Brownlee Gerry: General Debate 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Brownlee Gerry: General Debate 
[Sitting date: 23 May 2012. Volume:680;Page:2316. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. Tomorrow the Hon Bill English will deliver his fourth Budget confirming that the National Government has a strong economic plan in very difficult international circumstances. Every night when New Zealanders turn on their television sets each day when they pick up their newspapers they see what is happening in Europe they see what is happening in the United States they see the G8 countries coming together terribly worried about the situation economically throughout the world. They know that there is a problem out there. They know that they have to have a Government cognisant of that with a plan to insulate New Zealand as much as possible against its worst effects. The only people in the country who do not seem to know that are the people who sit on what the Prime Minister has described as “Planet Labour”—the people in total denial about the circumstances that exist within the world and the opportunities that we must avail ourselves of if we are to get through difficult times. 
We have on the other side of the House three books being put in front of us three prescriptions for the economy from the three Davids: one from David Parker one from David Cunliffe and one from David Shearer. There are three books but no single gospel about what we might follow as a prescription going forward. David Parker wants to agree with Bill English about what to do. David Cunliffe wants to be a right-wing politician but has decided his best chances are to head to the left. And David Shearer simply does not know what to do until Grant Robertson tells him which way he should make a choice. That is no basis for any party to attack a Budget the likes of which Bill English will deliver tomorrow in the best interests of New Zealand.  
So what do we hear from Labour? Firstly on the revenue side it is constantly: “Don’t do that don’t do that don’t do that.” Nothing that is being proposed by this Government to increase revenue in this country has been supported by Labour—not one thing in 3½ years. I challenge anyone on that side to stand up today and lift their finger and say one thing—one thing—it has supported that will increase revenue in this country. There is not any—not one. But instead we get this: “We want to spend more. We want to spend more on some dopey things like Radio New Zealand National. We want to spend more on KiwiRail. We want to spend more on the State services. We want to spend more on legal aid. We want to spend more on absolutely anything.” And any idea that we might put to try to get better value for services better value for the money that the taxpayer spends it is a no to that as well. 
The worst denial from Labour is the denial of the huge economic impact of one of the worst disasters in the world in 2010-11 the Christchurch earthquake. It gives me no pleasure to see Labour members constantly carping about the way things are being done down there and denying the fact that there are hard times difficult times and tough decisions that have to be made. If one were to extrapolate the earthquake event there would be effectively five earthquakes over 3 on the Richter scale every day since 4 September. That is what people are dealing with down there. What they need is some certainty about how recovery is going to be carried out. 
David Parker today stood up in the House and seemed to think that everything was OK because Canterbury has strong economic growth—stronger economic growth than the rest of the country. Well off the base that we are working off there that is great news but it is certainly not an indication that all is well down there for residents in that part of the world. I think that what Labour is doing is denying the huge commitment that everybody down there—in their workplace in their homes in their community groups—has made to recovery. It is good news that we are getting that economic growth—15000 homes down there have been repaired under the Earthquake Commission scheme so far $3.1 billion has been paid out in insurance payments by the Earthquake Commission 80 percent of unsafe buildings have been taken down and now there is a clear march towards a central business district plan that will see that part of the city redeveloped in a way that makes it a unique place in New Zealand if not in the South Pacific. 
Tomorrow the Government will reaffirm its commitments to Christchurch in the Budget and I welcome that. I say to Labour members that they should stop pointing out everything that is annoying to them as people on a planet where they have no idea of what is going on. They should get on the programme and start supporting a bigger recovery for Canterbury.