Hide Rodney: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Hide Rodney: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:609;Page:6197] 
1. RODNEY HIDE (ACT NZ) 
 to the  
Minister of Maori Affairs 
: On what date and how did he learn that his reply to question for written answer No. 257 lodged on 13 February 2003 that “I am advised by my officials that there have been no payments of cash by Maori Sportscasting International (MSCI) to any employees of Te Mangai Paho.” was incorrect? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Minister of Maori Affairs) 
: 
 On 9 June 2003 I received a report from Te Puni Kokiri that the answer was incorrect. 
Rodney Hide 
: Did the Minister read the Treasury-led review team’s report that he received on 28 May and did he realise that the review team found that Mr Tame Te Rangi had been paid cash by Maori Sportscasting International? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: When I received the external report on 28 May I asked my department to review all the questions and my responses relating to Te Mangai Paho to check their accuracy. My officials provided me with a report on 9 June. 
Rodney Hide 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. This is the difficulty that we have. My question was clear: did he read the report? He told us he received it. He never said whether he read it. 
As far as we know he received the report sent it off to his officials to read and he himself did not open it. How do we proceed when he can answer a question like that? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The Minister was asked a question. The Minister addressed the question by way of an answer. There can continue to be supplementary questions. 
Hon Murray McCully 
: Did the Minister give any serious consideration to reading the report himself rather than asking his officials to read it and report to him; and with the benefit of hindsight does the Minister now agree that it might have been better if he had read the Treasury report himself to test the veracity of his answers? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Certainly I want to repeat that when I received the external report on 28 May I asked my department to review all the questions so that I could give correct information and my responses related to Te Mangai Paho to check their accuracy. My officials provided me with a report on 9 June. 
Mahara Okeroa 
: Has the answer to parliamentary written question No. 257 been corrected? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Yes. A corrected reply was lodged yesterday. When I received the external report I asked my department to review all 200 questions and responses regarding Te Mangai Paho to check their accuracy. Consequently I have corrected answers to 13 questions and lodged them yesterday. 
Hon Ken Shirley 
: Did he read the newspapers—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! That is the one and only warning and the member is very lucky—very lucky indeed. I want to tell Mr Shirley seeing I disciplined him yesterday that he can consider himself very lucky. Please start the question again. 
Hon Ken Shirley 
: On that basis was I very unlucky yesterday? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Yes. 
Hon Ken Shirley 
: I thought so. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: What comes around goes around. 
Hon Ken Shirley 
: Did the Minister read the newspapers listen to the radio or watch television news about the Treasury-led review team’s report that Mr Tame Te Rangi had received cash; if so was he totally unconscious of the fact that he had told Parliament that Mr Tame Te Rangi had not received cash? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Sometimes I watch the television and listen to the radio and sometimes when one is under siege one does not. 
Rodney Hide 
: Would the Minister now care to answer the primary question and tell the House on what date he learnt that Mr Tame Te Rangi had been paid cash by Maori Sportscasting International Ltd; and having regard to that answer when did he realise that his replies to Parliament were false? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: When I received the external report on 28 May I asked my department to review all the questions and my responses related to Te Mangai Paho to check their accuracy so that I could give accurate information to people like Mr Hide. Certainly the email was directly given to him rather than through the normal process. 
Hon Murray McCully 
: When the Minister received the Treasury report did he actually read its contents; if so did it occur to him that at least some of the information in the document was at variance with answers to parliamentary questions he furnished and that he therefore had an obligation to tell this Parliament that some of that information was wrong? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: It is important to understand that accuracy is accurate and that I asked my department to labour over the 200 questions and those parts in that report. I have repeated the answer to that question three times. I am more than happy to repeat it a fourth time. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. On several occasions today the Minister has been asked two questions: one about a date and it appears impossible to get the answer to that from the Minister; and secondly whether he read the report. The question that my colleague asked started with: “Did the Minister read the report?”. We are simply not getting an answer. The Minister cannot be ruled to be addressing the question when he talks about the report. The question is very narrow. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I listened to the question and I listened to the answer. I took from the Minister’s reply that when he had received the report and had observed what was in it he sent it off to a department. That was what I took out of the answer and I thought that addressed the question. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. To the question: “Did the Minister read the report?” one assumes that part of the answer will be either “Yes” or “No”. The fact that you took from it that the Minister received the report and sent it to the department—we all know that. We did not ask him whether he sent it to the department. It arrived in his office and he sent it to the department. We just want to know whether he opened it. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: That is irrelevant to me. I have to adjudge whether he addressed the question. He did. 
Hon Brian Donnelly 
: From the Minister’s previous response is he saying that he has no confidence in the accuracy of Treasury reports; if so what does that say about the Minister responsible for Treasury? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: If that member would labour over the part that I directed the ministry to read the report I have the utmost confidence in the ability of Treasury.