7. Question No. 7—FinanceHon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister of FinanceQuestion No. 7—Finance7. Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by all of his policies and statements?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): Yes in the context they were made and given. In particular I stand by my statement yesterday about the situation this Government inherited where We had hospitals that had been run down $2 billion not put into the health system that needed to be kids being taught in school halls and libraries instead of classrooms not enough teachers and not enough police officers." and that we're getting on with fixing that.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Does he stand by his statement to Radio New Zealand on 19 November last year regarding Ihumātao that the Government was continuing efforts to find a solution that respected all parties including the Crown mana whenua and Fletcher's?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Absolutely.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Does he understand the frustration of Fletcher's chief executive Ross Taylor when he said today "The reality is … we are … legal owners of a piece of land which is fully consented that is empathetic to iwi considerations … and which we are entitled to develop."?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I think if the member refers to Mr Taylor's full statement he will talk about the fact that he believes that a solution is close to hand.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Who will pay for the seven months' delay that Fletcher's has suffered?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Any issues around what will happen with payments are to come in the future and I'm not in a position to comment on them today.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Is it not the case that more houses have been stopped from being built at Ihumātao than have been built by his Government's $2 billion KiwiBuild programme?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: On this side of the House we're extremely proud of the housebuilding that's gone on under this Government. The fact that more than 3000 houses have been built and the fact that we've actually got public housing finally going forward after nine years of it going backwards and State houses being sold off means we can be very proud of the houses we have built.Hon Paul Goldsmith: So is it the case that more houses have been stopped from being built at Ihumātao than have been built by his Government's $2 billion KiwiBuild programme?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: No.Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern: Can the Minister confirm that had the last Government built houses at the rate of this Government we would not have the waiting lists that we currently have?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I absolutely can confirm that for the Prime Minister. The fact that—Hon Gerry Brownlee: No you can't.Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Well no we can Mr Brownlee because the rate of houses that we're building now is something that Government never even got near. At the same time in the middle of a housing crisis the response of that Government was to sell State houses. It is a disgraceful legacy Mr Brownlee.Hon Stuart Nash: Has the Minister seen reports that in the electorate of Napier for example the previous Government pulled down over 140 State housing units and built absolutely none?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: In fact I have. The member for Napier has been a consistent advocate for housing in his area and finally under this Government he is starting to see some progress on that."