Goff Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeGoff Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 26 June 2014. Volume:699;Page:18951. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]8.Hon PHIL GOFF (Labour—Mt Roskill)to the Minister of Defence: Has there been a reduction in the capacity of the Army in the last three years to sustain an overseas deployment; if so why?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN (Minister of Defence):No. In fact the army’s ability to sustain overseas deployments has improved. In 2014 the New Zealand Defence Force is able to deploy a light task group of 250 and a combined armed task group of 560. All New Zealand Defence Force annual reports 2006 through to 2013 showed that the New Zealand Defence Force could not have sustained these deployments and its other commitments so clearly there has been a real turn-round. Despite the member’s regular assertions to the contrary the Defence Force is in much better shape today than it was when he was the Minister of Defence.Hon Phil Goff: Why does the Minister answer in that way when these two documents that I have here both of them in his own name say that the Defence Force could not be guaranteed to sustain an overseas deployment for more than 12 months when under Labour the army sustained deployments in Timor the Solomons and Bamian simultaneously and continuously for 10 years?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: What the member knows is that actually under the National Government we sustained exactly the same deployments. He refers to documents that he does not quote from. I can quote from a document the New Zealand Herald. I have got a copy of it here actually dated 3 September 2008 when he was the Minister and the verdict from the New Zealand Herald was—Hon Phil Goff: Point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Order! Both members will resume their seats.Hon Phil Goff: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption] It is a point of order and the Minister is interjecting.Mr SPEAKER: This is a point of order and it will be heard in silence.Hon Phil Goff: Since the Minister has denied the documents and said that I will not quote from them I seek leave to table this document which I do not believe is available to all members. It is additional estimates questions for Vote Defence Force 2014 where it says you cannot sustain more than 12 months.Mr SPEAKER: I will put the leave and the House can decide whether to accept that document but I would be grateful in the future if a member would seek leave after a question is answered rather than interrupt it. Leave is sought to table that particular document as described by Mr Goff. Is there any objection? There is none. It can be tabled.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Hon Phil Goff: Was—Hon Paula Bennett: You’d have done better than Cunliffe.Hon Phil Goff: You will keep sweetie but not for long.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I am the referee. Thursday afternoon—one all.Hon Phil Goff: Is the cause of the Minister answering my question saying that there is a risk that they cannot sustain now for more than 12 months the fact that his Government has slashed Defence Force numbers in the regular force by 1200 under its watch and as the documents from the Defence Force say that critical trade areas and ranks have been seriously degraded and is that the reason why our overseas deployments under international peace operations are the lowest in 20 years?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: Look there are a lot of noes with which you could respond to those questions. What I can say is that we have got virtually the same number of people in the army now as we had in 2005. What I do have here—Hon Phil Goff: It’s not true.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: It is. I have got the figures here from the chief of army. What I have got here is a long list of things the army could not do when Phil Goff was the Minister. There’s about 20 but the army could not provide a battalion level deployment—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I do not think the answer continuing along that line will help the order of the House. The Minister has answered the question.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Again this is a point of order and it will be heard in silence.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I seek leave to table this extensive list of the things the army could not do when Phil Goff was the Minister. It is an original document—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The House can sort this out. Leave is sought—Hon Annette King: Where does it come from?Mr SPEAKER: Oh I apologise to the Hon Annette King. The source of the document?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: It comes from the Defence Force. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! Listen. [Interruption] Order! Settle down. The Minister said that it has come from the Defence Force. On that basis leave is sought to table—Hon Phil Goff: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: First of all I will get this sorted out—[Interruption] The member wants to speak to—Hon Phil Goff: Can the Minister first assure the House that he is not tabling a document from the New Zealand Herald?Mr SPEAKER: We have heard that. It is not a New Zealand Herald document.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. We are going to put the leave. Do you want to clarify this before it is put?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: I want to just clarify that this is information given directly by the Defence Force to my office assembled into an easy-to-read document which I am happy to table.Mr SPEAKER: That may make a difference but we will test the House to find out. Leave is sought now to table a document that has been prepared by the Minister’s office with information delivered from the Defence Force. Is there any objection? There is none. It can be tabled.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Hon Phil Goff: I seek leave of the House to table a Cabinet document. It is dated 23 October 2013 and it says that we have got the smallest number of personnel deployed—Mr SPEAKER: Order! We do not need the description. The Cabinet document is dated 23 October last year. Leave is sought to table it. Is there any objection? There is not.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Hon Phil Goff: I seek leave to table a document from the Office of the Auditor-General pointing out that there has been a net reduction of 1200 in regular Defence Force personnel—Mr SPEAKER: Order! If it is a report by the Auditor-General—Hon Phil Goff: No it is not publicly available.Mr SPEAKER: Well I accept the assurance from the member that it is an Auditor-General’s report that has not been made public. On that basis I will put the leave and the House will sort this out. Leave is sought to table that particular Auditor-General’s document. Is there any objection? There is none. It can be tabled.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Hon Phil Goff: What has been the impact on Defence Force capabilities of defence contractors like Babcock which was found in 6 months of the last year to have key performance indicator ratings at five the lowest of all grades and a grade that is described as “unacceptable performance” and what is the Minister doing about it?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: The impact is that we have sorted out the sort of mess that used to happen all the time when Phil Goff was the Minister and so we have corrected that and taken remedial action to make sure it cannot happen again.Hon Phil Goff: Has another Defence Force contractor called Miltech been referred to the Office of the Auditor-General for investigation because it may not be certified to provide services like the servicing of the life jackets such as worn by Private Michael Ross who was drowned and because there were huge conflicts of interest and what is the reason why the Minister has been forced to refer them after this arose in an inquiry from me and from the media?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: The member is always trying to make political capital out of the deaths of New Zealand service people but on the day that I received the briefing or notice of the Miltech situation I wrote a letter to the Office of the Auditor-General asking that office to investigate Miltech.Hon Phil Goff: What was the reason?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: The point is I am very concerned about what I read.