Brownlee GerryPart 2 Amendments relating to consent and conditions regime for overseas investments in sensitive New Zealand assetsHon GERRY BROWNLEE (National—Ilam): I think it's an odd day for democracy in New Zealand when there can be a ruling that says that because 26 speeches have been made out of a possible 500 there has been enough of a voice exercised in this Parliament to take a vote.CHAIRPERSON (Adrian Rurawhe): Order! It is inappropriate for the member to be criticising the ruling from the Speaker that has just been made. We are debating Part 2.Hon David Bennett: It's a bad ruling.CHAIRPERSON (Adrian Rurawhe): The Hon David Bennett will stand withdraw and apologise.Hon David Bennett: I withdraw and apologise. What for Mr Chair?CHAIRPERSON (Adrian Rurawhe): Well if you sit down I'll tell you. When I'm on my feet no one interrupts and you did; that's why you had to withdraw. So as I was saying we are on Part 2 and I will ask the Hon Gerry Brownlee to turn his attention to Part 2.Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: We are on Part 2 and it's not unreasonable to reflect that Part 1 a very important part of the bill but not as important as Part 2 had only 26 contributions from members on this side of the Chamber.CHAIRPERSON (Adrian Rurawhe): Order! When I stand you sit down. We are on Part 2 not on Part 1. I've just made a ruling and I would ask the member to make his speech relevant to Part 2.Hon GERRY BROWNLEE: Well Part 2 is the most important part of the bill and I hope that the jackboot gets lifted a little bit so that all aspects of this part can be properly discussed by the committee. It's terrible when you see people in the Chair fearful of what their caucus may think of them if they don't follow some kind of party line on all of this. So I've got a couple of questions that I think are worth pursuing in this part.Firstly if this bill and all the signalling that's gone on about its merit all the signalling that's gone on about its virtues and its values were so important and so strong why has the price of a KiwiBuild house in this country—remember there have been only 18 built so far; I look forward to another 99800-odd to come. Why is it that the price of those houses has gone up so astronomically in the last nine months? Why has it gone from the $450000 house that the Government promised New Zealanders to up to $680000 for a three-bedroom house in Auckland? And what's worse none of them are available on the market; so that price as we speak while this silly bill is going on continues to spiral upwards.What it is also an example of is that when the tap gets turned off on capital the price of the scarce capital remaining goes up. Worse we've got a housing policy now that sees the housing Minister being the main financier of housing in New Zealand. Now anybody knows the housing Minister would find that a little bit concerning but that's the situation we're in because the Government has decided there is no longer a requirement—no longer an opportunity—for foreign capital to invest in housing in New Zealand simply because there are some members in the Government's coalition who are very jealous of those who have extremely expensive houses. So they punish everybody all the way through. They have no idea that there is a small number—hundreds only—of houses in those multimillion-dollar categories. But the vast majority of people who just want to get into a house who want to buy something at a reasonable price who would benefit from the low cost of capital to develop those houses are going to suffer. And the evidence is in front of us: nine months of price escalation on KiwiBuild.The other thing I'd like to ask is why it is that there is a provision in this bill for foreigners to come and invest here—quite the opposite of what I've said is happening because it won't happen but the provision is there—but they can't live in those houses? So the question is: can they own them? Because it's got to be a great prospect now doesn't it? They've escalated the price of housing—[Time expired]CHAIRPERSON (Adrian Rurawhe): I call Dr Deborah Russell.Hon Gerry Brownlee: This'll be an academic tome that drives us all to sleep.