the air ambulance that would take those expectant mums the 150-odd kilometres from Te Ānau to the nearest birthing unit—and the ambulance is being taken away. What kind of heartless Government is this who blamed us for overseeing the most benign industrial relations climate in a generation where public sector and private sector pay went up by twice the rate of inflation and industrial disputes were at record lows? They had the audacity to come into this House and say that that strike action and that march on Parliament today is somehow the National Party's fault. Give me a break. They need to own their issues. They need to take responsibility for the terrible industrial relations climate for the incredibly unhappy regions around Southland on the Coromandel and in Rotorua for the promises that they broke and the complete derogation of those obligations for health in those regions and explain to them why they talk big and did nothing.