Nash Stuart: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply Debate 
Nash Stuart: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply Debate 
[Volume:673;Page:19534] 
STUART NASH (Labour) 
: 
 I must admit the last speaker Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga made some points that demand a reply. Firstly that speaker talked about a spend in infrastructure. I can inform him that $71 million was allocated by the Labour Government to the Hawke’s Bay infrastructure build. What happened there? Mr Joyce summoned the chair of the regional council Alan Dick a past mayor and a very good man to Wellington and told him that $71 million was being sucked out of Hawke’s Bay. This money was raised in the Bay raised by the people of Napier and raised by Mr Foss’ constituents in Hastings only to be taken away—$71 million. How is that a spend in infrastructure?  
The last speaker also talked about the spend in early childhood education. I would like that speaker to come with me and visit the Napier Kindergarten Association. I would like him to explain to the chief executive officer of that association that cutting $570000 a year out of the budget of the Napier Kindergarten Association is a good move. If that is progress then I will be damned. If that is good for the young people of New Zealand then goodness me! Cutting $570000 a year from the Napier Kindergarten Association budget is an absolute disgrace—it is a disgrace.  
The other thing I will say is that the Maori Party member Rahui Katene has an absolute nerve standing up and saying that being aligned with National is good for Maori. How does that member justify an increase in GST to 15 percent which all the statistics have proven hurt the most vulnerable in society—the most vulnerable? We all know that the shame of this country is that Maori are overrepresented in a lot of those statistics. The Maori Party member stands up and says they have done a lot of good stuff for Maori. I ask her to come to Maraenui in the Napier electorate and tell the people there what a wonderful thing the emissions trading scheme has been for them. They will shake their heads. They do not give a damn about the emissions trading scheme. They give a damn about the 20 percent increase in the price of fresh fruit and vegetables. They give a damn about the guts being ripped out of early childhood education in the Bay.  
The Maori Party’s aligning with National has been an absolute disgrace and that is one of the reasons why Hone the “Mad Bugger” left that party. Kelvin Davis knows and that is why on Saturday he will be returned as the member of Parliament for Te Tai Tokerau. He is up there speaking the truth and representing Maori interests. Maori will finally realise that the only party that works hard for Maori is the New Zealand Labour Party. The New Zealand Labour Party has always been the party that works hard for Maori and it will continue to be. On 27 November when the Labour Government gathers we will hold all the Maori seats and that member knows it. I hope that member has her CV prepared because she will need it.  
I will make only three other points. This is a Government without an economic plan. The previous speaker stood up and said that there is a plan but everything that Government has put forward either is destructive or rips wealth out of the guts of New Zealand. The first plan was to mine national parks. Gerry Brownlee stood up and said the Government was going to mine national parks. What happened? The people of New Zealand marched. There were no ads; they just marched. Through Twitter and Facebook they got together and Gerry sat there looking more red-faced than normal because he was hugely embarrassed by such a gaffe: the mining of one of New Zealand’s true global competitive advantages—digging it up and destroying it. They call that a plan!  
What was the next plan? The next plan was to give massive tax cuts to the very wealthy. Someone earning $1 million a year got $1000 a week. Yet someone on the median wage in Napier got about five bucks a week. Let us remember that the cost of fresh fruit and veges has gone up by 20 percent. Someone on the median wage in Napier got five bucks a week. Someone on the average wage is struggling to pay the bills and 75 percent of New Zealanders earn below the average wage. Yet someone who earns $1 million a year gets $1000 a week. How is that fair at all? It is simply not fair.  
The massive tax cuts have increased inequality in this country to levels that I thought and certainly our forebears thought could never exist. With inequality comes poverty and poverty steals dreams. This Government talks about aspiration but delivers the complete opposite. The thing that surprises me is that Economics 101 Keynesian economics—and Sam would have studied this at Cambridge University—says that in times of recession we give money to those who really need it and will spend it because that stimulates demand. If we give money to those at the top end all they do is retire debt or save it. When the economy is booming that is not a bad outcome. But when it is in recession it is the last thing we want. The Government needs to stimulate demand yet it has done the complete opposite. I ask Sam whether they taught him that at Cambridge University. They must have. And John Boscawen knows that. 
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga 
: Milton Friedman. 
STUART NASH 
: That says it all. He has finally admitted it. Milton Friedman—the economic theories of the 1990s of Thatcher and Reagan. The last time I heard that was when Jami-Lee Ross mentioned Thatcher and Reagan in the same sentence as his heroes. That is what National represents. Goodness me! That was a scary speech.  
The next plan was to sell it: if it is not screwed down let us screw it anyway and sell it! All we ask for is just a little honesty. When the Government talks about the mixed-ownership model it should just call it what John Key called it: State asset sales. That is what he said: State asset sales. Let us be honest about this. Do not tell people that the shares will go to ma and pa investors because we know that is not the truth. Members opposite know that is not the truth. We have one precedent: Contact Energy shares. Eighty percent of Contact Energy shares are owned by 0.1 percent of investors and that is what will happen when that Government sells State assets. But the Government will not do that. It will not be around. Mr English and Mr Key say we should take that policy out to the public and we are. The people of New Zealand cannot stand it; they hate it.  
Another policy is to rip the guts out of KiwiSaver. Politicians told New Zealanders to save. We said that they needed to save. But these politicians say that people do not need to save so they will take it away from them. No wonder the people of New Zealand are disillusioned with that Government. It is unbelievable.  
What about research and development? The Government talks about innovation but the first thing it did was to go against the advice of Treasury and advice from its own Minister of Revenue and cut research and development. Then it cut Labour’s Fast Forward Fund which was $1 billion set aside for innovation and set up the Primary Growth Partnership. If we look in the supplementary estimates we see that the Government did not spend anything. There was a $35 million underspend. Mr Joyce talks about broadband. The Maori Party talks about broadband. Well if we look in the estimates we see that they underspent by $115 million. They have not delivered anything. This Government talks but does not walk. It talks but it does not walk that talk and it is a shame and a disgrace; there is no doubt about that.  
But people of New Zealand do not need to worry because Labour has a plan. We will invest in innovation we will bring back our research and development tax credit and we will provide relief for the families of New Zealand who are struggling to pay their bills. We will have a tax system that is fair and that will ensure that everyone pays their fair share. Do members know what we will do? We will remove the GST from fresh fruit and vegetables because we know that healthy lifestyle options are vital if we are to grow as a nation.  
I reiterate only three things. Firstly that is a Government without a solid positive plan to grow this nation. Secondly Labour has a plan. We will roll it out for the people of New Zealand to see and there will be only one choice for every voter. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Eric Roy) 
: The member’s time has expired.