English Bill: Urgent Debates — Hon John Banks—Ministerial ResignationText is subject to correctionEnglish Bill: Urgent Debates — Hon John Banks—Ministerial Resignation[Sitting date: 17 October 2013. Volume:694;Page:14018. Text is subject to correction.]Hon BILL ENGLISH (Deputy Prime Minister):The way the previous member Metiria Turei finished her speech showed the somewhat unfortunate trend for the Greens to use more and more extreme language as they try to compete with the Labour Party for the left-wing vote. It is getting harder for the Greens. There is no doubt about that. Mr Cunliffe is doing a better job of competing for that vote than his predecessor. But for a party that came into Parliament to raise standards the vicious and vindictive nature of the Greens’ language I would have to say is not something that the Labour Party members do that often in the same personal way that the Greens do.Mr Banks resigned yesterday consistent with an undertaking he had made that if the District Court decision was that he would go further down the legal process then he would resign as a Minister and that is appropriate. A couple of issues that I think need to be commented on have been raised by the previous member and by the Opposition during question time. One is simply that in the manner of any New Zealand citizen Mr Banks will go into a legal process where the process assumes innocence until proven guilty. The eagerness of the Opposition to jump to conclusions about the results of that process do not I think really show respect for it. The Greens have raised the issue of how Mr Banks might exercise his vote having resigned as a Minister. Well it is not up to the Government to determine how people exercise their vote.Grant Robertson: Ha! That’s not what you said a few years ago Bill.Hon BILL ENGLISH: It is a right of a member of Parliament to exercise—well actually Phillip Field exercised his vote. He voted against the Labour Party on some of the issues he was opposed to. I expect that Mr Banks will do the same. He will exercise his vote as he sees fit. By a constitutional arrangement he is a member of Parliament and it is entirely up to him to exercise that vote.As for the Opposition members’ contention that there is somehow a lack of stability in the Government I would invite them as I did in one of my answers at question time to have a look at the confidence and supply agreements that the John Key - led National Government has in place. In fact the majority of the Government has increased in recent weeks because Lianne Dalziel has resigned from Parliament and we are yet to see the results of a by-election in Christchurch East. Who knows? The Government’s majority might increase as a result of that. You just do not know. So the suggestion that the Government is somehow propped up by anyone is simply wrong.I also want to address one or two other issues that the member for the Greens actually raised. One of them which I thought was quite out of order was the assertion that the Government is somehow failing day by day. When the economy is growing; when employment in the regions is picking up; when it is pretty clear that in every region despite the recession the economy grew; when the numbers grew in all except one region—that is Gisborne—when we see reports today that in the South Island job vacancies are booming; they are not signs of a failing economy or of a failing Government.I would also invite the member from the Greens who decided to focus not so much on the capacities of Mr Banks but on the capacities of other Ministers to look a bit more closely at policy. In fact I would invite the Greens to think pretty hard about their own consciences. In respect of education both the previous Minister and the current Minister have done more than any Green-Labour Government did to focus on those who most need the benefits of public education—who most need the benefits of public education. The Greens have opposed every single policy that is going about the difficult task of providing for those who most need the opportunity of a good education and a better opportunity. We will stand by that whatever ministerial resignations there are.To come back to Mr Banks he has performed his duties as a Minister with consistency. He has stuck to the confidence and supply agreement. I have dealt with him over regulatory issues. They are complex. The Labour Party just agrees on more and more regulation; Mr Banks does not. He agrees with sensible regulation and we have worked quite hard actually to create a regulatory system that deals with the issues of costs and benefits in an even-handed and transparent way. In fact this Government would have among Governments across the world one of the more progressive approaches to regulation. That is evident. As for small business John Banks was a strong advocate for things like a 90-day trial period which encourages employment in small business. The Labour Opposition opposes that. It opposes small businesses being able to negotiate to set their own wages. It wants the living wage for all small businesses particularly retail and those that service the Government. John Banks stood by those businesses.So it is of some regret to the Government that John Banks has resigned as a Minister because he carried out his duties faithfully. Sometimes he had differences of opinion with the Government but nevertheless he stuck to advocating for those groups that would expect a Minister in that portfolio to advocate. Now as with any New Zealand citizen who faces an allegation of unlawful behaviour he will have to go through the legal process. He has outlined his own position about that but it is appropriate that he ceases to function as a Minister while that is under way.