McCully Murray: General Debates 
McCully Murray: General Debates 
[Volume:615;Page:11101] 
Hon MURRAY McCULLY (National—East Coast Bays) 
: 
 We know that Helen Clark has no answers and we know that Helen Clark knows when she is in trouble when she decides that her solution to a political conundrum is to poke Clayton Cosgrove the most expendable and unpopular member of the Labour caucus out on a long pole to deliver a bit of political thuggery on the Leader of the Opposition for the  
Sunday Star-Times 
. We know that Helen Clark has no answers when she vacates the Chamber for the general debate and leaves Steve Maharey and Rick Barker the two most unpopular and expendable members of her Cabinet to carry the flag for the Labour Party. 
Recent days have seen a good deal of political debate over the speech made by the leader of the National Party Dr Brash at Orewa. 
In essence he pointed to the crossroads that New Zealanders confront—the two very different paths from which New Zealanders must choose. There is the path of political correctness and treaty separatism being espoused by those who lead the Labour Government—which sees the treaty imported into every process every institution every statute and every part of New Zealand life—and there is the path advocated by Dr Brash and his colleagues in the National Party that New Zealanders should be treated equally regardless of their race and ethnic origins. 
That sentiment has struck a chord. I say to members opposite—as Mr Dunne has said—that they should listen. New Zealanders come to my office bail me up on the street and tell me that they are grandparents of children—some of whom are part-Maori and some of whom are not—and that they cannot believe we live in a country where those children are treated differently. When people feel that sentiment I say to members opposite that they should listen. 
It has not just been members of the public who have reacted. We have seen members of the Labour Party react very quickly. Some six of them from Cabinet were tripping over themselves to attack Dr Brash personally. The editor of the  
Sunday Star-Times 
 has embarked on one of the most transparently unprofessional jack-ups in New Zealand’s journalistic history. Working with the ninth floor of the Beehive is not professionalism and I say to the editor of the  
Sunday Star-Times  
that she will have to justify her actions not only to her employees but also to the increasing numbers who will cease to buy that publication—as indeed I will myself.  
The Governor-General also will need to reflect on her position because she was very quick to buy into the debate. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member must not bring the Governor-General into debate. He will move on to another subject. 
Hon MURRAY McCULLY 
: I was just making a passing reference. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: There must be no reference. 
Hon MURRAY McCULLY 
: The speech made by my leader Dr Brash has seen many New Zealanders take the opportunity to express their views to members of Parliament and members opposite should learn to listen. It will be a new experience for them but they should learn to listen. 
I want to remind the House this afternoon—because some members seem to have great difficulty in understanding it—that we have seen an outbreak of racially funded programmes in the last few years. For those journalists who have difficulty understanding what needs-based funding versus racially based funding is I simply refer them to the alleged “closing the gaps” programme—the flagship programme of the Helen Clark Government from 2000 that became a political submarine. 
That programme was to be so important that every chief executive would have to demonstrate that he or she had achieved results in his or her portfolio area. Every chief executive stood the risk of losing the bonus that he or she was due each year unless he or she could demonstrate results under the closing the gaps programme. The Prime Minister trumpeted it from one end of the country to the other. She said it was $243 million when she was talking to non-Maori audiences and $900 million when she was addressing Maori audiences.