Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Peters Winston: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:619;Page:15096] 
2.  
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Does she have confidence in the Minister of Immigration’s handling of the refugee issue? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) 
: 
 Yes. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I ask the Prime Minister—whilst the Minister wipes his brow—what regard if any at all has been paid by the Minister to the briefing paper given in August 2002 on the issue of immigration and refugees and their dislocation and non-placement in our economy; if he has not paid regard to it how come he still has the job? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Quite a lot of regard is being given to exactly those issues in this term of Parliament. The Minister was able to announce in connection with this year’s Budget a package of $62 million over 4 years to deal with migrant settlement issues and in the previous year the Minister for Social Development and Employment had another $21 billion put into his department over 4 years to deal precisely with specialist services providing migrants and refugees with placement in employment. 
Hon Tony Ryall 
: Is the Prime Minister satisfied that under her watch 90 percent of refugees welcomed to this country are still on a benefit after 2 years and that after 5 long years of the Labour Government 80 percent of refugees are still on a benefit? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I am satisfied that we are putting in place services to deal with those problems that have never been in place before. I am also satisfied that among the refugee community are simply outstanding examples of people who want to get ahead. For example a young Kurdish man who came here as a refugee was this week reported in the  
New Zealand Herald  
as having been awarded the Simpson Grierson employment law prize for topping his class. There are plenty of other such stories. 
Keith Locke 
: How is New Zealand’s international reputation affected by two parties scrapping over which can be the most mean-spirited to the world’s most desperate people and rather than taking—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I have said every member has the right to ask his or her question in silence. People might not agree with it but this is a democracy and everyone has that right. 
Keith Locke 
: How is New Zealand’s international reputation affected by two parties scrapping over which can be the most mean-spirited towards the world’s most desperate people; and rather than taking fewer refugees as National and New Zealand First propose should we not be taking—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The Hon Roger Sowry will leave the Chamber. I will judge that; of course there is no responsibility and I am going to rule in that way but I told him not to interject. 
Hon Roger Sowry withdrew from the Chamber. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Our Standing Orders require that any questions made to Ministers not include any arguments references imputations epithets or ironic expressions that may be negative to other members of the House. Quite clearly that question breached that Standing Order. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I was about to rule in that way and I was going to rule the question out of order. I have not yet heard one word that was in order—and the member has had two goes. I am moving on to the next supplementary question. [ 
Interruption 
] No the member has had two goes. 
Keith Locke 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I was interrupted a couple of times in presenting my question. Surely I should have the courtesy of at least finishing it because I do have a direct question to the Prime Minister. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Unfortunately the member is too late. I gave him a second opportunity and tried to say to him that he should make the question in order. I am very generous indeed in this area and I gave him a second go. Of course I asked a member to leave the Chamber because of his interjections while the member was asking his question. But the question is not yet in order. 
Rod Donald 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You may have made a reference to a member over on that side of the Chamber about the content of Mr Locke’s question but you never actually directly said to him that you were unsatisfied with it. So before you have even given him the chance to rephrase it you have ruled him out from asking the question. I think you should let him have a chance to ask a question that is within the Standing Orders. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I was very generous earlier this week to another party. I will let Mr Locke have a final go but he must ask a question that is only in relation to the Prime Minister’s responsibility. 
Keith Locke 
: Should we not be increasing the number of refugees rather than reducing them particularly in view of the fact that the total number of refugees we accepted last year—that is the quota refugees plus the asylum seekers—was only 821? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I think we would want to see better results than we are getting at the moment and have had for many years in terms of settlement before we increased the numbers. But I note that the previous Leader of the Opposition made exactly that point a year or so ago when he said that he would be prepared to consider the quota being raised if resources were in place—a very different line from that taken by his front-bench colleague Mr Ryall this week. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Has the Prime Minister received reports suggesting that when New Zealand First warned of the failure of this refugee and immigration policy it was accused by the National Party of xenophobia; and has she received any further report that might suggest we could look forward to the day when “New Zealand Second” stops stealing New Zealand First’s policies? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The first part of the question is in order. 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: That would be like asking to take the politics out of politics. But I do agree with the member that there appears to have been a marked change in the National Party’s attitude. I personally found its previous leader’s attitude on refugee issues much more enlightened than the drivel that came from Mr Ryall last week. 
Hon Murray McCully 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You have as you are entitled to do shown great leniency to Mr Locke in relation to his supplementary question. In the circumstances I invite you to consider showing a similar spirit of generosity to Mr Sowry and inviting him to rejoin us in the Chamber. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Because it is Thursday I think that is a fair comment. I will. 
Government Members 
: Oh! 
Mr SPEAKER 
: That does not mean that others will not be asked to leave. I go only so far.