Norman Russel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Personal Explanation—Comments Made at Environmental Defence Society Conference 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Norman Russel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Personal Explanation—Comments Made at Environmental Defence Society Conference 
[Sitting date: 25 July 2012. Volume:682;Page:3884. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
2. 
Dr RUSSEL NORMAN (Co-Leader—Green) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does he stand by his statement that “we don’t favour one group over another”? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister) 
: 
 I stand by my full quote which I made at the National Party conference about the National Party which was “We have tolerance and respect for all New Zealanders and we don’t favour one group over another.” Although it is not part of my ministerial responsibility the point I was making is that we are a broad church party and not aligned to a particular interest group such as unions. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Is not paying the brokerage fees of retail investors in the asset sales favouring the roughly 5 percent of New Zealanders whom Treasury expects to directly buy shares over the 95 percent of New Zealanders who are not expected to buy shares? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: The Government has a number of wide-ranging objectives in terms of the mixed-ownership model programme. One of those is to see as widespread ownership as possible by as many New Zealanders as possible—for it to be as accessible as possible. I need to check the point about whether we are paying brokerage fees. I would be very surprised if we were doing that. We certainly have a loyalty bonus aimed at those New Zealanders if that is what the member means. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Well is he aware that there is $56 million in the Budget primarily to pay the brokerage fees to the selling syndicate; and why is it fair for all taxpayers to cover the brokerage fees of the 5 percent? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: I would need to check that matter. I am sure the member is probably incorrect in the assumption he is making. If he wants a detailed answer he would be better to put down a question to the Minister responsible. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Why does the Government claim that asset sales are about mum and dad investors when Treasury’s numbers show that in fact 95 percent of mums and dads would end up subsidising the 5 percent who can afford to buy shares? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: Well I am not sure Treasury’s advice does show that. In fact I would reject that. I draw the attention of the member to the following which is that of the last 219 initial public offerings that we looked at the Government of the day gave retail incentives in 110 of them and loyalty bonuses in 84. It is quite a widespread technique used everywhere. This member seems I have got to say to be quite incredible. Having spent the last year berating me for wanting to sell shares theoretically to foreigners which is not what I want to do he is now berating me for making sure I sell them to New Zealanders. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Why does the Government claim that asset sales would improve electricity market competition when the electricity provided by the publicly owned power companies is already 12 percent cheaper than that from the private providers and privatisation would remove that anchor on the market and hence we would likely see increased power prices? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: Like many of the numbers that the member quotes those are just rubbish. But if we go back to the broader issue what really drives power prices is the structure of the electricity industry—something that this Government has reformed. That is why under the previous Labour Government power prices went up 72 percent while those members sat on their hands and under this Government they have gone up 14 percent. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Why does the Government claim that asset sales would improve electricity market competition when the restructuring that he just referred to was possible only because the energy companies were State-owned enterprises and once they are made into mixed-ownership model companies the Government will lose the capacity to perform exactly that kind of restructuring where it moves assets around? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: Competition in a market is competition amongst all participants. What the member has just said is absolute rubbish. He is saying that competition exists because we happen currently as a country to 100 percent own Meridian Energy Mighty River Power and Genesis but he does not count competition that might be provided by Contact Energy of which the Government has no ownership. That is a ridiculous argument. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Why does the Government claim that asset sales are about deepening New Zealand capital markets and getting Kiwis involved in the share market and then go and decide to list those companies on the Australian stock exchange; is it because more Kiwis are leaving than ever before for Australia under his administration? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: Well a cynic might say it is in case the member moves back. The Government has not made a decision yet about whether the companies will be listed on the ASX. But as I have said publicly before the advice is that that may be the right thing to do not because we will see a lot of trading on the ASX—eight of the top 10 New Zealand companies are listed on the New Zealand exchange and the ASX and the vast bulk of the trading in those companies takes place on the New Zealand exchange—but because the mandate of some Australian fund managers that buy shares on behalf of New Zealanders as well as others requires them to be listed on the ASX. Of course we can take that opportunity away but again we would take away some of the price competitiveness that others might enjoy if they bought those shares. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Given that the Government has failed to convince New Zealanders of the arguments around asset sales as shown by every major opinion poll is that because the Government actually does not have very good reasons and his approach now is to say “Rubbish!” to anyone who disagrees with him and to tell the people of New Zealand: “We are simply going to force it down your throat.” in a Muldoonist way just like previous National Governments have? 
Rt Hon JOHN KEY 
: There are many analogies one could draw with me but Muldoon is probably not one of them. Let me run the maths past the member. There were a touch over a million New Zealanders who voted for the National Party at the most recent general election where front and centre stage was this policy and last weekend 79 protestors turned up to oppose it. And 1 million is greater than 79. If the member cared enough about it he would have gone out in the rain and protested but he was tucked up in his warm insulated—thanks to the National Government—house reading some leftie magazine he enjoys instead of being out there protesting with the other 79.