Goldsmith Paul: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Goldsmith Paul: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 20 June 2012. Volume:681;Page:3125. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
2. 
PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) 
 to the  
Minister of Finance 
: How is the Government’s economic programme helping to build sustainable growth and higher incomes? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance) 
: 
 The Government is taking a number of measures to support sustainable growth. In particular it is continuing with a very large-scale infrastructure investment programme despite the fact that money is tight because we believe that is important for our future growth prospects. Another example is the extensive work that the Government is doing in tidying up the skills and training system to make it more effective and actually train people in real skills needed for the economy because we believe that is a substantial investment in our future growth prospects. 
Paul Goldsmith 
: What measures is the Government taking to support jobs and grow the economy? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: The important thing about jobs is that they happen only when businesses have the confidence to invest a bit more money to employ another person and to pay them a better wage. The Government has worked on reducing the tax on work at the same time as raising taxes on property speculation. We have also worked hard to reduce the kinds of regulations that prevent businesses having the confidence to get started and to grow. In particular the 90-day trial period has been a very successful innovation—opposed by the Opposition but supported by everyone else in New Zealand—in enabling people on the margins of the workforce to get their foot in the door and actually get a job. 
Paul Goldsmith 
: How did the Budget last month contribute to the Government’s long-term programme to build a more competitive economy? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: The Budget contributed by allocating significant resources to just those areas I have already mentioned. For instance there is a continued commitment to the infrastructure process including the $4.5 billion turn-round of KiwiRail and the $1.5 billion roll-out of broadband. In the Budget we also committed significant further investment to science and innovation because we believe that is a long-term investment that will help to grow our economy. 
Hon David Parker 
: Has the Minister seen a commentary from the ANZ today that says the economy is “moving into the danger zone” and what is it about reduced growth projections ballooning debt and a current account deficit approaching 5 percent of GDP at a time of an economic slow-down that encourages him to come into this House and claim his policies are working? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: The Government has to take a view of the economy that enables it to support the economy in the shorter term. The deficit that the member referred to is in fact the Government borrowing money to support New Zealand households through difficult times. As we have said in this House many times although we are borrowing now we plan to close that gap up and reach surplus in 2 or 3 years’ time. At the same time we are acting—as I just outlined in the last set of questions—on long-term undertakings to lift the growth potential of this economy. The member like others may find that the news of the day makes him a bit more pessimistic. However we have fundamental confidence in the longer term in New Zealand’s capacity to grow. 
Hon David Parker 
: If he will not accept the ANZ’s advice that we are moving into the danger zone does he accept the BNZ’s summation of today’s announcement that the surging deficit threatens New Zealand’s interests with the current account deficit rising to a 3-year high much worse to come and they say it threatens New Zealand’s sovereign rating? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: I do not think the BNZ is nearly as alarmed as it was at the 8 percent current account deficit—almost double today’s current account deficit—that we inherited from the Labour Government and it incurred that in 10 of the best years the global economy has ever seen. 
Hon David Parker 
: Is the Minister so out of touch that even after this appalling news and those dire predictions from our two largest banks he really thinks he is still sticking with a plan that is working? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: Well look banks and officials are going to make forecasts and some of them are going to be pessimistic and some of them are going to be optimistic. We live in very uncertain times. If the member looks at the detail of the current account figures it shows him things that are not unexpected. For instance the high dollar means that there are more New Zealanders going overseas because it is cheaper and fewer tourists coming here because it is more expensive and that our exporters have struggled a bit with an 80c-plus dollar. We are taking the kinds of actions that will take some pressure off that exchange rate in the long run and will help correct those imbalances. But if the member has any bright ideas that can have immediate impacts then we would be more than happy to look at them. 
Hon David Parker 
: I seek leave to table the ANZ research report today entitled “Moving into the danger zone”. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is objection.