O'Connor Simon: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeO'Connor Simon: General Debate[Sitting date: 15 May 2013. Volume:690;Page:9955. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]SIMON O’CONNOR (National—Tāmaki): It has been interesting as we have listened across the House to the Opposition that we are blaming the Chinese as I think we just heard at the start of Mr Williams’ speech. We have had people make accusations and impugning if you wish the reputations of people who sit on boards. We have had people jumping up and down about how we dare allow a business to actually build a convention centre in the city of Auckland that will bring jobs and opportunity. It is an incredible amount of negativity.But I want to talk around a different aspect today. As many of you will know I have spent an awful lot of time in university—fortunately most of it while also working. Because of those years in university I have become an advocate of lifelong learning and I am thrilled to be in Parliament a place where so much learning is possible. From the National Party you can learn all about good government and sensible economic management. From the Labour Party well you can learn how a green tail can wag a red dog. From the Green Party itself well look my stars—to use a quote—the things you can learn from the Green Party. Maybe we in this House sometimes take for granted the fascinating things that the Green Party says given how often we hear from it so I thought we would just reminisce a little.We hear from Dr Russel Norman. He has delivered some extraordinary lectures on “Harry Potter economics”. From what I understand his theory is that most economic problems can be solved with the judicious use of magic. With a wave of his wand he can create money out of thin air. I have learnt from him that quantitative easing is a way to make photocopying money seem like an economic policy.But he does not just make money appear. He can make money disappear as well. For example he and David Shearer the “deputy leader of the Green Party” made $500 million disappear from the New Zealand stock exchange overnight—overnight—with only a few words. They made $500 million disappear from ordinary Kiwis’ savings in the likes of KiwiSaver and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund. It was an amazing magical feat. But you see Dr Russel Norman has also found a way to make power prices disappear. His plan is to nationalise the energy sector following in the footsteps of such great economic luminaries as Marx Lenin and Mao. Yes Dr Norman never fails to delight when pulling rabbits out of his hat.Todd McClay: Out of his what?SIMON O’CONNOR: Out of his hat.But he is not the only Green Party member to have graduated from the “Hogwash School of Witchcraft and Wizardry”. It sounds like Metiria Turei is fairly similar with puffs of smoke as well. You see “Professor Turei” has taught all of us about enterprise and initiative with her small-business programme. It is entitled if I read the lecture notes correctly “Growing the economy by growing marijuana”. This past April she actually said and I am quoting that “There’s some real skills [in growing the drug] … some real entrepreneurial skills some real horticulture skills …”. I understand that in the next semester “Professor Turei” will be teaching graduates of those classes advanced chemistry in a course called “P labs: our path to prosperity”. Yes children—you listening in—the Green Party believes that you too can grow up to be a drug dealer.Sometimes when I listen to the lectures the Greens put forward I am not entirely convinced—I am not entirely convinced. But learning is about being exposed to new ideas and so I have listened. The word that comes to mind when I listen to the Greens is “ideology”. There are few political parties around the world as committed to their ideology as the Greens are. In the face of all the facts despite all the evidence that says that their extremism will not work in the real world the Greens stick to their ideology. And do you know what? You have to kind of admire that sort of dogged commitment. It reminded me of the lost Japanese soldiers in the 1970s who refused to accept that World War II was over. Like them the Greens refuse to surrender to logic to reason and to progress. So I say “Soldier on.” to the Green Party educators. Bestow your wisdom on this House let nothing stand in your way and the Labour Party will be right there to support you to do whatever you tell it to do. I cannot wait to see what the Greens will teach us next.The debate having concluded the motion lapsed.