2. Wage Rates—GrowthANDREW BAYLY (National—Hunua) to the Minister of FinanceWage Rates—Growth2. ANDREW BAYLY (National—Hunua) to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on how rising wages and low inflation mean more money for New Zealand families?Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance): Statistics New Zealand reports show that since the Government was elected in 2008 average wages have increased by 25 percent and today sit at just over $58000—that is $11000 more than in 2008. This 25 percent increase compares with inflation over the same period of 12 percent. High wage increases do not necessarily mean high real wage increases. For instance in the year to September 2008 wages increased by 5.1 percent but inflation was also high and it increased by 5.1 percent in that year. So low inflation means that higher wages earned by hard-working New Zealanders are going further.Andrew Bayly: What trends in the growth of after-tax wages can he report?Hon BILL ENGLISH: The money that households get to spend is their after-tax income and the Government's reduction in taxes on income and savings in 2010 have helped to lift take-home pay. Under this Government after-tax wages have increased by 31 percent—that is the average take-home pay for Kiwi workers is nearly a third higher than in 2008 an average annual increase of around 4 percent in take-home pay at a time when inflation was 1.5 percent.Andrew Bayly: How does higher take-home pay for workers under this Government compare with previous Governments?Hon BILL ENGLISH: Since the Government was elected real take-home pay—that is income after taxes and excluding inflation—has increased by around 2.2 percent per annum. In the 10 years up to 2008 the increase was around 0.5 percent per annum so take-home pay after inflation and after tax is increasing at around four times the rate in these 10 years than it did in the previous decade.Rt Hon Winston Peters: If the minimum wage in 2008 when they became the Government was $12 per hour what is it now and what percentage increase is that over 8 years?Hon BILL ENGLISH: I cannot confirm the figure the member used but the minimum wage has increased roughly around the rate of inflation—a bit ahead of inflation—over the last 8 years with the effect that New Zealand has one of the highest minimum wages relative to average wages in the developed world.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I have asked him a direct question. I am asking him what the minimum wage is now and we are still waiting for the answer.Mr SPEAKER: That was not the question the member asked. He prefaced it with something else talking about—[Interruption] Order! The member can resume his seat. He needs to go back and look at the Hansard but his start to the question was around the minimum wage being $12 an hour in 2008. The Minister certainly addressed that part of it.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: I have ruled on that matter.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I know what the rules are about arguing with the Speaker's ruling. My point—Mr SPEAKER: Can I just have the point of order?Rt Hon Winston Peters: My point is that if it was as it was $12 per hour in 2008 when they became the Government what is it now?Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member has put that into his question giving the Minister the opportunity to answer that part of the question. If the member wants to ask simple concise questions I can help him to get the answer but when he asks a question like that it has been addressed.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Given that he has been in that position as the Minister of Finance for 8 long years what now—right now—is the minimum wage in New Zealand?Hon BILL ENGLISH: It is $15.25 an hour.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. That is the very point I sought to make. He did have the answer but he would not give it.Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. I explained to the member. I tried to assist him with questions but the first answer that was given certainly addressed the question in the way it was raised. The member then asked a supplementary question and got the answer he wanted.Andrew Bayly: How have the—[Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the member to stand and withdraw that remark immediately.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I withdraw and apologise if you took offence. I am talking about the Minister's answer.Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will stand now and withdraw without any addition otherwise he will be leaving the Chamber.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Mr Speaker I do not wish to waste this Parliament's time by apologising beyond that matter. It was crap and it is crap.Mr SPEAKER: The member will leave the Chamber.Rt Hon Winston Peters withdrew from the Chamber. Hon David Parker: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Was the Rt Hon Winston Peters ejected because he called an answer from the Government crap" or did you take it to be a reference to yourself? I would have thought a reference to the Government answer being crap is not outside the Standing Orders. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! I do not need any assistance. I took it to be very much a criticism of myself. I asked the member to withdraw. He withdrew and embellished that. He then decided that he would not withdraw in line with the Standing Orders and chose to leave the Chamber.Hon David Parker: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: I hope the member is not going to be continuing the argument.Hon David Parker: The Rt Hon Winston Peters made it clear that it was not addressed to you and I do not think it unambiguously was.Mr SPEAKER: I found it the way it was addressed offensive. I took offence at it and I asked the member to withdraw. That is the end of the matter.Andrew Bayly: How have the most vulnerable in our society benefited from improving economic conditions?Hon BILL ENGLISH: They have benefited from an increase in the minimum wage which is now $15.25 per hour and is one of the highest minimum wages relative to the average wage in the developed world. Also families with children on benefits had the benefit of a $25 increase in their rate of benefit on 1 April this year the first such increase over and above the Consumers Price Index in 42 years. Of course because we have a growing economy and the Government's books are in surplus with surpluses likely to increase the Government has choices in the future—for instance about better public services that may enable us to better support the most vulnerable.Grant Robertson: Does he really think the most vulnerable in New Zealand are benefiting when the New Zealand Income Survey last week said "…there is evidence of higher [after housing costs] income inequality in the last few years as compared with the mid 2000s and earlier." and when Tracy Watkins in the Dominion Post said that it is now "…a clear picture of who is shouldering the biggest burden of the housing crisis in New Zealand - the poorest households…"?Mr SPEAKER: Order! Bring the question to a conclusion.Hon BILL ENGLISH: I am pleased the member now agrees with the Government position on this. The Government has been pointing out for some time that poor planning and an ideology that says all cities should be small and dense hurts low and middle income New Zealand families because it drives up the cost of housing. I am pleased to see that Auckland City for instance has adopted a new much more expansive plan which provides hope for low and middle income households that in the longer term housing costs will be more reasonable."