Ryall Tony: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Ryall Tony: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:623;Page:18368] 
2.  
Hon TONY RYALL (National—Bay Of Plenty) 
 to the  
Minister of Police 
: Does he accept that the 111 system’s ability to handle a rural emergency has created a “culture of mistrust” among rural communities as stated by Federated Farmers of New Zealand; if not why not? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS (Minister of Police) 
: 
 No. Nevertheless the police acknowledge that with regard to rural community policing perceptions are as important as facts and figures. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: What responsibility does this Minister take for the average response time to priority 111 emergency calls in rural areas increasing by 40 percent in the last year? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: The police advise me that the police standard for non-urban priority one emergency events is a target of 30 minutes. The average response time in 2003-04 was 24 minutes. There was an overall success rate of 84 percent. 
Russell Fairbrother 
: What other initiatives are the police taking to communicate with the rural community? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I am advised that the Northland district commander Superintendent Viv Rickard has been appointed to liaise with Federated Farmers and other rural groups. Federated Farmers vice-president Charlie Pederson said that he welcomed police efforts to improve the emergency response in rural areas. Of course the Minister for Rural Affairs has been talking to me about that. 
Stephen Franks 
: Why on earth would any frightened family half an hour from the speediest police help trust a police force that cold-bloodedly lies to them about when help may arrive and is instructed to stop them from getting their neighbours to help when the Minister of Police endorses that conduct and calls it a textbook response? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I do not accept that the police are liars. I think that member should start honouring the police and supporting them for the very good job they are doing overall in New Zealand rather than dumping—and he can point his finger all he likes. 
Marc Alexander 
: Does the Minister accept that the police are so under-resourced and so mismanaged from the very top that the 111 system can offer no comfort to those who use its services whilst under threat whether or not they take up the Commissioner of Police’s suggestion of screaming to get attention; if not why not? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: No. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: What would this Minister say about this Government’s priorities to the Bentley family of Te Puke or the Asher family of Auckland whose 111 emergency calls were handled so badly given that this Minister believes they are more worried about speeding than that? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: I want to say that the Commissioner of Police has a review being done over the 111 system. It is being done by an independent international panel. Of course we are interested in providing better service not only to people in rural communities but to those across New Zealand in urban communities as well. I think the police are doing well. Crime is down the road toll is going down too and resolution rates are going up. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: As this Parliament has no confidence in this Minister and front-line police have no confidence in him— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Could the member start his question with a question word. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I refer to the Standing Orders in relation to the kinds of assertions that can be made as part of a question. To start off with two statements both of which are at the very least highly debatable is out of order. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Yes it is. I would ask the member to start by asking a question. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: Why as most members of Parliament have no confidence in this Minister— 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. No such motion has ever been moved and we are certainly not going to have one. The member has no capacity to make an assertion of that sort as part of a question. I refer him to the Standing Orders on questions. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I would like the member to rephrase the question so that it can come within the Standing Orders. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: Why are there substantial questions in Parliament about this Minister’s competence that indicate front-line police are losing confidence in this Minister and why with more bad news stories of his misadministration of the police every day should the public of New Zealand have any confidence that they can be assured of security in their homes and towns? 
Hon GEORGE HAWKINS 
: The public can be assured that this Government is funding the police very very well—not cutting funding back as National did when it was in office—and it is increasing police numbers not cutting them by 540 which National did when it was last in Government. 
Gerry Brownlee 
: I seek leave to move a no-confidence motion in the Minister of Police. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to do that. Is there any objection? There is. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I seek leave to move a no-confidence motion in the Leader of the Opposition. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: We have had one all now. 
John Carter 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You just—correctly—ruled that questions should be quite concise and specific and I agree with you. But I also draw your attention to Standing Order 370 “Replies” which states they should also be concise and confined. Listening carefully to that Minister’s answer I heard a lot of rhetoric there which was absolutely unnecessary and not needed. If we in the Opposition are expected to put concise questions then we should also expect the replies to be the same. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Of course that is right. If I wanted that to happen and if I just wanted simple questions with simple answers it would make my job about a thousand times easier than it is. However this is Parliament and this is a democracy. I do not mind a little bit of rhetoric in the question but if it comes in the question—which it often does—I expect the answer will develop it just a little too. As far as I am concerned I think that the way we are handling questions in this House at the present time is by and large satisfactory. I get very very few letters from members of Parliament about it. 
Ron Mark 
: I seek the leave of the House to table an email that shows quite clearly that in order to respond to a priority one call where a child was being abducted three general duties units had to be diverted from priority two jobs they were on because the traffic highway patrol would not respond. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I just seek an assurance from the member that he has not blanked out any information on that matter as he did on the last matters he tabled things on. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Oh no. The member asked for leave. Leave was granted.