Martin Tracey: Advanced Technology Institute Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Martin Tracey: Advanced Technology Institute Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 13 September 2012. Volume:683;Page:5236. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
TRACEY MARTIN (NZ First) 
: 
 Kia ora Mr Speaker. I rise to dash the House’s hopes of a complete cross-party accord on this bill. New Zealand First will be opposing it. 
Before I launch into the reasons why New Zealand First will be opposing the Advanced Technology Institute Bill first of all I want to acknowledge my colleague from the Green Party David Clendon and the mention of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research and the fantastic scientists—including John Dugdale my father-in-law and one of New Zealand’s top entomologists—who at that time with that restructure all found themselves applying to do their science for the benefit of this country. One of the reasons why Australia did much better than New Zealand and still does so today is that it not only retained its scientists in the 1990s but also picked up most of ours. Let us just have a think about that while we make decisions about science shall we? There is nothing new under the sun. 
I also want to acknowledge the late Sir Paul Callaghan and particularly the Sir Paul Callaghan Science Academy which is currently holding a science accord in the Matakana region for primary school teachers to reignite the focus of science inside our primary schools. It is a brilliant facility and we certainly appreciate that legacy from that scientist.  
The first line of the explanatory note of this bill says: “This Bill establishes”—establishes—“a new statutory Crown entity”. I heard just today that the board has already established it. The establishment board is already here so what is this? Is this just what some kind of fait accompli some sort of “Let’s just go through the process but we’ve already ticked that box. Thanks very much for your time.”? I find that amazing. I find it disappointing that here in a New Zealand Parliament we have to pass stuff after it has already been assumed it is going to happen. So I guess that is— 
Mike Sabin 
: “Pass stuff”? 
TRACEY MARTIN 
: What? Is that how you work things in the corridors the member for Northland? Is that how this works? You work things in the corridors you get it under way and then you bring it to the House and see whether you can bring it past the people? 
The intent of this bill is admirable. The intent of the bill is admirable. It is to support manufacturing in the service sector businesses to improve competitiveness and growth in science and technology based on innovation and commercialisation to increase the number of businesses undertaking research and development. Brilliant—nobody can disagree with that. But is it necessary to create another entity to do it? Is it necessary to spend $166 million of what we consistently hear is a very scarce resource—taxpayers’ dollars—to achieve these outcomes? 
Over the next 4 years $90 million of operational funding and $76.1 million of capital funding will be spent with $11.9 million being spent in this financial year alone. There is the creation of another board and there is the absorbing of Industrial Research—all under the umbrella of the new superministry the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment—and this is another business-led organisation to be funded with taxpayers’ money. We had a conversation about subsidies earlier this day and here we have another business-led organisation funded by taxpayers’ dollars. That sounds to me like another way to say “subsidy” quite frankly. 
New Zealand First believes that now is not the time to spend another round of millions of dollars on logos branding and letterhead. There is the expenditure of this precious resource the taxpayers’ dollars on the inevitable administration costs of creating a new board—unfortunately that money has already been spent obviously as the board is already in place—the dissolving of and possible exit payments to Industrial Research’s board and the human resources and the consultant payments that will be required as staff from Industrial Research and The FoodBowl—which will be amassed due to the realignment process that those staff will have to go through—shift or try to shift from one organisation to another not to mention the stress of the uncertainty of their job retention or the project development of things they are currently working on. Why now—that would be the question we would ask the Minister. Why now? 
If this Government wishes to spend $166 million on supporting the manufacturing and service sector or investing in research and development then we can give it several better ways to spend that cash. I could give the Minister today two companies that are struggling for research investment in Warkworth alone. Let us just take those two companies. One of them is Glasshape. Glasshape is a highly successful and dynamic company that focuses on manufacturing specialist glass products for the architectural transport high security and superyacht industries. It has mastered through its own research—the amount that it can fund itself with no assistance from the Government because it cannot access any assistance from the Government—and refined the science of curved and bent glass toughened glass laminated glass and double-glazed glass. It is Australasia’s largest manufacturer of this product and it produces glass with high-quality high-security and bullet-resistant properties. It currently exports to Australia the United Kingdom the USA China Chile Turkey— 
Hon Member 
: Is this an advertorial? 
TRACEY MARTIN 
: —the Pacific Islands and Singapore but it cannot get any research money from your Government. It cannot expand. It cannot develop any more products because it cannot get any support from its Government. If you want to spend $166 million that company could do with a couple of million. 
Or what about Mahurangi Technical Institute which has for the last 8 years been researching the captive breeding of freshwater eels for supply to the aquaculture industry? There is also quite a large amount of conservation spin-off from this project. The company is currently able to breed eels on demand for 52 weeks per year in commercial quantities and it can raise them to 12 days old. This puts it at the forefront of eel-breeding research internationally to the point where European research institutes come here to work with these people. 
Mahurangi Technical Institute cannot get money invested from its Government to help it grow its programmes. It has a conservation fish hatchery. It has whitebait farming. It has recently succeeded in the fertilisation and hatching of whitebait at a commercial hatchery. It is into grass carp and silver carp. These are used as aquatic weed control agents across New Zealand. It currently has 27 contracts. 
I could go on but I will not go on because I think I have made my point—$166 million would be better spent on the businesses that are today trying to do what you want us to do: grow the pie. You want us to grow the pie. You want us to— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Order! 
TRACEY MARTIN 
: I beg your pardon Mr Speaker. The Government wants us to grow the pie. The Government wants these businesses to save the New Zealand economy and to employ more people and I would say that $166 million would go a long way in the Rodney electorate to actually give the Government what it is it wants us to do. 
So New Zealand First will oppose this bill because the timing is not right to spend $166 million on paperwork. Spend it on doing something that will actually make a difference.