Adams Paul: General Debates 
Adams Paul: General Debates 
[Volume:613;Page:9720] 
PAUL ADAMS (United Future) 
: 
 What we often hear in these debates is people pulling each other apart. That is not the way to build a robust and strong New Zealand. United Future under the excellent—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member is entitled to be heard in reasonable silence. 
PAUL ADAMS 
: I can speak up. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member will be seated. Whatever he might think I will not be allowing that sort of rabble to continue. Members will be leaving the Chamber. I want Mr Adams to be given a reasonable hearing. 
PAUL ADAMS 
: United Future under the excellent leadership of Peter Dunne is endeavouring to pull people together to build a better New Zealand. So if members have something constructive to say they should say it. But members should not just get up in this House at great expense to the hard-working New Zealand taxpayer to parrot on and to pull people down. Most New Zealanders are very sick of it and I do not blame them. This type of behaviour is totally unproductive and it is past time that we put a stop to it. To pull people together requires someone in the middle ground. That middle ground is called the centre and United Future is a true centralist party. Today I want to draw two groups together. The first group is the employers who are a very good and extremely hard-working group of people and in most part are people who care for New Zealand and also care for those whom they employ. Employers want to provide for their employees the best pay and working conditions that they can afford. Employees for many small-business owners are almost part of their family. 
The second group is the unions. Again this is a group of people who in most cases care for New Zealand and care for their members. [ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: There is too much noise. There will now be no more laughing and inane comments. The odd interjection is OK but that is it. The member has been unreasonably restricted from putting his point of view. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. With respect you say there should not be any more laughing. Can we laugh quietly? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No. Mr Peters knows that I enjoy a joke just as he does but I do not enjoy inane loud guffawing and that is what I am referring to. The member must be able to be heard. 
Ron Mark 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No I am not having any further points of order. Please be seated. Please carry on Mr Adams. 
Ron Mark 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: It had better be a proper point of order or else Mr Mark will be leaving the Chamber. What are you going to do? 
Ron Mark 
: I am asking you to consider this point. Whilst I understand your serious desire to have an orderly debate one of the issues we have discussed—in fact you yourself have made comment on this in the House—is that one of the things that incites what one could only describe as not discontent but as bringing discredit is people who stand and read a speech. There have been great orators in here like David Lange. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! 
Ron Mark 
: The member might as well table his speech and get out of here. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member will now leave the Chamber. I am not having him standing and shouting while I am on my feet. Please leave the Chamber. 
Ron Mark withdrew from the Chamber. 
PAUL ADAMS 
: My question today is: why do these two groups openly fight battles against each other when in most instances they are trying to achieve the same thing? United Future is going to make a huge impact on New Zealand when the New Zealand public really grasps what a centralist party is all about. Believe me they are beginning to understand. If unions genuinely want to see more take-home pay in workers’ pay packets which I believe they do and if employers genuinely want to see greater productivity then they both need to get together and lobby the Government to supply United Future’s call for tax cuts because this then becomes a win-win situation for them both. The only one that wins with an increase in the wage rate is the Government as it then collects more tax. But with employers and unions pulling together for tax cuts it becomes two the employer and the union against one the Government and the chance of success has to be far higher. The workers will be happy as they will have more disposable income and the employers will be happy as they will not have an increase in costs. Productivity could increase by taking on more staff thereby boosting the economy. The Government wins in the end as companies should become more profitable and therefore the tax take will still increase. 
 That is why we need less extremism and pulling other people down for political gain in Government. What we need more of is plain old common sense. It may not be sexy but by jingo there is an air about it that I believe every hard-working middle-of-the-road New Zealander would agree with. It is better to work together in order to achieve a common goal that works for both parties than to fight each and achieve little. Unions and business people should put their weight in behind United Future and support our consistent cry for tax cuts because we believe unions and business deserve better value for effort. Together we will build a better New Zealand.