Hide Rodney: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members Question No. 7 to Minister  
Hide Rodney: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members Question No. 7 to Minister  
[Volume:620;Page:15378] 
10.  
RODNEY HIDE (Leader—ACT) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she stand by her statement of 4 February 2001 that Sovereign Yachts would “strengthen further New Zealand’s high value marine industries.” and how many of the 350 jobs estimated within 2 years have materialised? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) 
: 
 Any boat construction by Sovereign Yachts helps strengthen the industry by increasing its output. I am advised that a boat has already been constructed and launched. Another is due for launch shortly. I have no advice on the numbers of people presently employed. 
Rodney Hide 
: Does the Prime Minister have any regrets since declaring that triumph of the “jobs machine” a “dream come true” especially given that an Equifax Inc. credit report on Sovereign Yachts (Canada) shows the company to be in the highest risk category with 14 collection claims totalling $200000; 17 legal suits totalling $1.8 million; and eight judgments totalling $800000; if she does not why does she not have any regrets? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Quotations around “jobs machines” and “dreams coming true” are not from me. That is the language of the Minister for Economic Development. I suggest that if the member has information that is relevant to the Minister’s portfolio he should set down a question for him. 
Katherine Rich 
: Does the Prime Minister stand by her economic policy of picking winners when her triumph has proved such a loser generating no jobs and no development; if so why? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: My advice is that the member’s statement is not true. As I said in the original answer I am told that one boat has already been constructed and launched and another is due for launch shortly. 
Rodney Hide 
: Is the Prime Minister aware that the Canada Revenue Agency is chasing Sovereign Yachts for unpaid taxes; and can she assure the House that the 10 acres of prime Auckland real estate that her “jobs machine” delivered for a song to that outfit will not be used to pay off those debts in Canada? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I do not think that question falls within any ministerial portfolio. There was a disposal of land by the Defence Force to previous owners who on-sold it to Sovereign Yachts. It then becomes a commercial matter. 
Rodney Hide 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I seriously ask you to reflect on today’s question time all the way through including through to the Prime Minister’s answers because there has been no information supplied in answers to any of the questions put down today. The Prime Minister was happy to turn up to Television One and TV3 and talk about the triumph of the “jobs machine”. She is on record as saying that it is a “dream come true”. She put in her press statement that there will be 350 jobs. That is what she promised New Zealand. I come to this House and ask on notice how many of those 350 jobs have materialised and she just says “Oh— 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: What’s the unemployment rate? 
Rodney Hide 
: I thank Mr Horomia— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Please be seated. The New Zealand Prime Minister has no responsibility for the actions of Canada Revenue Agency and that is not a point of order. 
Rodney Hide 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member had better have a point of order. 
Rodney Hide 
: Yes I do indeed. What is the point of putting a question down on notice that asks how many of the estimated jobs in her press release—[ 
Interruption 
]—and members can call out all they like— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: If I hear who it was that member will leave the Chamber. 
Rodney Hide 
: They put out a press release in the Prime Minister’s name that it will be 350 jobs. She gets the question at 11 o’clock and then turns up and says: “Oh I don’t really know.” Well I can tell her how many it is. How come she cannot find out? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The Prime Minister said she had no information on that and that is her answer. 
Rodney Hide 
: I seek leave to table the press statement of the Prime Minister Helen Clark of 4 February 2001. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that statement. Is there any objection? There is. 
Rodney Hide 
: I seek leave to table an Equifax report of last week showing that Sovereign Yachts (Canada) has 14 collection claims 17 legal suits and eight judgments against it. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You said in reply to Mr Hide that the Prime Minister said she had no information on the number of jobs. That is precisely what she was asked 4 hours ago: how many jobs were there? All she had to do was phone the business so she would at least be able to report—even if it was inaccurate—that 10 20 or 150 jobs had been created. Allowing her to get away with saying that she had no information after 4 hours’ notice is a mockery of any parliamentary question time. That was not good enough. If we allow Ministers and the Prime Minister in particular to get away with that why on earth do we bother to have question time in this House? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Speaking to the point of order I point out that obviously the first thing that staff do is go to the relevant Minister’s office and ask for the information. The Ministry of Economic Development contacted Mr Lloyd. He would not give the information but did say—and I have advice—that he invited Mr Hide to go and visit and see for himself. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. There you have it—the Prime Minister had the answer but she denied it to the House. Her answer was: “We made inquiries. The person who had the authority Mr Lloyd would not answer.” Why were we not told that instead of the namby-pamby measly waste of time which we call Western democracy. 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Speaking to the point of order I was asked how many of those jobs that were estimated have materialised and I said I had no advice on the number presently employed which was absolutely correct. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: That is absolutely correct also. 
Rodney Hide 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I am just following up on what the Prime Minister said. Can we take it from her that there are not 350 jobs? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No no no. The member is trying to ask an extra supplementary question when he does not have one left. 
Rodney Hide 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I will tell you why we do not have supplementary questions—we burn them up trying to get answers to the primary questions. We cannot get an answer to the primary question so we ask a supplementary question; we still cannot get an answer so we raise a point of order. We are on the fourth point of order before we get a decent answer. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Just about everybody on the Opposition benches was out of order while that point of order was being made. Mr Hide is always the first to call attention to other people interjecting. 
Rodney Hide 
: I will repeat it if you like Mr Speaker. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No. I heard the point of order. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. That was precisely the point that I was about to make. We have had a series of points of order continuously and continually litigating the decisions that you have given. Again the Opposition is behaving like a bunch of bad boys who do not like whatever the referee says. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: As far as I am concerned I have heard very few valid points of order today.