Bennett David: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBennett David: General Debate[Sitting date: 14 October 2015. Volume:709;Page:7217. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]DAVID BENNETT (National—Hamilton East): This year there have been two main political issues that have dominated the course of the political environment. The first has been the movement towards getting a surplus and the second has been the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. In both cases the Government has been vindicated this week for the work that we have done in this area and the Opposition has been shown to be false misleading and taking the public down the wrong track in regard to both of these issues.Let us start with some quotes in regard to the Opposition parties looking at first of all the surplus that has been achieved today—a great surplus of $414 million. I think we should thank the Hon Bill English and his team for achieving such a good surplus. But let us have a look at what Andrew Little said on the Budget statement: “A lot of effort … has gone into glossing over the broken promise but I see it for what it is—one of the biggest political deceptions in a lifetime.” “One of the biggest political deceptions in a lifetime” is what the Labour leader said. And he said: “When the Government wilfully and deliberately makes a promise they know they cannot keep in a general election campaign that is a huge deception.” Well today we have delivered on that promise. We have delivered that surplus. There was no deception. There was delivery to the New Zealand public of what we promised.Let us have a look at what Mr Winston Peters said about the surplus “I will make this prediction right now …”—this is the person who can make predictions about anything—“I will make this prediction right now: Bill English will never ever deliver a surplus.” Well Bill English has delivered a surplus. Where is the infamous leader of the New Zealand First Party? He said more: “This is the political test he set himself and he has failed.” He has succeeded in that test and he has delivered a surplus for New Zealand.Let us look at free trade. When we come to free trade we all know the opposition of the Labour Party. Labour members were out protesting at all these meetings around free trade. They sent their apologies if they could not make it. Even Mr Winston Peters said this to the protesters in Kerikeri: “Trust me. I know what we are going to do here. We’ll stop them passing this law.” That is what the New Zealand First Party is saying about free trade and about the regions.But let us have a look. There is a voice of reason on the left when it comes to free trade and that comes from the former Prime Minister Helen Clark who said: “What always haunts one as New Zealand Prime Minister is will there be a series of trade blocs develop that you are not part of? Because it is unthinkable for New Zealand as an export-oriented small trading nation to miss out on that. So of course it is in New Zealand’s best interests to be in the TPPA and we should go for the best deal we can get.” That was the immortal Helen Clark from the Labour Party who said that.This is the illustration of the conflicts of interest you have seen through the political debate in the last year. On that side of the House members have been against free trade. They have been against getting New Zealand into surplus. On this side we have been for free trade and we have got New Zealand into surplus. I say to the public of New Zealand: that side of the House has never been right. Those members have never been right and I say they should say sorry for what they have been saying over the last year to the New Zealand public. They should say sorry for the scaremongering that they put out to the New Zealand public over the last year about finance and about trade.They should start backing New Zealand. They should actually go out there and support New Zealand getting free-trade agreements and support New Zealand getting into a good economic position and they need to start being positive. They need to start being positive for New Zealand and looking for a direction that is forward-thinking. They need to start being honest with New Zealand and not try to mislead the public of this country. They need to stop being controlled by their union mates who do not want trade agreements. That is what they need to do on that side of the House. They need to start advocating for the regional economy. They need to stop going on TV saying they represent farmers and then coming into this House and voting against farmers producers and manufacturers and stopping free-trade agreements. They need to be honest with New Zealanders for once. They need to actually stand up for what would deliver for this country and they need to stop being the scaremongering negative bad people that they are who are taking this country down.