Yang Jian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeYang Jian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 19 November 2013. Volume:695;Page:14898. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]5.Dr JIAN YANG (National) to theMinister for Economic Development: How is the Government’s Business Growth Agenda helping to strengthen the New Zealand economy?Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Economic Development): The Business Growth Agenda is a detailed and comprehensive programme to encourage businesses to make new investments to build jobs and long-term growth for New Zealanders and it is working. Today the OECD released its latest economic outlook report. It is forecasting growth for New Zealand reaching 3.6 percent in the calendar year 2004. This forecast would put New Zealand growth rates in the top six for developed economies—above the OECD average of 2.4 percent and actually much better than Australia’s at 2.7percent. The OECD is also forecasting an improvement in the current account deficit forecasting the deficit—Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. With respect a Minister has got to be relatively accurate. We do not want to hear about—Mr SPEAKER: Order! I want to know what the point of order is. Debating the answer is not a point of order; that is a debate—Rt Hon Winston Peters: No you have not heard it yet.Mr SPEAKER: Well then I want to hear it.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Well you are going to hear it now if you sit down and I will give it to you.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I will be lenient because the member has the next question but if he treats the Speaker like that in the future he will not be here for the balance of question time. [Interruption] Order! I invite the member to quickly come to his point of order.Rt Hon Winston Peters: The point of order is that he gave the growth report for 2004—9 years ago. That is my point.Mr SPEAKER: That may well be the point but I do not think that is the fact.Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I invite you to check theHansard—Mr SPEAKER: I will check theHansard. I invite the member to resume his seat.Hon STEVEN JOYCE: Perhaps a little more slowly for the member—the OECD is forecasting growth for New Zealand reaching 3.6 percent in the calendar year 2014 Mr Peters. This forecast would put New Zealand growth rates in the top six for developed economies—above the OECD average of 2.4 percent and much better than Australia’s at 2.7 percent. The OECD is also forecasting an improvement in the current account deficit forecasting the deficit will narrow from 4.3 percent of GDP to 3.6 percent of GDP in 2014. The Government’s relentless focus on encouraging investment via the Business Growth Agenda is clearly working.Dr Jian Yang: What steps is the Government taking to encourage further investment for jobs and growth for Kiwi families?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The Business Growth Agenda is a comprehensive programme of work that encourages investment. On Monday the Minister of Finance and I released a 2013 progress report which updates progress on the approximately 350 separate initiatives. It builds on access to the six key inputs business needs to succeed: growing and adding jobs capital market access natural resources infrastructure skills and innovation. It includes initiatives like oil and gas exploration the apprenticeship reboot more flexible labour market conditions the Government’s series of Resource Management Act reforms the mixed-ownership model the New Zealand International Convention Centre and the roads of national significance to name just a few. The interesting thing—and New Zealanders will note this—is that the Opposition opposes almost every one of those initiatives.Dr Jian Yang: What initiatives in the Business Growth Agenda are aimed at helping the construction sector?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: The construction sector is of course one of the largest sectors in the New Zealand economy. It generates annual revenues of more than $30 billion and employs around 170000 people. A big challenge in the sector is to grow skills training to help meet these skilled employment requirements for the coming construction boom. The Government’s revamp of the apprenticeship scheme in the apprenticeship reboot is seeing very big numbers of people signing up for construction apprenticeships. We have also spent approaching $60 million in expanding priority trades at institutes of technology. That has led to an expansion of trades facilities aroundthe country including in Wellington where today I was pleased to be able to announce the development of a $13.6 million Regional School of Construction by the Wellington Institute of Technology and Whitireia Community Polytechnic.