Hughes Darren: General Debate 
Hughes Darren: General Debate 
[Volume:646;Page:15731] 
Hon DARREN HUGHES (Deputy Leader of the House) 
: 
 The only time the previous speaker has been a household name in New Zealand politics was when she was involved in a campaign of personal attack that saw her colleagues cringe with embarrassment and have to call her off. Since that time she has hardly been involved in political debate in our Parliament. I will let people decide for themselves about that member. 
I have been interested to listen to the National members in Parliament today. They have tried to tell us that they are concerned about the issues of ordinary people. I find that very very difficult to believe when I compare their voting record in this Parliament their public statements in the media plus all the things they say in private about ordinary people with what their record is. We heard from the deputy leader of the National Party about National’s concern about some of the things that we know families are finding difficult at the moment. We are listening to people in our constituencies and around our communities and we know that issues concerning petrol prices interest rates and dairy food items are really snapping at the family budget; we know that. I was listening to Mr English and I wanted to hear from him whether he had any concrete solutions as to how the New Zealand economy would somehow lower petrol prices on the international market. I was looking to Mr Heatley to see whether he had any ideas as to how the price of dairy food items could come down when there are 100 percent increases across the world economy. We heard nothing from them on these issues. I want to know from them how they would lower interest rates if they got the chance to be the Government. There is simply no concrete substance from these members on any of the things that we know are affecting working people. 
We also heard from the National Party this afternoon that despite the fact that its members complain about political correctness they lack a sense of humour. When somebody got up at a party conference and spent one small part of it making a bit of a joke about the fact that the National leader’s policy positions have come to the point of being so farcical it is beyond words they take great personal offence as we have heard. We are criticising John Key and we will continue to do so up until election day on the slipperiness of his policy positions. It is his policy positions that we seek to denigrate I say because there are so many of them. We disagree with them so strongly when he does this. He is not ready to be Prime Minister of this country. I say to National members that they should get used to the fact that John Key’s flip-flops and slipperiness on policy will be the subject of scrutiny from the Government because the people of this country deserve to know what they are voting for. No apology is made for that at all. 
I wondered though when I was listening to National speakers—who are really concerned about the issues confronting working families at the moment—how worse off those working families would be with all those international prices and pressures that are at them at the present time if the National Party was in power at the moment. A lot of the policies that Labour is putting forward as part of its plan for the future target those issues that are so important to working families. Doctors’ fees are a critical part of those policies. Doctors’ fees have fallen enormously under the Labour-led Government. People pay only $3 to pick up a prescription and the under-sixes go to the doctor for free which is a longstanding policy of New Zealand First. But if National was the Government of this country we know that Tony Ryall’s policy would be for people to pay more to go and see the doctor. Working for Families is a Labour policy to help families with tax credits and the 20 hours’ free early childhood education a week is saving families lots of money every week. The National Party opposed that policy and said it was terrible. At the weekend it became National Party policy. Then the Nats wonder why we make fun of them for the positions they take. 
We also introduced KiwiSaver paid parental leave the interest-free student loan policy and the 1000 extra front-line police in our communities which the previous speaker was talking about in her concerns about law and order. National opposed 1000 extra police going on to the streets and in fact when National were in Government it was going to cut the number by 450. There is the minimum wage which has increased nine times in 9 years and of course 4 weeks’ annual leave for ordinary people. 
However the doozy of them all goes to the asset sales policy at the weekend. That was extraordinary. The Labour-led Government would never support strategic asset sales. That is a clear black and white policy that we have. When it comes to the family silver National is prepared as Dr Cullen says not just to sell the family silver but to melt it down. So I ask National members this. At the moment there is an issue about railways. Do National members believe that if the Government buys railways they should be sold again? 
Chester Borrows 
: You sold them! 
Hon DARREN HUGHES 
: The member for Whanganui has a train track going through his electorate. What does he think about railways coming in? He is interjecting that we sold them but it was his party that sold the railways. I get sick and tired as a young man in New Zealand politics of realising that the National Party backbenchers are so bankrupt in terms of the history of their own party. How does one get a National Party selection if one does not know what one’s own party has done in Government? It is farcical. National sold the Paraparaumu Airport in my electorate—one of the worst asset sales ever to have occurred—and then there is the Auckland International Airport issue which Ministers ruled on last week. The flip-flopping that the National Party has done on that in terms of policy is absolutely unbelievable. Its policy previously on this matter was that mum and dad investors should be able to buy assets. That is what happened when it sold Contact Energy when it cut the pension when it increased student fees and when it cut taxes. So that just tells us what National does when it wants to cut taxes. One cannot trust National on asset sales—[ 
Interruption 
] 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: The member is interjecting in the second person and it will cease immediately.