5. Question No. 5—Regional Economic DevelopmentHon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister for Regional Economic DevelopmentQuestion No. 5—Regional Economic Development5. Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH (National) to the Minister for Regional Economic Development: Does he stand by all his statements and actions?Hon SHANE JONES (Minister for Regional Economic Development): Āe. Hon Paul Goldsmith: Which Filipino truck drivers was he referring to in his statement to Newstalk ZB last Thursday when he said that he talked to the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) chief executive and I wanted clarification as to why they have been offering immunity and amnesty for Filipino truck drivers to arguably spy on New Zealand - owned businesses."?Hon SHANE JONES: I'm glad the member has asked that question. The reported comments I made on the ZB show reflect the fact of what I am focused on—that there are foreign migrant Filipino workers right throughout the entire four winds of the transport industry and the notion that they should be encouraged to begin spying against New Zealand businesses is something that bothers me immensely. Hon Paul Goldsmith: Were the Filipino truck drivers working for Semenoff Logging?Hon SHANE JONES: The Filipino truck drivers no doubt may be employed by businesses that do include such logging contractor. The fact however is that Meredith Connell—where did they get their authority from to publicly state that it is the policy of the Crown prosecutor to encourage incentivise? What inducements were they proposing to offer these Filipino migrant workers to begin acting as pimps?SPEAKER: Well I don't know that that's quite the word. Take care going forward I think. It does have another meaning for most people. Hon Paul Goldsmith: From whom did he hear the allegation that Filipino truck drivers were being offered the opportunity to "spy" by the prosecutors in the Semenoff case?Hon SHANE JONES: To the best of my knowledge Mr Steve Haszard—by name and nature—said that on Radio New Zealand.Hon Paul Goldsmith: So how can he stand by his statement in the House yesterday that his conversation with the NZTA CEO was not about the decisions and methods of the prosecutor in the Semenoff Logging case?Hon SHANE JONES: I stand with a tremendous level of ease.Hon Paul Goldsmith: That's extraordinary. Does he—SPEAKER: Order! Order! Does the member have another supplementary?Hon Paul Goldsmith: Yes I do.SPEAKER: Well he very nearly lost it.Hon Paul Goldsmith: Well thank you very much Mr Speaker. When he quoted his grandmother the day before yesterday "Words once issued might be forgiven but are not forgotten." was he meaning that the Prime Minister might forgive him for talking to the CEO of NZTA about the regulatory case but the CEO would not forget his words?Hon SHANE JONES: From time to time I do fall back on my heritage and the culture that has made me the champion of the provinces that I am. That from time to time is a cautionary lesson to me that like the Book of Isaiah says neither the spoken word nor the baby given birth to goes back to where it came from.Hon Paul Goldsmith: So if he agrees that the Filipino truck drivers worked for Semenoff Logging his conversation with the NZTA CEO was about the decisions and the methods of the prosecutor in the Semenoff Logging case?Hon SHANE JONES: The trucking industry know they have a champion in my good self and they should suffer no doubt that when issues of regional significance occur in the industry they are able to bring those issues to my attention. I realise that the trucking and heavy freight industry have to balance their statutory requirements for safety but in the absence of a thriving trucking industry regional development may be undermined.Hon Paul Goldsmith: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. He did not answer that question at all.SPEAKER: Ask the question again.Hon Paul Goldsmith: So if he agrees that the Filipino truck drivers worked for Semenoff Logging his conversation with the NZTA CEO was about the decisions and the methods—SPEAKER: I've heard enough. He did answer the question."