Hutchison Paul: New Zealand Superannuation and Veterans’ Pensions (Entitlements of Spouses and Partners of People in Long-term Residential Care and Remedial Matters) Bill — Second Reading 
Hutchison Paul: New Zealand Superannuation and Veterans’ Pensions (Entitlements of Spouses and Partners of People in Long-term Residential Care and Remedial Matters) Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:631;Page:3026] 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON (National—Port Waikato) 
: 
 Thank you very much Mr Deputy Speaker for the opportunity to speak on the New Zealand Superannuation and Veterans’ Pensions (Entitlements of Spouses and Partners of People in Long-term Residential Care and Remedial Matters) Bill. 
Darren Hughes 
: The pleasure is all ours. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: I am delighted to hear from the junior Labour whip that he is delighted to hear me speak. 
I have just been with one of his colleagues having a briefing on disability and I must say it was absolutely opportune because there is a very large disabled sector in New Zealand. I think the sector commands a budget of about $2.7 billion yet from time to time we hear of anomalies. For example there are situations where for one reason or another a person who is very unwell or disabled and living in a residential care home is separated from his or her long-time husband or wife who is well and living in their own home and one of the couple is unable to access his or her fair pension. What is extraordinary about that situation is that the Labour Government brought in the New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income Act in 2001 and it has taken 5 years for this Labour Government to be prepared to fix that anomaly. 
I acknowledge firstly Barbara White who in 2002 with 1519 others brought to the attention of this House the anomalies that are contained in the legislation whereby some elderly people are not given a fair deal. The petition was presented in 2002. It was not until 2004 that finally the Labour Government was prepared to respond to it. I think that was almost certainly entirely because my colleague the Hon Nick Smith had raised the issue in Nelson. He had raised the issue because of a constituent of his Mr Page who was then aged 91 and whose wife aged 88 was in a long-term residential care home. Mr Page was told by Work and Income that unless he got a divorce from his wife of 70 years he would not be able to receive the single living alone allowance that was due to him. Nick Smith firstly wrote to the Minister but there was no response. Finally he had to go to the extreme lengths of bringing the case to the human rights commissioner— 
Lindsay Tisch 
: And rightly so. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: That is quite the case. It seems extraordinary that despite the petition in 2002 the Labour Government failed to respond and that despite the many letters to the Minister it failed to respond. It was not until Nick Smith brought the case of Mr Page to the human rights commissioner that suddenly and mysteriously this bill came on to the Order Paper. I think that absolutely reflects the fact that this Labour Government often has large areas of lacunae where it does not look at the simple and easily correctable matters that are so important to ordinary New Zealanders particularly veterans and old-age pensioners. I see Clayton Cosgrove who has just come into the Chamber— 
Darren Hughes 
: The Hon. Clayton Cosgrove. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: Well certainly if the member likes to add that title to his name he is rightfully able to call himself the Hon Clayton Cosgrove. We had a display of strutting and pirouetting from him a little while ago. He had forgotten that it was the Labour Government— 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: I can’t pirouette. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: He is suggesting that it was inappropriate to say he was pirouetting or doing pliés. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: Twinkletoes. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: No that is Rodney Hide. Clayton Cosgrove just sticks to strutting. 
The point I wanted to make was that he overlooked entirely that the Labour Government after a petition from Barbara White and 1500 others left this huge anomaly unaddressed for 4 long years. It was not until the Hon Nick Smith of National brought it to the attention of the human rights commissioner that finally and mysteriously the Labour Government was prepared to address it. 
I must say that the Labour Government prior to the election also said that it would review the entire aged-care sector. The Hon Pete Hodgson went around the country saying that Labour would sort it out once it got into power again. I can say that the aged-care sector continues to be in crisis. There is the situation where different district health boards even though they may get the money do not hand it on to the aged-care facilities. We have absolutely not heard a squeak from the Minister of Health as to how his review will address the considerable problems associated with the aged-care sector. 
I also want to acknowledge the various submitters on this bill which as Judy Turner pointed out included Volunteer Service Abroad. It said in its submission that it was very glad finally to see this anomaly being addressed. Judy Turner described the case of Myrtle Whitehead who had to come back at regular intervals to New Zealand from her excellent service abroad. Now if she wishes she is able to spend up to 2 years away doing very important volunteer work. Naturally once again I want to say that the volunteer sector is hugely important to New Zealand. Clayton Cosgrove and his friends in Labour would again be suppressing the spontaneous commitment and passion of many of these good people if they possibly could. However the National Party is absolutely behind the volunteer sector in New Zealand. The second submission came from the organisation known as the RIMPAC Association and I acknowledge Trevor Humphrey QSM a 70-year-old pensioner who with that group decided that this bill is a very important one. They are pleased that it is before the House. 
Mr Hughes is indicating that I ought to finish this speech. But I think it is very important also to hear what Age Concern had to say about this bill. It said: “We acknowledge the proposed amendment through this bill will improve the situation and make it fairer but the changes do not address the fundamental issue which is that many older people currently do not receive adequate financial assistance from the Government to ensure poverty does not predetermine their health and well-being.” 
I finish by saying that we have a Labour Government that came into office 9 years ago when the Australian average wage on which pensions are indexed was 25 percent higher than that here in New Zealand. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: It is not 9 years; it is 6 years. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: Well it seems like 9 years. After 6 long years of this Labour Government the average wage in Australia has now increased to become 33 percent higher than the average wage here in New Zealand. That is one of the fundamental reasons why our old people are not benefiting from an increase in the average wage and it is due to the utterly inappropriate policy mix that this Labour Government has installed in New Zealand and has imposed on New Zealand. It is absolutely contrary to the conventional economic wisdom around the world. I see Clayton Cosgrove sitting over there the strutter from down in the south; he does not acknowledge that the fundamental problem that New Zealand pensioners are facing is that we need economic growth in this country. What are the figures today? The Labour Government came in when economic growth was 4.6 percent; it is now 0 percent. That is the legacy of the Labour Government. 
Bill read a second time.