Nash Stuart: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeNash Stuart: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 13 August 2015. Volume:707;Page:5800. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.STUART NASH (Labour—Napier) to the Minister for Land Information: Has she received information from the Overseas Investment Office which confirms the statement of the Minister of Economic Development that “We have not been as effective as other countries in ensuring that overseas investment into New Zealand has provided the additional benefits”?Hon LOUISE UPSTON (Minister for Land Information): I agree with the Minister for Economic Development’s statement that there has been lower overseas investment in comparable countries and there will be many things that we can learn from how those countries are attracting overseas investment. However any application for sensitive land that comes through the Overseas Investment Office must provide examples of substantial and identifiable benefits to New Zealand. The Overseas Investment Act strikes an important balance between ensuring sensitive New Zealand assets are adequately protected while facilitating foreign investment that provides benefits to New Zealand. We cannot be Fortress New Zealand if we want an economy that is internationally competitive and better placed to deliver higher incomes and better services to New Zealand.Stuart Nash: Can she confirm that since the start of 2012 to the end of 2014 the Overseas Investment Office has approved 296 consents for the sale of sensitive land to foreign investors and turned down exactly zero?Hon LOUISE UPSTON: I am not going to confirm the exact statistics that the member has discerned but what I would say is to explain that there is a process for the receipt of Overseas Investment Office applications. Not all of them are then put forward for assessment. So there is a pre-assessment process that ensures only high-quality applications are considered. Once accepted for assessment applications go through a rigorous assessment process as the Overseas Investment Office assesses the applications against the criteria. In recent times three have been declined.Stuart Nash: I would like to table a document that shows since the beginning—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I know what it will show. We just need the source of the document.Stuart Nash: The Parliamentary Library.Mr SPEAKER: No. That is available to all members.Stuart Nash: How many jobs have been created by the 716 successful foreign investors in sensitive New Zealand land who promised to create jobs as part of their consent application or does the Overseas Investment Office not keep statistics on this?Hon LOUISE UPSTON: Each individual application is considered according to the criteria that are set out in the Overseas Investment Act. Actually this side of the House strengthened those requirements in 2010 with the ministerial directive. In addition to that in 2012 the High Court counterfactual test ensured that New Zealand receives benefits.Stuart Nash: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You probably know what it is about. It is a very clear question. How many jobs—Mr SPEAKER: And I think the way forward is for the question to be repeated for the benefit of the Minister.Stuart Nash: Sure I am happy to do that. How many jobs have been created by the 716 successful foreign investors in sensitive New Zealand land who promised to create jobs as part of their consent application or does the Overseas Investment Office not keep statistics on this?Hon LOUISE UPSTON: Although the Overseas Investment Office does not aggregate data on the lists of benefits successful applications will have for New Zealand every single application has to show measurable and identifiable benefits to New Zealand. This includes the number of jobs.Stuart Nash: What is the value of increased export receipts promised by the 358 successful overseas investors in sensitive New Zealand land who promised to increase export receipts as part of their consent application or does the Overseas Investment Office not keep statistics on this?Hon LOUISE UPSTON: I am more than happy to take the House’s time going through some of the answers that have already been provided to that member through written questions. As I said before the Overseas Investment Office does not aggregate data. There is an assessment on every individual application to make sure that any approvals provide benefits whether that is exports or jobs to New Zealand.Stuart Nash: In light of those answers why does this Government not think that it is important or seem to care about the value or lack of it created by the sale of New Zealand farmland to foreign investors?Hon LOUISE UPSTON: I did make it very clear in my opening answer to the first question that there is a high test and we have also said that in the ministerial directive letter we put tougher measures in place. There is an important balance here that this Government is very conscious about. Foreign investment is vital to New Zealand as Minister Joyce pointed out in his earlier answer today but equally in terms of any approvals of any sensitive assets including land New Zealanders want us to make sure that there are substantial and identifiable benefits for them.