Bennett PaulaGENERAL DEBATEHon PAULA BENNETT (Deputy Leader—National): I move That the House take note of miscellaneous business.Thank you Mr Speaker. Well I don't know about the rest of the House but I'm actually almost embarrassed for Clare Curran. I'm actually not kidding. I'm almost embarrassed for her because that was actually a generally shambolic display of how a Minister should actually be able to control herself and answer questions in this House. The fact that she stands there and repeatedly says that her Gmail was available for her staff is simply I find further from the truth. When she answered questions that said she had not had meetings and she has then had to come out to the Prime Minister and say that she did and that her staff knew nothing about it—did not have access to that information—one has to ask the question: why was she doing Government business through her Gmail instead of through the normal channels that would be expected?I didn't plan on standing up here and starting my general debate speech like this but actually the fact that that was so poorly answered and with such obvious discomfort one has to simply call it out for what it is. It is someone with something else to hide. I'm sorry but it is someone with something else to hide and it will be the Prime Minister who rues the day that she didn't stand up with the courage of the high standards that she should be setting for her Cabinet Ministers and actually cut her loose right then and there.We also notice the Prime Minister will not answer questions on Meka Whaitiri. We saw it yesterday. When was she advised that there was an issue when did Meka Whaitiri tell her that there was an issue has she asked her what actually happened and can she trust her at her word as to what happened? If she can't that woman should not be in her job.What the Prime Minister doesn't understand is that this is not an employment issue. This is an issue of a Prime Minister trusting someone enough to give them a warrant to hold one of the highest positions of trust in this country and any of the previous three Prime Ministers that I've known would have sat her down looked her in the eye and said Tell me exactly what happened." made a judgment as to whether or not that is a standard that she will accept in her Cabinet and made a call on it. To kick it to touch for two to three to four weeks and then hide behind employment issues because she hasn't got the courage to stand up as an actual boss—SPEAKER: Order! Order! I've let the member go once. She is going to withdraw and apologise for the words she used.Hon PAULA BENNETT: I withdraw and apologise. To stand up and not have the conviction of the high standards that she should have with her Ministers is absolutely disgraceful—to hide behind employment issues to hide behind yet another investigation or yet another one of these working groups that'll work out what actually happened. I challenge the Prime Minister to stand up and have standards for both Clare Curran and for Meka Whaitiri.The best one has to be Mike Williams going out there—the great bastion Mike Williams of the Labour Party—and saying "It's not Meka Whaitiri's fault; it's Ministerial Services' because Ministerial Services did not give training to Ministers in how to manage staff." So we want them to have what $280000 salaries we want them to be responsible for millions of dollars and potentially millions of people's lives as they go about their business but they need training to not physically assault staff—yeah? They need to actually be told it is not appropriate to speak to staff disrespectfully or to allegedly assault them because they haven't got the means to do that so they need training—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! There have been a series of interjections which I think are unhelpful from the Government benches. I think that sort of accusation against a former member who is not here to protect herself is something which is not appropriate.Hon PAULA BENNETT: Feeling a bit uncomfortable I think we can see quite clearly about the truth finally coming out and the gloves coming off and the big shade of fairy dust actually starting to settle and not look quite as glossy as it did a little while ago. And then of course we have that wonderful gift that keeps on giving which is a coalition Government where the left doesn't know what the centre what the middle might actually be doing. Where are we at by the way on refugee numbers? So are we at 1000—are we at 6000? I hear 6000 from the Green Party and then counted—SPEAKER: Order! I apologise for interrupting the member. We've had a clock problem. She has about 30 seconds to go.Hon PAULA BENNETT: There is a lot going on as far as we can see on exactly where they stand. Who's going to blink first? Come on let's put some money on it. I mean let's be honest: the Greens are out. No one's listening to them; they haven't got any real stance on this. So here we've got—[Interruption] Will Labour fold? Amy Adams calling "Labour will fold and it will be 1000." Someone said "Maybe 1250—they'll compromise." I reckon Winston as he constantly reminds them—[Time expired]SPEAKER: Order! The Hon Phil Twyford. [Applause] Order! No the member will resume his seat. When I call "Order" I expect order not ongoing defiance. If it happens again there'll be some serious consequences for the members involved."