Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumePeters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 08 May 2014. Volume:698;Page:17691. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]9.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) to theMinister of Immigration: Did the Government instruct Immigration New Zealand to review the Investor Plus scheme of $10 million; if so for what reason?Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (Minister of Immigration): The business migration package was introduced in 2009 with a scheduled review 1 year after its implementation. That was reported back to Cabinet in 2011. A further review of the investor categories commenced in 2012 to check that they were still fit for purpose and that review is ongoing.Rt Hon Winston Peters: For how long did he meet with Mr Liu at Mr Liu’s hotel and what changes to immigration rules did Mr Liu specifically ask for?Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: The meeting lasted for about 1 hour and I cannot be more specific about the exact changes that were called for. There was certainly a question mark about whether the $10 million threshold was too high. I pointed out to him as I have to many others that simply lowering the threshold would not be appropriate. I am sure there was a range of other things but I cannot recall them right now.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Can I take it from his primary answer that he asked for his department to continue work on these changes and the intention to bring in a third investor category with absolutely no English language requirement?Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: As I said the review is ongoing and no options apart from the one I mentioned have been specifically ruled out.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Was the Prime Minister aware that the Minister of Immigration had arranged to meet with Mr Liu and was the Prime Minister’s awareness before or after the meeting? [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! I did not hear the interjection unfortunately. I have called Michael Woodhouse.Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: I am absolutely certain that the Prime Minister had no knowledge of the meeting at the time that it was taking place.Rt Hon Winston Peters: When was he as Minister of Immigration aware that the Prime Minister supported Mr Liu’s proposed changes to immigration laws and was the date of this awareness before his meeting with Mr Liu?Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: I am not aware that the Prime Minister supports any of the proposed changes that Mr Liu put forward either then or now.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I seek leave to table two letters. One is a letter dated 4 April 2012 pointing out the third category about which my questions were shaped and having these words in it: “We have received strong expressions of support for this approach from the Prime Minister.”Mr SPEAKER: Order! And the second letter?Rt Hon Winston Peters: The second letter is dated 13 February 2012 and it reads: “We look forward to building on the engagement that one of our members Mr Liu of the Alpers Avenue Development Group had with the Prime Minister.”Mr SPEAKER: Those documents have now been described. Leave is sought to table those two particular letters. Is there any objection to them being tabled? There is none. They can be tabled.Documents by leave laid on the Table of the House.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Is it not a fact from these letters that the only reason he went on bended knee to a seedy hotel to speak with a woman-basher was because the woman-basher—Mr SPEAKER: Order! That question is out of order. I will give the member the opportunity to rephrase it but there is a case before the courts in this regard at the moment.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. With respect the man has pleaded guilty to the offence. It is not sub judice. What is the offence you wish to raise now?Mr SPEAKER: No I am advised that the matter is before the courts with a further hearing in June. That is the advice I have been given. If the member can get the question in without referring to a current—Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Is your advice from the Clerk that this matter is sub judice or not?Mr SPEAKER: Yes it is.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Well she is wrong.Mr SPEAKER: The member is entitled to his opinion. If he wants to ask—Rt Hon Winston Peters: No no. There are ample Speakers’ rulings that say that a matter that has been published by the media—and he has admitted the offence—is capable of being repeated in this Parliament. I am not referring to his being sentenced. That is a sub judice matter. I am talking about the offence he has already acknowledged he committed. That is not sub judice—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I have heard the point and the member will resume his seat and I will seek some advice from the Clerk.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Supplementary question.Mr SPEAKER: No I will wait. The member has raised a point of order and I want the advice first. I am advised that the fact that the matter is before the court is the important thing and that this House sets itself a substantially higher standard than what the media may well do. In that case I am accepting the Clerk’s advice that this is sub judice. The member has not had that question taken off him. He has the opportunity to ask a question but it must not refer to the case that is currently before the court.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Can I just clarify that it is not in any way disputing the ruling I have just given.Hon Trevor Mallard: No. What it is asking you to do—Mr SPEAKER: What is the point of order?Hon Trevor Mallard: Well the point of order is to ask you to present a considered ruling to the House that goes to the background of the reasons for the sub judice rule which are—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I have heard enough. That is a reasonable request and I will give a considered ruling.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Is it not a fact that the only reason he went on bended knee to a seedy hotel to speak to a certain person was that that person had given the National Party $22000 to let in his not-so-rich mates who cannot speak English?Mr SPEAKER: Order! In as far as there is ministerial responsibility the Hon Michael Woodhouse.Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE: I have no knowledge of or responsibility for any donations given by one person to another party. Secondly as Minister of Immigration I go on bended knee to no one.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Can I ask you to reflect on that answer and that the Minister who has publicly admitted knowledge of the donation just said that he had no knowledge of it. That cannot—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member has asked me to reflect on that answer and I will do so.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I seek leave to table a time line of the National Party’s Ministers of Immigration Guy and Woodhouse with Mr Liu.Mr SPEAKER: Where is the source of the document?Rt Hon Winston Peters: An impeccable source. I prepared it myself.Mr SPEAKER: I will put the leave. I think it will be fairly easily decided. Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is objection.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I seek leave to table a National Party Cabinet club initiative set out for the Invercargill electorate talking about coming along to hear somebody who one day might be—Mr SPEAKER: Order! It has been well described. Leave is sought to table that particular document. Is there any objection? There is none.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I seek leave to table a Cabinet club 2014 subscription at $1000 a pop from the Invercargill electorate.Mr SPEAKER: Leave is sought to table that particular document. Is there any objection? There is none.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I seek leave to table a further document. It is an invitation—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Can I just clarify because this is now taking—are there more documents? I want them put all at once.Rt Hon Winston Peters: There are plenty more but not today. Just this one.Mr SPEAKER: This is the last one?Rt Hon Winston Peters: That is right.Mr SPEAKER: Then I am absolutely delighted. Let us hear about it.Rt Hon Winston Peters: So am I actually because you can only take so much at once can you not?Mr SPEAKER: Order! Let us hear it.Rt Hon Winston Peters: OK. The third one is an Invercargill Cabinet club invite to come along and hear Judith Collins the much-vaunted future leader—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Leave is sought to table that particular invitation. Is there any objection? There is none. It can be tabled.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Hon Gerry Brownlee: I would like to ask the House’s indulgence to take a little more time than usual for the tabling of a document if I am granted leave to table it. Thedocument I seek to table is a National Party document from the early 1990s for a fund-raiser where it was touted that the Hon Winston Peters may well become New Zealand’s first Māori Prime Minister.Mr SPEAKER: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is none.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.