Henare Tau: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply Debate 
Henare Tau: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply Debate 
[Volume:640;Page:10198] 
Hon TAU HENARE (National) 
: 
 Kia ora Mr Assistant Speaker. That member Shane Jones thinks he will be the new leader of the Labour Party. Did members read the  
Listener  
article? He will be the leader of the Labour Party. It might not be next year it might not be the year after that but it might be in 25 years when we have all gone home got old and retired. 
He talked about National thinking it can sleepwalk to victory. We will not sleepwalk to victory; we will just walk to victory because we have the nous and the policy that goes with it. New Zealand is crying out for some new ideas. 
R Doug Woolerton 
: Oh what? 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Doug Woolerton is from New Zealand First the lackey party of the New Zealand Labour Government. Did members notice in the last week or so how the Rt Hon— 
R Doug Woolerton 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I take exception to the words used by Tau Henare. We are a support party. We are in an agreement with Labour. We are not— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: No that is not a point of order. 
R Doug Woolerton 
: Well— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: No it is not a point of order. 
Darren Hughes 
: I think you were distracted by talking to another member of the House. Mr Henare made a very specific remark about Mr Woolerton as an individual member of Parliament and he used a phrase that is unparliamentary. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: I accept the member’s word. If the member did that I ask him to withdraw and apologise. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: I withdraw and apologise. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Thank you. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You did not hear the word obviously. I think I know what word caused offence but I am not sure that I have ever heard it ruled out of order on the grounds that it is unparliamentary—the word “lackey”. I am not sure it has ever been ruled as unparliamentary. Mind you any word could be unparliamentary. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: The word can actually be taken as a personal reflection. I looked to the member and asked him indirectly whether he felt that way and he gave me a nod so I assumed that you had accepted you had transgressed the rules of the House. But if that is not the case I will not rule the word “lackey” out of order. 
R Doug Woolerton 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You may not have ruled the word out of order in the past but I took exception to that word being used when the member was speaking about me and that surely is the point. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Speaking to the point of order Mr Assistant Speaker I say to cut this thing short that I did not say Doug Woolerton was a lackey; I said New Zealand First was the lackey party of the New Zealand Government. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Thank you. The member will continue. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Thank you very much Mr Assistant Speaker. Labour is tired and lazy and it has no idea and no new talent. If Labour thinks that Shane Jones is the new talent then boy we are in trouble! 
R Doug Woolerton 
: You are in trouble. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Well not according to the polls I say to “Mr Under 5 Percent” but that is another story. What New Zealand First is not able to do is hold a seat. But that is OK. When we are talking about “no new talent” I say that if Labour thinks Doug Woolerton is new talent then we are really really seriously in trouble. 
All Shane Jones can do is use words like “sumptuous” as if he is sitting down to one of his big feeds again—a sumptuous meal. Well I tell members that the attacks on the Maori Party by Mr Shane Jones show nothing more than an amount of fear in the Labour Government. My recommendation to Mr Jones is to feel the fear and embrace the fear because it is not until one does so that one realises what sort of fight one has with the poor old Maori Party. There are only four of them in it but they are freaking out the big Labour Party. Feel the fear embrace the fear—I have been there—is what I want to say to Mr Jones. The last thing I want to say to Mr Jones is that if he thinks that that poll was a rogue poll he had better think again. 
Let us talk about the real issues not Shane Jones; he is not the real issue. The real issue is how this Government has duped 92000 children into believing that they will get 20 hours’ free early childhood education. Well it is not 20 hours free; it is 20 hours free for a fee. That is all it is. Somewhere down the track those poor little kiddies who went to the early childhood centre believing they would get 20 hours free— 
Shane Jones 
: Will you terminate the policy? 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Is it not interesting that every speaker from Labour in this afternoon’s debate has rounded on the National Party and talked incessantly about the National Party’s policies? Well well well those members are scared. Like I said before—and this is a statement to all Labour members—they should feel the fear and embrace the fear before they go from office. 
Ninety-two thousand kids will not get 20 hours free; they might get a slogan but they will have to pay through the nose for it especially in places like Auckland and Wellington. Out of that 92000 I wonder how many kohanga reo kids will get 20 hours free. Can anyone in Labour say—[ 
Interruption 
] Mr Cunliffe says “What?”. He does not want to say anything any more because he might trip up. There are 13000 kids who go along to kohanga. How many of those will get 20 hours free? 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: You do the maths. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Those members do not have a clue about how many kids will get 20 hours free. Next week will be the big sign-off day and what is the bet we will find that only between 50000 and 60000 get the 20 hours free? But we were told that the number would be 92000. Every day in the House we have asked how many kids will be eligible for 20 hours free. 
Darren Hughes 
: Up to 92000. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: They said 92000. 
Darren Hughes 
: Up to 92000. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Oh no! The original number was 92000. Then a couple of weeks later it was “up to 92000” and I tell members that on 2 July and 3 July— 
Shane Jones 
: The media! 
Hon TAU HENARE 
:—when the media gather around the figure will actually be only 50000 or 60000. And how many— 
Darren Hughes 
: That’s still pretty good though. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: That is still pretty good for a 20 hours free policy that one has to pay a fee for! The big lie that has been perpetuated on the children— 
Shane Jones 
: A koha. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Well I say to that member that it is not a koha; it is a hoha to all of those little kiddies and all the parents who are expecting 20 hours free. I tell members that it may be 20 hours free in places like Inglewood where the costs of early childhood education are not very great but the big metropolises like Auckland—where the costs are greater—cannot afford the sort of dilly-dallying that this Government is on about. It is tired lazy— 
Shane Jones 
: Speak properly! That is not a real word—dilly-dallying. Gosh! 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Well it is far better than the word “sumptuous”. I think the member has been going home every night and reading the dictionary because he wants to be seen as some sort of brown intellect. He wants to be seen as New Zealand’s brown hope. 
Sitting suspended from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.