Brownlee Gerry: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBrownlee Gerry: General Debate[Sitting date: 13 April 2016. Volume:713;Page:10467. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration): That was a round of applause as the party bus heads its way down from 28 to 26. This country has trust laws that apply to all trusts in this country. Every New Zealander who sets up a trust whether it be for the protection of their families or the security of their retirement income—and it could be any number of retirement schemes that exist throughout the country—is governed by the same laws that Andrew Little has said in the House today Labour wants to dismantle. Why does he want to affect the rights of New Zealanders to make the most of the circumstances that they find in their own lives? Simply because he wants to protect the tax base of foreign national countries. Well let us be very clear about this. If you are a young worker in New Zealand entering the workforce you are likely to be paying a tax rate of around 17.5 percent. If you are in an average OECD country that same person would be paying twice that rate at 35.5 percent. The answer for those foreign jurisdictions is not to start moaning about New Zealanders’ rights under trust law but simply to adjust their own tax law.Is it any wonder that the Labour Party is in such a dreadful state? Why would New Zealanders turn round to it and say: “You’ve got my vote because of the attention you are paying to foreign tax bases at our expense.”? Of course the attack on John Key is motivated entirely by the perplexing situation that the Labour Party sees in the current round of polling. Everyone would agree that there is only one poll—that is on election day—but the indications coming from the public are that that is a party with the phone off the hook. We saw it today in question time and we see it every day in question time where there is every effort made to reflect on some past glory of a previous Labour Government and to compare it to the extraordinary results being delivered for New Zealanders on a daily basis by this Government.Was it not interesting in the general debate today to hear Mr Little’s plea to help foreign tax bases at the expense of New Zealanders and their rights under trust law again by saying: “This country has a good education system a good health system. It is a peaceful country and it is a secure country.”? If that is where the Labour Party is coming from—and its worry is entirely offshore—no wonder New Zealanders are not listening.In the last week this Government has made a number of announcements that are positive for New Zealand. Anne Tolley announced the changes to the way in which this Government will see the State’s involvement with children enhanced to a level not seen before—a programme that will see children put at the centre of the State’s care and not the bureaucratic institutions that deliver that care. That is the sort of thing that New Zealanders want to hear and do connect with. It was fascinating that even the Labour Party saw the worth in that.Today there was an announcement from my colleague Michael Woodhouse. He will make more comment on that in a few minutes but it is a clear demonstration that this Government knows where the opportunity for delivering social services to this country comes from. It is from the small businesses that risk their capital that employ people and that go out day after day working hard. What we will get from the other side is an attack on that and no support for it. No wonder then that New Zealanders are asking: “What does the Labour Party stand for?”. If you were listening to Mr Little today it stands for good education good health good security and good housing. He concedes that this Government is delivering all of that and then his party stands for protecting the tax base of foreign countries against the rights of New Zealanders who want to enjoy the privileges of our domestic trust laws.