Mark Ron: Appropriation (2006/07 Estimates) Bill — Third Reading Imprest Supply Debate 
Mark Ron: Appropriation (2006/07 Estimates) Bill — Third Reading Imprest Supply Debate 
[Volume:633;Page:4570] 
RON MARK (NZ First) 
: 
 The saying that comes to mind when I think about Winston at the moment— 
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER 
: The member will use the full name. 
RON MARK 
: You are so correct Mr Speaker—the Rt Hon Winston Peters. That saying is this: there is nothing so sterile as someone saying “I told you so.” When I look across the House at National members—and I have heard the debate thus far—what do I see? I see a party carping on. The one thing that stands out very clearly about the National Party is that it is totally absolutely united in its disunity. It is a party that has sat here carping for 9 years. It does not matter how much its members dance how many questions they throw or how much smoke and dust they try to kick up. Everybody in the country knows that it is all done in order to try to avoid answering the one question we all know needs to be answered and will be answered. It is the question National Party members are asking themselves: how much longer will they have to tolerate Don? Today in the House we saw that exemplified so perfectly— 
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER 
: The member cannot use a member’s nickname; he must use the full title or the position. 
RON MARK 
: I mean the Leader of the Opposition temporarily placed Dr Don Brash. And what did we see today? He got sat on his butt by the big hand of Gerry Brownlee who slapped his hand on Dr Brash’s shoulder and shoved him back into his seat. Can members imagine some young buck on any marae in this country daring to step up and put his hand on Tumu Te Heuheu’s shoulder and forcibly slam him back into his seat? It reminded me of the time Mr Brownlee threw someone down the stairs at a political party meeting an action for which he was convicted in the courts of this land. 
The question is how much longer we will have to sit in this House and hear the moaning and bleating. Is it for just 9 years or will it be for 12 years in Opposition? Whilst the National Party continues to perform the way it does and moan and berate the things that happen in this House New Zealand First is getting on with the business. We could see the advantages in the current situation. Yes we have supported the Government with supply and confidence but we have done so for some very good reasons. Let us talk about those. We will have 1000 more police on the beat by 2008. [ 
Interruption 
] I ask Mr Bennett what part of that is wrong. Do I hear Mr Bennett saying that he does not want any extra police officers in his electorate? If so we will write about it tomorrow and say he does not. 
We will have 250 extra non-sworn staff and $500 million put into law and order—into policing—over the next 3 years. So whilst Simon Power—young Simon—goes round the country talking it up and doing nothing we are here getting it done. New Zealand First has got in more support for the police—more staff resources and cars—and an increase in the minimum rate of superannuation up to 66 percent of the net average wage. That is what New Zealand First has got in. That is what is going to happen under this Government with the agreement. A golden age card will be introduced in mid-2007 identifying senior citizens and public sector entitlements and providing a range of commercial discounts. Is that good news? That is very good news. How many of those senior citizens when they get their golden age cards in their hands are going to say they do not want it? Even Don Brash whom Gerry Brownlee is about to make redundant will be eligible for a golden age card courtesy of New Zealand First. And is it not a good thing being that he will retire from this House? 
There is a significant increase in funding for elder care. There is already $150 million in there and we are working on doing more. There will be a full review of the immigration legislation and administrative practices within the Immigration Service which is something that National said all the time it was in Government was not needed. National told the country that New Zealand was like part of Asia and that we should have an open-door immigration policy. That has come to an end and the review is happening now. 
An increase in the minimum wage is New Zealand First’s first step towards raising it to $12 an hour. National members sit there and tell the country that it is OK for people to be paid $9.54 an hour for working at the Nurse Maude Association and $10.54 an hour for elder care. People pay for their own petrol to go into town and work in residential care for $9.50 an hour and National thinks it is all right and that nothing should be done about it. New Zealand First has acted. Those people will have a minimum wage of $12 an hour by 2008. 
What about support for a Buy New Zealand Made campaign? What a great initiative that is. That is happening under the agreement between New Zealand First and Labour. There will be an Export Year in 2007. New Zealand First has banged on about it and tried to tell this country for about a decade that the backbone of this nation’s economy are those that export—the primary production sector. We have only just started to hear National members talking in favour of the primary production sector. Before that they were saying it was a sunset industry. When they were in Government they were saying that farming was old hat. That was National. Members should not listen to what they are saying today. They are in  
Hansard 
; they are on record. They went around the country. Farmers around this country were nailed by National and were deserted by them in droves as National talked up the e-economy. Well where the heck is that today? So an Export Year which will promote exporters and promote the need of New Zealand to support people involved in the export sector and to support manufacturers is a great decision and a great initiative. 
The people of Tauranga were promised by the Rt Hon Winston Peters a toll-free harbour bridge and it will be toll free. That agreement was struck between New Zealand First and Labour—it is done. [ 
Interruption 
] There is no sense in Mr Bennett sitting there bleating on. He has another 3 years to keep going and if National keeps going the way it has been there will be another 3 years after that. He should think about that. 
I just want the National Party to focus on those things. They talked about stopping the carbon tax. Who did it? New Zealand First has done it. It is finished; it is done. What about the sale of strategic assets? We have put a hold on that as we have always said we would. We have agreed to the terms of reference for a review of Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) funding for physiotherapists. National bleats on about these things and says we need a review of ACC funding. Firstly New Zealand First said that about 3 light years before National woke up and secondly it is done. 
Given the disunity and confusion that exists in National’s ranks and given the fact that they are over there still carping on while New Zealand First is sitting here working constructively with the Government heads down getting these things done the only question that remains to be asked is when John Key is finally going to do the deed. When will we see Don Brash get his throat cut? When will we see either Bill English or John Key step forward? Or has the big hand of the enforcer Gerry Brownlee staked his bid firmly on the shoulder of Don Brash as we saw today? Is it going to be Gerry Brownlee that will get the endorsement? One thing that is for sure is that it will not be Tau Henare because given the way the National Party MPs are running around this country bagging him behind his back he will be lucky even to make it into Cabinet—if indeed National ever gets back to the Government benches.