Norman Russel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to MembersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeNorman Russel: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members[Sitting date: 09 April 2014. Volume:697;Page:17042. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]7.Dr RUSSEL NORMAN (Co-Leader—Green)to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Does he stand by all his statements?Hon SIMON BRIDGES (Minister of Energy and Resources):Yes of course always—within the nuanced context in which they have been given.Dr Russel Norman: Does he stand by his statement yesterday that he was unaware of Victoria Forest Park New Zealand’s largest forest park even though he recently opened it up for oil and gas exploration?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: Yes because my role and this Government’s responsibility and commitment has always been in terms of the conservation estate to ensure that no schedule 4 land no national parks and no World Heritage areas would be opened up for oil and gas exploration. I took that responsibility exceptionally seriously.Dr Russel Norman: Was Victoria Forest Park mentioned in the briefing papers he received about the areas proposed for oil and gas exploration?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: No because what my responsibility was and what the papers briefed me on was where the conservation land was and the classifications of that. I took particular note of course about the schedule 4 land about the national parks and about the World Heritage areas and also noted the process in terms of the consultation with local iwi with councils and also with the Department of Conservation which raised no objections in relation to anything including the forest park.Dr Russel Norman: Given that he has told the House that he was told of the different kinds of classifications was he told that this area that sits between Nelson Lakes National Park and Kahurangi National Park was a forest park and did he inquire as to why the largest forest park in the country was being opened up to oil and gas exploration?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: Well I think the premise of the question there is a misconception. As I said what I was undertaking to do was to ensure that there was none of the upmost sensitive areas in that park. What I was also advised of was that there were various classifications within that. But the Department of Conservation does not have a hierarchy of conservation land outside of schedule 4 and so whilst I noted that I was most concerned about the other as I say schedule 4 and national park areas and ensured that they were not included in any shape or form.Dr Russel Norman: Had he heard of the following conservation areas that just last week he opened up for petroleum exploration: Kakapōtahi Ecological Area Te Wharau Ecological Area Deep Creek Ecological Area Mōkihinui Forks Ecological Area Upper Tōtara Ecological Area Doctor Hill Ecological Area Mount Hārata Ecological Area Coal Creek Ecological Area Kaniere Ecological Area Three Mile Hill Ecological Area Greenstone Ecological Area—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Bring it to a conclusion.Dr Russel Norman: —and Mount Richmond Forest Park. Had he heard of any of those areas that he opened up for oil and gas exploration last week?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: There are over a thousand such areas and I had not heard of all of them. One wonders whether the member had heard of the four permits for coal mining in the Victoria Forest Park when he was last in Government including for open-cast coal mining in the area he now purports to be concerned about.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I think you have quite rightly ruled on occasion that we should not debate an answer during points of order but for a Minister with this experience to assert as part of an answer that a member who has never been in Government has been just shows a level of ignorance that is unacceptable.Mr SPEAKER: The member has made his point. The question was long it was answered relatively quickly and the rest of the answer was actually unnecessary to the order of the House.Dr Russel Norman: Has he heard of the following conservation areas that just last week he opened up for petroleum and gas exploration such as Te Wharau Wildlife Management Area Orikaka Ecological Area Bell Hill - Granite Hill Ecological Area Fletcher Creek Ecological Area Card Creek Ecological Area Lyall Historic Reserve—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Bring the question to a conclusionDr Russel Norman: —and White Creek Fault Scientific Reserve all areas that he has now opened up for oil and gas exploration; and did he check out whether any of them were on the list before he signed it off?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: I think behind the question is a premise that there should not be any development in these sorts of areas but that was not the case when under his watch there were 12 mining permits including for exploratory petroleum in the very area—the Victoria Forest Park—where he now says there should not be any mining.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Mr Mallard raised a point of order with you. It is simply that these matters go beyond being debatable but the Minister repeated his assertion that someone had been a Minister or had been in Government before. He said “on his watch”. He meant that and it means he comes down here—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The difficulty I have is again with the length of the question. When the question is that long it is clearly going to invite an answer that is likely to raise the temperature of the House and that is exactly what happened on that occasion. It would help if the member has further supplementary questions—could he make them concise and to the point.Gareth Hughes: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It is a different point of order. It is that the question was not addressed. The Minister simply talked about Dr Russel Norman’s motivations in the premise; he did not actually say whether he had heard of any of those parks before he opened them up.Mr SPEAKER: Order! No in my mind the question was definitely addressed.Dr Russel Norman: Is he aware that Victoria Forest Park the park he had not heard of until yesterday even though it is the biggest forest park in the country with 200000 hectares of land that he recently opened up to be exploited for petroleum exploration has many ecological areas in it and many areas that are defined as pristine by the Department of Conservation and worthy of protection from his depredations?Hon SIMON BRIDGES: I am aware of some of those matters and also that Russel Norman allowed open-cast coalmining in that area when he was—Metiria Turei: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I ask you to ensure that Ministers are not entitled to stand up—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I do not need any—[Interruption] Order! Would the Minister stand and answer the question that was asked. He does not need the political barb about whether a member was involved in a decision particularly when that member was not part of a former Government.Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You have made the point in the past that where politically loaded questions are asked they will get politically loaded answers back. It is a reality that the previous Government which did allow open-cast mining in these areas and did allow mining permits and oil exploration in these areas could not have stayed in Government—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member can resume his seat. If the Minister wanted to answer along those lines I would find it acceptable. To simply stand up and attack the Green member is unacceptable. If the Minister has an answer to continue with he should do so. Thank you.