Ardern Shane: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Ardern Shane: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:654;Page:4054] 
4.  
SHANE ARDERN (National—Taranaki - King Country) 
 to the  
Minister of Agriculture 
: What recent major initiatives has the Government announced to support primary sector innovation? 
Hon DAVID CARTER (Minister of Agriculture) 
: 
 Budget 2009 confirmed a significant enduring and transparent investment by the Government in primary sector innovation through the Primary Growth Partnership. The Primary Growth Partnership will see the Government investing $70 million annually in innovation and in research and development in the primary sector industries. When matched dollar for dollar by industry the Primary Growth Partnership will be investing $140 million a year. The initiative is a clear demonstration of the Government’s commitment to boosting productivity across our economically vital primary sectors and it has been warmly welcomed. 
Shane Ardern 
: Why has the Government made such a significant investment in primary sector innovation in this challenging economic environment? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: Budget 2009 was about putting our economy back on to the road to recovery. The primary sector will lead that recovery which is why it is so important that the Government invests in boosting the sector’s productivity. The Primary Growth Partnership is not about business as usual; it is about the Government putting forward the money to drive ambitious changes in productivity and build world-class expertise. It is not some $700 million fairytale but a real commitment by this Government. 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: Can the Minister tell the House what new innovative creative and dynamic new chairmanship he is proposing for the new administrative bureaucracy the investment advisory panel to replace the former administrative bureaucracy the New Zealand Fast Forward board which was chaired by the highly regarded Mr Bill Falconer? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: The panel will be chaired by Mr Bill Falconer one of the very satisfactory appointments made by the previous Minister of Agriculture. I concur that he is highly regarded and he will lead this sector forward as the chair of the panel. 
Shane Ardern 
: What other reports has the Minister seen on the Primary Growth Partnership? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: I have seen a large number of reports on the Primary Growth Partnership that welcome it and praise the Government’s support. At last count 14 different organisations—from Zespri to Fonterra to Science New Zealand to the Seafood Industry Council—all welcomed the Government’s significant investment. The only people who have not welcomed it are Labour members and Mr Anderton who are clearly out of touch with New Zealand’s primary sector. 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: Could the Minister explain to the House why he said in a post-Budget speech in Christchurch today that the National Government had “assessed Fast Forward and decided we could do better.” when a $700 million deposit in the non-departmental non-capital expenditure Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry account is not better than a $190 million appropriation over 4 years that will have only $30 million appropriated this financial year and could then be abolished at any time in the same way that New Zealand’s superannuation payments were put on moratorium for 11 years? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: I can explain that very easily. The previous Government was to borrow $700 million when the debt problem now facing this Government is large enough. The commitment of Primary Growth Partnership will mean that close to $1 billion will be spent over the next 15 years and even Mr Anderton can work out that that figure is considerably more than the $700 million that he proposed. The Primary Growth Partnership is far larger than his New Zealand Fast Forward policy. 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: Does the Minister understand that by his logic—because the Government’s deficit with borrowing is increasing to $16 billion—he is now saying that the Government is borrowing all the money it needs to fund education and health expenditure as well; or is he selecting the $700 million for New Zealand Fast Forward because it happens to suit his political persuasion? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: No I am not saying that at all. The unconventional way of attempting to fund New Zealand Fast Forward was not satisfactory to this Government nor to Rod Oram that well-known commentator for the left who said that New Zealand Fast Forward was one of several “shifting inadequately executed attempts at economic transformation. It is a big slug of money with no under-pinning strategic plan.”