Key John: General Debates 
Key John: General Debates 
[Volume:619;Page:15256] 
JOHN KEY (National—Helensville) 
: 
 That was all but a valedictory speech from the bitter member for Invercargill. I do not blame him for being bitter because his own career has basically been truncated. He has had to toss in the towel because he knows he is unelectable in Invercargill. That is what happens when one’s community is destroyed after Trevor Mallard is let loose on one’s electorate. Mr Peck has to toss in the towel and find another job because he has nowhere else to go. That is what happens when Trevor Mallard is in one’s electorate. 
Yesterday that self-proclaimed Olympian Trevor Mallard came to the House to answer a question. He was back from his Evers-Swindell photo shoot. He came to the House to answer a very simple and straightforward question: “What was the cumulative nominal increase in taxes since 1999?”. I sat with bated breath waiting for the answer. What did I get? I saw Trevor Mallard that self-proclaimed Olympian hide under the cloak of cleverness. He whispered: “$12.793 billion” to the House because he was ashamed to give the real answer which he knew of course was $33.992 billion. Extra taxes worth $33.992 billion have been robbed from the dinner tables seats and pockets of all New Zealanders. He was ashamed to come to the House to answer that question so he hid under the cloak of cleverness. That came from a man who has truncated and destroyed the career of Mark Peck. Boy there will be interesting leaving drinks when Mark Peck leaves this House in about 12 months’ time! 
The Hon Dr Michael Cullen is the “bag man”. His bag is overflowing with the efforts of hard-working of New Zealanders. There are $34 billion worth of extra taxes in his bag. What does he do with that bag? 
Opposition Member 
: Where has it all gone? 
JOHN KEY 
: Well he transfers his booty of extra taxes from the seventh floor to his friendly sidekick on the sixth floor “Big Spendin’ Steve”. “Big Spendin’ Steve” gets the bag with the $34 billion worth of extra taxes and what does he decide to do with it? 
Phil Heatley 
: What does he spend it on? 
JOHN KEY 
: He wastes it. That is what he decides to do. Under his nose Steve Maharey has a raft of rorts that he executes with glee. Shall I tell members about the raft of rorts? 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. The suggestion that a member is rorting is something that is quite unparliamentary and should be withdrawn. 
Madam DEPUTY SPEAKER 
: I ask the member whether that is what he said. 
JOHN KEY 
: Not at all. What spending programmes from the sixth floor have we seen? There have been hip hop tours slush funds in the order of tens of millions of dollars for polytechnics and courses for singing humming and listening to the radio not to mention— 
Simon Power 
: “Sing along with Steve”. 
JOHN KEY 
: “Sing along with Steve” is very popular. It is like sucking saltwater through one’s nose while playing twilight golf. [ 
Interruption 
] Yes—craft trips to Melbourne. It reads like a list of things people could do when they have nothing else to do and it is all funded out of the $34 billion worth of extra taxes that have come from the hard-working people of New Zealand. Kiwis have had enough. They have said that they want all that flaky spending from Steve Maharey to end. They would like a refund of their hard-earned taxes. In case members have missed the facts—because that self-proclaimed Olympian forgot to tell them when he came to the House yesterday—here they are. Fact: $34 billion in additional taxes has been taken from the hard-working individuals and businesses of New Zealand since 1999. Fact: individuals are paying 35 percent more than when the Government came into office in 1999. Fact: 3 million taxpayers in this country are all paying an additional $2800 each per year. Could the Government not find better things to do with it than fund the flaky things that have been coming out of Steve Maharey’s office on the sixth floor? Fact: companies in New Zealand are paying 72 percent more than they were paying in 1999 but the Government does not seem to think that is a big problem. It is not concerned about companies doing that. As Dr Don Brash quite rightly pointed out today this Government is forcing companies in New Zealand into a most uncompetitive position. In 1999 when the Government came into office the company tax rate in New Zealand was 33 percent. Today it stands at 33 percent. So in one respect we can say there has been no change. 
Madam DEPUTY SPEAKER 
: I call Ron Mark.