8. Question No. 8—Prime MinisterDAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 8—Prime Minister8. DAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all of his Government's statements and policies?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Prime Minister): Yes particularly our actions to pass the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Act reform the emissions trading scheme and the actions we've undertaken to ensure we are on track to achieve New Zealand's first emissions budget. We've achieved record levels of renewable electricity generation and the lowest level of coal imports since 2013. We're investing in 81 significant industrial decarbonisation projects that are set for completion by December 2027 with two significant partnerships that reduce 1.6 million tonnes of emissions. We've increased the number of electric vehicles entering the New Zealand fleet from just 2 percent in June 2017 to 37 percent in June 2023. We've co-funded more than 1300 electric-vehicle chargers across New Zealand. We've supported 110000 Kiwi households to be healthier and to have cheaper power bills through Warmer Kiwi Homes. We've banned new coal boilers and removed 50 coal boilers from 46 schools. We've provided discounted public transport that has benefited thousands of New Zealanders. Climate pollution fell in 2020 2021 and 2022 with the December 2022 quarter delivering the lowest figure in at least nine years. There is more to do and some big decisions to be made in the next term but on our side of the House we're committed to making progress to tackling climate change rather than taking the giant leap backwards the member is proposing.David Seymour: What does the Prime Minister say to the people of Auckland Coromandel Tairāwhiti and Hawke's Bay when they realise this Government has failed to pass the climate adaptation Act and of the $4.5 billion in the Climate Emergency Response Fund all of it went on trying to reduce emissions but not one cent went on adapting people and preparing them for the impacts of climate change?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: I say we've just given those communities $1.7 billion of support.David Seymour: Does the Prime Minister miss the point that that occurred after the event because he spent not one cent from the $4.5 billion Climate Emergency Response Fund on adaptation and preparing people for the impacts of climate change and the finance Minister who's whispering in his ear admitted that in select committee at the time?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: The member seems to be arguing we should simply give up on mitigating climate change and just focus on adaptation. In fact we need to do both of those things. I am not willing to give up and say that these extreme weather events can continue to get worse and we should just try and adapt to that. Actually we need to support communities to adapt and we are but we also need to continue our focus on mitigation.David Seymour: Is he aware that the International Monetary Fund regional economic outlooks say New Zealand is projected to be the second slowest growing economy in the entire world in 2024 beating only Equatorial Guinea and who except his own Government is responsible for New Zealand's economic performance compared with the rest of the world after six years in power?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: Well I'm happy to quote directly from the IMF report who said that New Zealand had experienced cumulative growth of 10.2 percent since the second quarter of 2020 compared to 8.8 percent for Australia 7.6 percent for the US 7.1 percent for the euro area and 6.1 percent for the UK. I think our economic track record's pretty good.David Seymour: If the Government's done such a good job why is he now reduced to avoiding the fact that we will be the second worst in the world ahead of only Equatorial Guinea next year after six years of his Government in power?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: As I mentioned before—I'll run through the numbers again for the member in case he missed them. Since the global pandemic began in the second quarter of 2022—sorry—2020 New Zealand's had cumulative economic growth of 10.2 percent compared to Australia at 8.8 percent 7.6 percent for the US 7.1 percent for the euro area and 6.1 percent for the UK. The member can look at any given point in time and each of those economies will be at a different point in the economic cycle. But cumulatively across time New Zealand's economy is performing very well. It's a testament to the hard work of New Zealanders and the hard work of our businesses who we are backing to get through tough economic times.David Seymour: Is he aware that the Ministry of Justice reports that victimisations per 100 adults have risen 29 percent from 60 victimisations per 100 adults to 76 victimisations per 100 adults since 2018 and will he accept his Government has failed to keep the public safe over the past six years?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: In answer to the last part of the question no I will not accept that. Our Government has been working very hard to ensure that our police have the resources that they need to fight crime; 1800 more police on the beat compared to a reduction in real terms of the number of police on the beat when National and ACT were last in Government imposing austerity on New Zealand in the way that they were. We have been focused on making sure that we're making it easier to report crime—for example by putting new systems in place so that our retailers can better report retail crime. We've been focused on tackling gang offending. We have also been unrelentingly focused on making sure that firearms aren't getting into the hands of potential offenders. And I note the member's policy announced over the weekend—it shouldn't be about putting it on their website and not talking about it—that they want to reintroduce semi-automatic weapons that were banned in New Zealand after the March 15 terror attacks.David Seymour: Is the Prime Minister aware that term 1 regular school attendance has fallen from 73 percent four years ago to 60 percent this year while chronic absence from school has doubled from 4 percent to 8 percent over the same period—what responsibility will he accept as a Prime Minister and for five years Minister of Education for the fact fewer kids are going to school and learning less under his Government?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: I absolutely accept the fact that in term 1 of this year we still had a mandatory seven-day isolation period for COVID-19 and that will be reflected in the school attendance figures.