Brash Don: General Debates 
Brash Don: General Debates 
[Volume:613;Page:9717] 
Dr DON BRASH (Leader of the Opposition) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. As I lead off for the Opposition parties in this first general debate since being elected as leader of the National Party I am conscious of the comments made in recent days in a number of media outlets about my relative lack of parliamentary experience and about the bleak prospects of my forging a career as a stand-up comedian. May I briefly say to those critics that while I always try to achieve professionalism and competence in this Chamber I did not embark upon this career with any aspiration of becoming some sort of antipodean Billy Connolly. 
I should also say that if this Government were to continue in office there is little about New Zealand’s longer-term economic and social prospects that I regard as in the least bit amusing. I am heartened that many New Zealanders share a sense of urgency that we should address these important issues before it is too late. There is a mood for change and this spin-doctoring minority Labour Government is failing miserably to recognise this. 
I acknowledge with a mixture of pride and humility that my party has chosen me to provide leadership at this important time. I am not in the slightest troubled that Mike King and Marc Ellis have nothing to fear from my appearance on the public stage. But I will be very troubled indeed if by election day 2005 the need to face up to some key issues facing this country has not moved New Zealanders to see off this arrogant Clark Government. 
My commitment to New Zealanders as leader of the National Party is to deliver on five key goals. First we have to start narrowing the gap between our living standards and those of our cousins in Australia—a gap that sees every Australian getting nearly $200 per week more than the average New Zealander. If we do not narrow that gap we will not have the health care that Australians can afford we will not have the roads that Australians take for granted our teachers will not get the salaries that those in Australia earn and New Zealand mums and dads will increasingly see their kids and grandchildren growing up in Australia. We will end up as a distant Tasmania to the Australian mainland. That is not what I want and that is not what most New Zealanders want. 
Second we have to ensure that every child whatever his or her race whatever the affluence of his or her parents or whether he or she lives in Auckland or in rural Southland has access to quality education so that every child comes out of the school system able to read able to write and able to take his or her place in a modern society. At the moment they do not and that is a disgrace. Unless we do very much better we will never have a healthy society and we will never have a society where everybody can get a well-paid job. 
Third we have to end the creeping paralysis of welfare dependency. It is surely a scandal that at a time when the economy is buoyant 350000 working-age adults and tens of thousands of their children are dependent on hard-working New Zealanders for a handout. As a country we currently spend $20 million per day on social welfare—nearly $1 million an hour—365 days a year. For the sake of those receiving that money as well as for the sake of those paying it we have to fix that system and give all able-bodied New Zealanders the dignity of contributing to our society. 
Fourth we need to head off the dangerous drift to racial separatism in New Zealand—a drift that this Government seems intent on encouraging. We must deal fairly and finally with historical grievances but then ensure that all New Zealanders of whatever race or creed are treated equally before the law. 
Finally we need to ensure that all New Zealanders feel secure and that means not just dealing firmly with crime drugs gangs and vandalism but also ensuring that our relationships with new friends in Asia and old friends in Australia the UK and the US are put on a firm footing.