Heatley Phil: Address in Reply 
Heatley Phil: Address in Reply 
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Hon PHIL HEATLEY (Minister of Fisheries) 
: 
 I acknowledge the previous speaker in the debate Catherine Delahunty for her very moving speech. As part of the Address in Reply debate it is worth laying out again for the House and for New Zealand the Government’s overall vision to steer New Zealand through this economic climate and to deliver on our 100-day promises. The driving goal of the new Government is to grow the New Zealand economy in order to deliver greater prosperity. Because of the international economic crisis this is a difficult task but it is one we know we are up to and certainly New Zealanders are up to it as well. Only a strong economy will deliver for everyone. Only a strong economy will deliver for the elderly for young people for those currently struggling and for those facing very difficult times going forward. Part of our action was to introduce an initial infrastructure package which the Prime Minister John Key announced today. A half-billion-dollar spend was announced today for those projects that have been sitting on the shelf collecting dust under the previous Labour Government. 
Actually that is not quite true. Most of the projects in roading and in the education sector were sitting on the shelf collecting dust under the Labour Government. The State housing upgrade projects which are worth $124 million were not sitting on the shelf collecting dust; they were projects that the Labour Government was never going to do. Under the Labour Government we saw State housing upgrades all but ignored. Over the first year second year fifth year and ninth year of the Labour Government we saw State house conditions deteriorate to the point where most New Zealanders understood that Labour had become a slum landlord. It is unbelievable that the Labour Government that was elected in 1999 which bragged that it was the representative of low-income people has overseen the deterioration of the State housing stock to the point where New Zealanders understand today that the Labour Government was a slum landlord. 
We have seen today a boost to the upgrade of State houses. We will renovate thousands of homes under the energy efficiency project Healthy Housing—there is a boost here—and the general upgrade of State housing stock because one thing that a John Key - led Government will not be is a slum landlord. Yes it will be take a long time to make up the ground of underspend millions of dollars year on year to bring up the State housing stock to a condition that we can all be proud of but we are making a start today. That is why we heard the announcement of $95 million extra to upgrade State houses $9.5 million extra to upgrade State houses under Healthy Housing and the new builds package. 
Some of those State houses are an absolute disgrace. Thousands of those State houses are an absolute disgrace. I noticed that there were no Labour Party supplementary questions today on housing. It is because they are living in shame. As a new Minister I received a briefing that stated that there was $2 billion worth of underspend on the State housing stock. What a disgrace! The Labour Government was a slum landlord. 
How is it that under a National Government we can balance the increase in State housing to meet need in needy areas and upgrade the State housing stock as well? All the previous Labour Government could do was to rob the standard of living of current State house tenants so that it could increase the State housing stock. It could not do both. It could not maintain the standard of living of current tenants while increasing the State housing stock. Under a National Government we will see an increase in the spending on current State house tenants’ conditions to the tune of $95 million plus $9.5 million—that is an increase—plus we will see an increase in State house numbers. 
George Hawkins from the Labour Party put out a press release stating that only 69 new State houses will be built. That is extra. 
Colin King 
: Over and above. 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: That is over and above the 450 that we will be building to July this year. That is extra I say to George Hawkins—over and above the 450 to July this year. Hello! The other interesting thing George Hawkins said is that it is only one per electorate. We are not putting one in every electorate; we are addressing need. We will be putting the State houses where they are needed. That is a new idea. 
I cannot believe that the members have the nerve to heckle me when in the 9 years that Labour governed it became a slum landlord. What a disgrace! What an absolute disgrace that it would ignore current tenants just so it could get up its statistics. What a disgrace! 
I do not want to spend all my time talking about the disgraceful legacy of what the Labour Government did or the solution of what we will do. I will talk also about—and congratulate my colleague the Minister of Education Anne Tolley on—the $216 million extra spend on school projects. Those school projects have been sitting on the shelf for years collecting dust under the Labour Government. 
Hon Paula Bennett 
: Years and years. 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Years and years. I also congratulate my colleague the Minister of Transport on the $142 million he has said will be spent immediately on roading projects that were sitting on the shelf collecting dust for years and years. 
The issue here is that in difficult economic times suddenly under the new Government—John Key’s new National Government—we can find the extra money to fund projects that have been sitting on the shelf during the good times during a period when we had 5 or 6 years of wonderful international economic conditions. Under a Labour Government the projects sat on the shelf. In difficult international economic conditions the National Government can get the bureaucracy going deliver projects and fund them. Labour members should explain that. They should explain why those projects sat on the shelf during the easy years and we can deliver them during the tough years. 
Labour members should feel a sense of disgrace that Labour became a slum landlord and that roading and schooling projects sat on the shelf collecting dust during the international economic good times. That is my message to the country. Thank goodness we have a Government that is prepared to get up brush off the dust fund the projects and get on with the job.