Brash Don: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Brash Don: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:613;Page:10016] 
2.  
Dr DON BRASH (Leader of the Opposition) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she stand by her statement that: “Getting the transport infrastructure right is a critical component of all growth strategies for Auckland”; if so what proposals have been put before Auckland’s local authorities in the paper authored by officials and referred to in this morning’s  
New Zealand Herald 
? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Deputy Prime Minister) 
 on behalf of the 
 Prime Minister 
: Yes. The Minister of Finance the Minister of Transport and the Minister with responsibility for Auckland Issues together with Auckland’s mayors and representatives of the Auckland Regional Council received a presentation last week from officials on the emerging findings of their work to consider how to fund investment in Auckland’s transport infrastructure. A range of possible options was presented and no decisions have been taken. 
Dr Don Brash 
: In light of the  
New Zealand Herald  
report which ties a proposed $430 million grant to 5 percent rate increases by Auckland local authorities can we take it that any essential Government funding for Auckland roads will be tied to a commitment to rate increases in Auckland? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: No. 
Lynne Pillay 
: Does the Prime Minister agree that extra revenue should go only to roads as advocated by the Employers and Manufacturers Association? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Increasing roads alone is not a sustainable solution to Auckland’s transport situation. Scenarios modelled by officials all involve a mix of roading transport demand management passenger transport and a range of funding mechanisms. 
Dail Jones 
: How can the Prime Minister’s Government even contemplate another tax—a whopping 15 percent petrol tax at that—when it has a considerable surplus and is siphoning off something like $600 million to $1 billion every year from petrol motorists with no real justification and using it to fund other Government projects and to bolster its very substantial surplus? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Firstly if the member had been present as a fly on the wall during the Minister of Finance’s first major Budget meeting yesterday morning he would not have asked that question about the surplus. Secondly the Government has turned down— 
Gerry Brownlee 
: That’s not an answer. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Yes it is an answer to that question. The member did not listen. The Minister of Transport has ruled out a 15c petrol tax increase. It is interesting to note that the New Zealand First minority report on the Land Transport Management Bill proposed a substantial rise in petrol duty matched by a corresponding contribution from the Crown account. 
Keith Locke 
: Does the information in this morning’s  
New Zealand Herald  
that 40 percent of Auckland’s peak-hour traffic is education-related motivate the Prime Minister to prioritise spending on alternative modes of transport that are relevant to school pupils and students such as walking buses cycle convoys and public transport more specifically dedicated to education institutions? 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Get rid of the tractors. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I assume that my colleague who interjected meant the sport utility vehicles that tend to clog up our present day roading systems during the peak hours for school traffic transportation. Clearly those are a part of the solution but it would be fairly heroic to assume that they will be a majority part of the solution to Auckland’s long-term roading and transport problems. 
Deborah Coddington 
: Regarding funding mechanisms for infrastructure is the Prime Minister prepared to give a categorical assurance to the country that as long as she is Prime Minister there will be no new petrol price hikes or new taxes on petrol? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I am sure that that member in particular would not expect the Prime Minister to rule out any element of user-pays in the transport system. 
Larry Baldock 
: Will the Prime Minister give the people of Tauranga an assurance that if the Government adopts officials’ recommendation of a one-off contribution of $430 million towards solving Auckland’s roading needs then a similar proportional one-off contribution—which based on the population of Tauranga would be about 10 percent of that or approximately $43 million—would be allocated to Tauranga which is also facing a roading deficit complicated by the fact that it hosts the largest port in the country? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The question was very wide of the mark. The Minister may comment briefly if he wishes. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I cannot give that assurance in that form because I am advised by the Minister of Finance that while no decisions have been taken he is somewhat sceptical about a $430 million upfront contribution from the Government. 
Dr Don Brash 
: Does the Prime Minister admit that the biggest problem in dealing with Auckland’s traffic congestion problems is the Resource Management Act and her Government’s failure to fix the problems in that Act in the Resource Management Amendment Act this year and now the extended consultation required under the Land Transport Management Act rather than a problem of funding? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: No indeed a very clear conclusion the joint officials group exercised was that that was not the major problem. The major problem surprisingly—to the member perhaps as a recent arrival in Auckland—is the growth of Auckland and the lack of addressing those problems of growth over a long period of time.