Brash Don: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Brash Don: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:631;Page:2898] 
2.  
Dr DON BRASH (Leader of the Opposition) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she stand by her statement that “it is time to move to the next level in the economic transformation agenda.”; if so how is that agenda affected by last night’s Australian Budget? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) 
: 
 Yes. It is not. 
Dr Don Brash 
: Has the Prime Minister seen the package of measures announced in the Australian Budget including across-the-board tax cuts and tax threshold increases worth A$37 billion A$2.3 billion in road and rail funding and tax simplification for small businesses; and in light of those bold initiatives does she see any hope now of New Zealand closing the income gap with Australia and stemming the exodus of skilled New Zealanders across the Tasman? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Yes I have seen the reports. They show that most wage earners will get about $10 a week while the rich will get hundreds of dollars a week which I assume is why the Australian Budget appeals to the National Party. 
Jeanette Fitzsimons 
: Is the Prime Minister aware of Australian Green Senator Bob Brown’s criticisms of the Australian Budget that it is good for politicians but it is not good for the next generation and that the A$2.3 billion in road funding is all about the fuel-driven on-road transport system and not about fast efficient public transport in the big cities where it is needed; and can she reassure New Zealanders that her Budget will not make the same mistake as that? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I have seen many comments about the Australian Budget and of course the National Party loves it for the reasons I pointed out before. But many others like Senator Brown have raised a range of issues and I can assure the member that the Labour Government in New Zealand does see a very important role for public transport as part of the mix to address transport problems. 
Dr Don Brash 
: What is her reaction to comments made by the Australian Labor Party finance spokesman Wayne Swann backed up by his leader Kim Beazley that the tax cuts in the Australian Budget are “modest and overdue” and that they appear fair but do not go far enough in returning money to taxpayers’ pockets? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: It is no wonder the Australian Labor Party said they were modest when most wage earners are to get 10 bucks a week and the rich hundreds of dollars. That is why Dr Brash likes it. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Does the Government intend to raise the top tax rate to 45 percent which is what the top rate is in Australia after the last Budget as appears to be advocated by Dr Brash? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: The Government has not the slightest intention of bringing New Zealand’s tax rates into line with Australia’s. If that is what Dr Brash wants we look forward to his tax-raising policy being announced any day soon. 
Dr Don Brash 
: Did the Prime Minister see in the Australian Budget that the Australian economy is forecast to grow at between 3.25 and 3.5 percent a year over the next 4 years when our economy is currently not growing at all; and will she tell New Zealanders today whether her Government has any answers to the new challenges posed by last night’s growth-enhancing Australian Budget? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Yes I did see that forecast and I am all ears as to how the Leader of the Opposition suggests that we shift to New Zealand large deposits of iron ore and bauxite so we can ship them to China like the Australians do. 
Jeanette Fitzsimons 
: Will the next level in the economic transformation agenda include putting sustainability at the heart of Government policy rather than out on the fringes by rapidly increasing energy and water-use efficiency reducing reliance on fossil fuels and incentivising forest planting for erosion and flood control and improved water quality? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: All of those are important policy options and I want to acknowledge the work the member is doing particularly on energy efficiency and sustainability issues. 
Dr Don Brash 
: Is the Prime Minister aware that average after-tax incomes in Australia are already 33 percent above average after-tax incomes in New Zealand and that the gap will obviously get wider as Australia continues to grow more quickly than New Zealand and as Australian workers enjoy tax reductions; and will it take until Australian incomes are 50 percent above those in New Zealand before her Government does anything significant to narrow that gap? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I think we should credit the average Kiwi with some common sense. Kiwis will not be crossing the Tasman for $10 a week. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Does the Prime Minister recall a former Governor of the Reserve Bank supporting to the hilt the Rogernomics revolution in the late 1980s whereas Australia went down the path of incremental change; and is it not a bit rich that he now seeks to pick the eyes out of the results in Australia given that he was a big fan of what Rogernomics started in the first place? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I agree with the member that the Leader of the Opposition is highly selective in what he wants to borrow from Australia. If he wants to borrow the lot I look forward to his announcement of a rise in tax rates any day now. 
Dr Don Brash 
: Is the Prime Minister aware that New Zealanders to whom she credits a great deal of common sense left New Zealand at a rate of more than 600 per week over the last 12 months; and is it not true that as Australia continues to grow faster than New Zealand and as the Australian Government continues to cut taxes that exodus will only increase? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: New Zealanders to whom I credited a great deal of common sense actually did put a Labour-led Government back in office and not the profligate National Party which offered to throw away money and fuel inflation.