Ross Jami-Lee: Debate on Prime Minister’s StatementText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeRoss Jami-Lee: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement[Sitting date: 12 February 2014. Volume:696;Page:15843. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]JAMI-LEE ROSS (National—Botany): What a great time it is to be a member of the National caucus. It is a great time to be a member of this caucus because as we head into the election later this year we have got a leader who is charismatic we have got a leader who is effective and we have got a leader who is on top of his job. We have also got a leader who is one of the most popular Prime Ministers at this stage in the electoral cycle we have seen in the last 50 years. The party of the members opposite is jealous because its leader is tricky. Its leader makes things up on the hoof. Its leader does not have caucus support either. Every single person sitting behind him is questioning right now whether their party made the right decision. We like to say on this side of the House that Labour’s Best Start policy was actually a bad start to the year. I want to take a different spin on it and say that it was not just the worst start to the year for them; actually it was a bit of a best start. It was a best start for the “ABC” club. It was a best start for the “Anyone But Cunliffe” club. It was a best start for those people who knowthat their leader is not up to it and who know that their leader is not fit to be the Prime Minister of New Zealand. New Zealanders around the country know that as well.New Zealand as a country is doing exceptionally well right now. We are doing exceptionally well because New Zealanders are seeing significant growth rates. We are one of the best countries in the OECD at the moment when it comes to growth. Sixty-six thousand jobs in the New Zealand economy were created last year for New Zealanders. When you think about what is happening overseas and when you think about our neighbours in Australia and when you think about the difficult global financial crisis that many countries have gone through seeing 66000 new jobs in the economy created for New Zealanders is a huge achievement.Andrew Little: Not at Goodman Fielder in Hamilton.JAMI-LEE ROSS: Andrew Little over there likes to yell and scream but he is a former union leader and he knows that many of the policies that his group his party and his former clan in the unions want to pursue will actually lead to fewer jobs for New Zealanders. We have the policies that are seeing more jobs for New Zealanders. They do not like to hear it but it is absolutely the truth. In this country business confidence is at a 20-year high. New Zealand businesses are feeling the positive effects in the economy. They are wanting to invest more money and that investment is leading to more jobs.I think one the proudest achievements so far of this Government has been in the welfare area where 17000 Kiwis came off the benefit in the last year and moved into work training or other forms of education. Seventeen thousand people now have a new start to life. Seventeen thousand people are no longer trapped in the welfare trap. We know that the Opposition likes to see them stay there because it actually seems to benefit the Opposition but in the long term the best thing for people on welfare to do is to get into jobs get into training or get into education because that is the key to success. Despite the squawking on the other side of the House about manufacturing in the last year manufacturing is growing in this country too and New Zealanders are really seeing the impacts of that.Hon David Parker: What about exports outside primary?JAMI-LEE ROSS: “Exports” says Mr—what is your name? Mr Parker. “Exports” says Mr Parker. Exports are growing hugely. My colleagues on this side of the House can see exports growing in this country too; New Zealanders can see it as well. When it comes to real after-tax wages despite what the Opposition members want to say after-tax wages are up 25 percent since we have been in office despite the inflation rate being at about 10 percent.I just want to turn a little bit to Australia because we know that our Prime Minister was in Australia recently. We know that the Opposition thinks that nothing came of it. Actually the relationship between New Zealand and Australia has considerably strengthened in the last 2 years so much so that Australia is looking to this country for ideas as to how to improve its economy. Tony Abbott the Prime Minister of Australia gave a speech recently to the Trans-Tasman Business Circle. He said: “When I look at New Zealand I see a country which at this point in its history has much to teach us.” He talked about the fact that the Key Government has seen growth in Government slow. The other side of the House likes to see Government continue to grow and grow. This side of the House actually believes that people should be empowered not so much see Government growth. In this country the Government percentage of GDP has reduced from 35 percent to 30 percent. I think the best quote that I could take from Tony Abbott’s speech was this: “As government gets smaller citizens get bigger and that is what this government wants to achieve in this country—empowered citizens.” That is exactly what the National Party is pursuing—empowered citizens a stronger economylower crime rates more people getting into health and education and New Zealanders succeeding around the country.But Tony Abbott also knows a bit about watching a Green Party in Government because in Australia they had the Green Party participating considerably in the last Labor-Greens Government. When we go to the polls later this year we know that New Zealanders have two options on their hands. They have got the strong stable National Government which is succeeding for New Zealanders or they have got the alternative Labour-Green-Mana-Winston Government which would be an absolute disaster for New Zealand. We know that the Greens are bad for economies because Australia is facing exactly the same types of problems that this country was left with in 2008. Australia is seeing massive growth in debt on its books. It is seeing huge amounts of unemployment facing it. It is seeing growth rates in its economy considerably down as well. Those are the issues that we had to face in this country and we know that if Labour and the Greens got back into office that is exactly what we would face as well.There is another strand to this story about the Green Party that I think we have to explore in this House. As much as the Green Party likes to talk about dodgy deals when it looks at us I think the last 24 hours have shown us that there is one dodgy deal that is brewing in this country that absolutely needs public scrutiny and public examination. We know that Russel Norman has recently been visiting one Kim Dotcom. We also know that one Russel Norman has said publicly to TV3 and other media outlets that he is willing to intervene in any extradition process for Mr Dotcom. We also know that Mr Norman has said on record that he has asked Mr Dotcom to pull back from his political interventions through his Internet Party knowing that the Internet Party would likely take some votes from the Green Party. If there is any dodgy deal in this country whereby politicians are considering intervening in judicial processes where politicians are considering intervening in whether this Government extradites an individual to the United States and asking at the same time that that individual does not do anything to hurt them politically—if there is any party in this country that is entertaining dodgy deals then it is the Green Party and it is Russel Norman.As much as they like to squawk and point fingers at this side of the House and complain about the quite legitimate electorate deals that this party sends to the people there is one party in this country that is corrupting the political process and it is the Green Party and its members should be ashamed of that. Green Party members also used to be against big money in politics. They also used to be against business people getting involved in the political process. But actually the Green Party is completely the one that is doing an about-face and changing its style completely. I am appalled by what I have seen when it comes to the extradition process and the Green Party and New Zealanders should be appalled by it as well.We have got a strong story to tell in this country. We know that the economy is growing. We know that New Zealanders are starting to feel the positive impacts of economic growth. We are seeing more jobs fewer people in unemployment fewer people in the welfare queue and more people getting operations. We are seeing that we are going to get back to surplus next year. We are also going to see this country start to grow even more and continue to be a bright shining star in the world economy. The contrast on the other side is not flash. We know that the policies that that side is coming up with are made on the hoof. The policies do not stack up. We know that the numbers do not stack up either. The Labour Party is tricky. The Green Party is dodgy. This Government has the recipe to see New Zealand continue to grow and that is what we will be putting to the people later this year.