Halbert Shanan; Dean JacquiSHANAN HALBERT (Labour—Northcote): Thank you Madam Speaker. I graciously take the opportunity to speak in the House because I am proud of this Budget 2023. Our Government is focused on the issues that matter to most New Zealanders supporting New Zealanders with the issue in front of us at the moment: the cost of living; delivering the services New Zealanders rely on recovery and resilience and fiscal sustainability.I get tired of the Opposition talking down our economy. We have to end it. We have to talk up New Zealand. Yes times are tough—yes times are tough—and we feel the pressures of inflation. But let's get real and let's look at the facts. The Reserve Bank has said to us that inflation has peaked. Mortgage rates have peaked. Things have peaked which means because of good fiscal management from Grant Robertson our Minister of Finance—he has set us up well for some very challenging times in front of it.But I will not have a bar of it where we talk down our economy where we talk down hard-working New Zealanders when we call people bottom feeders"—yes Madam Speaker call people "bottom feeders". That is unacceptable. And all I've seen from the Opposition since Budget time is them being mean-spirited—mean-spirited negative National. They're negative negative negative.How mean-spirited is it to take away a $5 prescription fee—a $5 prescription fee—that is going to change the lives of over 130000 New Zealanders? That is just mean-spirited.Not only are they negative but they haven't shown us their fiscal plan. In fact they haven't actually shown us any of their plans. They're showing us a bit of a flip-flop plan post-housing of course and walking away from the mutual relationship the partnership and legislation that we collectively put in place in this House to build houses because we simply don't have enough. But I come back to: you can't trust National—you can't trust National—you can't trust ACT.Simon Watts: Oh come on. That's a bit unfair. Come on where's the friendship?SHANAN HALBERT: And we've got to ensure that we protect that. So the question for us here it is: in this Budget what are National going to cut? Are they going to cut Simon Watts our increased police numbers on the beat on the North Shore? Is that what you're going to cut? Are you going to cut the community policing teams or the mental health teams or the online community police that we know serve our community? Because you cut them; we put them back. Are you going to cut our harbour bridge? Are you going to cut the harbour bridge? What's your plan? It's in this Budget. These are the things of our realities that you're going to cut. Are you going to cut the beds being built in North Shore Hospital? Are you going to stop the investment in our local community post-Auckland floods? Are you going to stop the investment in water infrastructure in the Wairau Valley that you talked about in this House? What are you going to cut?It's time for National to stop the negativity stop the politics; let's talk about it and stop being mean-spirited. Because I will hold you to account on the things that we have invested in—Matt Doocey: Why can't you talk about your Budget?SHANAN HALBERT: —in this Budget.So let's talk about it. The $5 prescription fees that National will repeal—you will do it. The Defence Force increase in pay—Simon Watts' electorate are you going to cut that? Cheaper energy bills. KiwiSaver contributions for paid parental leave. Free public transport for under-13s and half-price permanent public transport for under-24s. Those are the things that matter in this Budget because Aucklanders—North Shore people—have asked us to front up to the cost of living. They've asked for real measures that respond well to the inflation challenges that are in front of us. National might give cuts—they'll certainly cut things from this Budget—but our people will not be better off.So it's time for National to front up. If this isn't your Budget what will you cut? Is it our police Simon Watts? Is it our investment in the coast? Is it our nurses? Is it our police? What is it? Potentially—ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jacqui Dean): The member's time has expired"