Parker David: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeParker David: General Debate[Sitting date: 25 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1917. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon DAVID PARKER (Labour): Getting the whole truth out of the Prime Minister is like pulling teeth.Chris Bishop: Oh rubbish!Hon DAVID PARKER: “Rubbish!” he says. There goes the man who used to work in his office alongside Jason Ede. Yeah that is right. Where is Jason Ede? Tell us that. We never hear Jason Ede coming out to tell us what went down in those days.Andrew Little has traversed some of the ground today. We had the Government not saying anything about State house sales at the time of the election and then miraculously having as its major focus at the moment the sale of State houses. We had the Skycity deal presented as being no cost to the Government for the full monty the whole shebang. It was going to be absolutely free.Dr David Clark: Not a cent more.Hon DAVID PARKER: “Not a cent more.” was the phrase that was used. We now know that 14 months ago Mr Joyce knew that that was not the case. Either it was going to be trimmed as to scope or the taxpayer would have to get the cheque book out. Then shortly after the election we had both the Prime Minister and Mr Joyce softening up the public for having to spend more money on it getting beaten around the head by New Zealanders about that and now conceding that they will get a smaller convention centre. We have not had the whole truth there except what was dragged out reluctantly.Then we come to Iraq. “No boots on the ground.” was the phrase. “No boots on the ground.” was what the Prime Minister was saying before the election. New Zealanders were understandably suspicious because Bill English John Key and Gerry Brownlee all said that New Zealand should have gone to war in Iraq in 2003 as part of the coalition of the willing. Lo and behold those suspicions have been proven to be right this week when just a week after the Prime Minister said that it is the cost of being part of the club—which at that time meant was the “Five Eyes” club our traditional allies the United States Australia and Great Britain; that club—he now tries to reinterpret that as being the United Nations and has been roundly criticised by the media for spinning on that particular issue.Then this week as if all of this is not serious enough we know that he is misleading us about Donghua Liu. In the middle of all of these controversies—Mr Williamson resigning as a Minister as a consequence; Judith Collins in trouble with Oravida and her donations from them and the conflict of interest in her meetings with Chinese border officials in China—he put out a statement through his staff and he omitted to tell us that he had a private dinner with Donghua Liu.That sort of omission just does not ring true. He was quizzed about this in the stand-up this week. It reads like a Clarke and Dawe script. It would almost be funny if it was not so sad. He is asked whether he is misleading by omission. “Are you misleading by omission?” the reporter asked. PM: “No. I mean look at the end of the day we’re never going to start getting into a process of saying where we had dinner.” “At the end of the day” is one of those catchphrases that he always uses as a filler when he is in trouble.Next he said: “I knew it was a Cabinet club dinner.” The reporter says: “Just to be clear last year your office denied the dinner was a Cabinet club dinner. Emphatically they said no.” PM: “Right.” Reporter: “You’re saying it was a Cabinet club dinner?”. PM: “Well that’s only what I read in the paper in the weekend. People have their own definitions of it.” Reporter: “So to be clear was it a Cabinet club dinner?”. PM: “I don’t know. You’d have to ask Jami-Lee Ross. He organised it.” Reporter: “But didn’t you say it was a Cabinet club dinner?”. PM: “Well like I say.” Reporter: “How do you define a Cabinet club dinner?”. PM: “Well that’s right. How do you?”. Reporter: “Well we don’t go to them.”It gets worse. Reporter: “So you seem to be contradicting your office. You emphatically said it was not a Cabinet club dinner.” PM: “Well probably it wasn’t then. I don’t know. I don’t know the details.” Reporter: “But just moments ago you said it was a Cabinet club dinner.” PM: “Well only because that’s what I read in the paper. If you’re telling me it wasn’t then it wasn’t.” Reporter: “But you were there.” The catalogue of events where the Prime Minister has to have the truth dragged out of him does him no credit whatsoever.Hon TE URUROA FLAVELL (Co-Leader—Māori Party):Tēnā koe Mr Speaker ā ka nui te mihi ki a tātau i tēnei ahiahi. Ko tāku wāhanga tuatahi ko Te Reo Māori hei whaiwhai haere i te aroha nui ki ahau o taku reo ā ka mutu ka huri ki te reo Pākehā mō te wā. Mr Speaker me huri ki tētahi kaupapa hei whaiwhai atu i te mema rā. He kaupapa harikoa kaua ko tētahi kaupapa āhua titi ki te ngākau he mea pōuri rawa ēngari ko te kaupapa nui ko te kaupapa ātaahua nei tērā ka tū ki roto o Ōtautahi ki te wāhi e noho nā koe i Ōtautahi.Ā te wiki e tū mai nei ka kitea atu Te Ao Māori e whakaeke atu ana ki runga i a Ngāi Tahu otirā ngā iwi e noho nā ki Te Wai Pounamu. He aha te kaupapa? Ko Te Matatini! He aha Te Matatini? He huihuinga ā-tāngata he huihuinga Māori ki te whakanui i a ia anō. Ko te mata arā ko te kanohi o te tangata tērā āhuatanga tini. Ko tērā wāhanga tērā kupu e mea ana ko te tokomaha. Ē hia kē nei! Nō reira he pai tērā whakamārama a Wharehuia Milroy mō Te Matatini -he kohikohinga ā-tāngata he huihuinga ā-tāngata he huinga ngākau.He aha te mahi i Te Matatini? Ko te mahi kapa haka ka kitea mai ai ko te kapa ā-haka ā-poi ā-waiata ā-ngākau. Ko te painga ake o Te Matatini ka rongo te motu i ngā take nui o roto i Te Ao Māori. I ngā rā kua hipa ake i te wā i a Tākuta Pita Sharples ko te mahi petipeti tētahi. I ngā rā o wētahi atu Minita ko te whakahē i Te Pire Takutai Moana a Te Rōpū Reipa te mahi. Ka pai![Thank you Mr Speaker. Huge accolades to us this afternoon. My first part will be in the Māori language to follow up the huge fondness I have for my language and I will switch to English for a time. Mr Speaker to follow on from that member let us turn to a euphoric one and not just one that pricks the heart somewhat a really mournful one but with a huge and beautiful philosophy to be held in Christchurch at the place where you reside in at Christchurch.Next week Māoridom will be seen alighting upon Ngāi Tahu but at the same time upon the tribes living down there in the South Island. What isthe purpose? It is the Matatini.What is the Matatini? It is a gathering of people and of Māori honouring itself once again. Te mata is the face in other words the face of a person that aspect of the myriad. That part that word tini is referring to the great number to the myriad; anabsolutely massive number.So that explanation by Wharehuia Milroy for Te Matatini is a good one—a collectionof people a gathering of people an assembly of people performing from the heart.What is done at Te Matatini? Cultural performances that will be seen will be posture dances poi dancesand performances from the heart. The real good thing about Te Matatini is that the nation will hear about the big issues within Māoridom. In recent years just pastintheHon Dr Pita Sharples’ era gambling was one such issue. During the days of some of our Ministersopposing the Labour Party’s Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Bill was the task. That is fine.]Hon David Parker: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. My apologies to the speaker. I do not know whether other members are having the same difficulty but I cannot hear the interpretation. I see that you Mr Speaker are straining to hear it too.Mr SPEAKER: It is certainly very faint coming through. I am listening very intently. We will take it up with the interpreters subsequently. The member may decide it is more appropriate to continue his speech in English on this occasion but it is entirely over to him. You can hear it but you have got to listen very very carefully.Hon TE URUROA FLAVELL: Ka pai. I will help you out Mr Speaker. Can I start again with my 5 minutes? No no. It is all right.Mr SPEAKER: A good try but no.Hon TE URUROA FLAVELL: Anyway to all the ones who are in the gallery and so on I was saying that I was not at the function that Mr Parker was talking about and I was not talking to a reporter so I cannot comment on anything that was stated there. But I do want to tell the member that in another week or so come next Wednesday pretty much most of the towns will be emptied out of Māori. They will all be heading to Christchurch to the land of Mr Speaker—I hope you are still there; I think you are still there. [Interruption] Oh you are still there. That is all right. There is going to be a heap of Māori there and they are all going to go and celebrate the good things. The kaupapa the main function is going to be called Te Matatini. What does matatini mean? Mata means face and tini means many—many faces—and of course that encapsulates the statement by our Professor Wharehuria Milroy who named the function. What goes on at kapa haka and at Te Matatini—I tell you what. Having been the stage manager for Te Matatini for three festivals you have got food you have got entertainment—the highest calibre of entertainment in terms of Te Ao Māori that you will ever see. Thousands and thousands of people will be going.The great thing about it is that being held in Christchurch it will give a huge boost to the economy of Canterbury and indeed Christchurch. I think most of the motels are sold out. I do not know what Christchurch did but it took the Cricket World Cup and by taking Te Matatini it is taking money off Māori as well. That has got to be good for the economy. I just wanted to ask all members who happen to be in the Chamber and indeed those listening and those who might be listening around the country right now to take up the opportunity to go and see Te Matatini in all of its beautifulness—even if there is not such a word as “beautifulness” go there be in Christchurch and see the beauty of Te Matatini.The great thing for all members of Parliament if you go there is firstly you will struggle for votes because they are going to the Māori Party. [Interruption] I am just saying that. The second part is that you will hear the issues of the day. In the past there have been issues in respect of gambling and drug use. All of those things are taken up and are spoken about by way of haka by poi by action song. It is all there. All of the stuff is there if you want to see hear and feel Te Ao Māori. So I will just ask all the members whether they can take some time to be in Christchurch from Wednesday of next week. The pō’hiri is at 11 o’clock. Come and join us and the thousands of Māori who will be there. The final is on Sunday. It is going to be a great occasion and I am sure it is being broadcast. It will be a great celebration of being Māori. I hope you all have an opportunity to be there. We will take up the issue about interpretation later on. Thank you. Kia ora tātou.