Key John: Television New Zealand Bill — In Committee 
Key John: Television New Zealand Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:606;Page:3814] 
JOHN KEY (NZ National—Helensville) 
: 
 It has been a long and lonely road to getting an opportunity to debate Part 4 of the bill. I will now use my 5 minutes to make what I am sure will be a very valuable contribution. I have a very heavy heart indeed as I debate this bill today because Part 4 which is the guts of this bill essentially condemns to destruction one of New Zealand’s better corporations. Under a National Government that corporation had a value of $1 billion. It earned $295 million in advertising and paid a dividend of $60 million. Clause 31 “Powers of shareholding Ministers in relation to TVNZG” will render all that good work lost. I have a very very heavy heart. If ever I have seen an organisation in our country that has led a life of blameless excellence it has been Television New Zealand. In particular I find it very ironic and sad that the Minister who has led his life under the same conditions is now shepherding this through the Committee. It is a very very sad day.  
I will turn to clause 31 in particular which talks about the power of shareholding Ministers and what they may and may not do. It states that the shareholding Ministers may by written notice to the Television New Zealand board direct the board to include or omit a whole load of things in the statement of intent. That refers to section 26 which really talks about qualitative and quantitative performance. That is all about ministerial excuses for the failure and destruction of shareholder value. The Minister will be able to write on his ministerial notepad to the Television New Zealand board and commission the further destruction of one of New Zealand’s finest companies. That is what will happen.  
I find it somewhat amusing that in clause 33 we have had to legislate that shareholding Ministers have to write down and talk about the things they want or do not want in the statement of intent. There is then a whole list of rules ensuring that the shareholding Ministers cannot give certain directions to programming. What I find ironic is the very fact that we have to legislate for it. Clause 33 tells this Committee there is a real risk that that will happen. When Television New Zealand was run as a proper company under a National Government we put on television what mum and dad wanted to watch. We did not put the Labour minority Government’s socialist agenda on television which is exactly what will happen under clause 31 of this bill. It is very very sad. No one on this side of the Committee believes that clause 33 will be observed because we know that when this Government did not like the way the “little creep”—as the Prime Minister called John Campbell—conducted an interview it commissioned a couple of senior Ministers to take out members of the press and talk to them about what can and cannot be recorded. None of us should believe that clause 33 will be followed. It has not been followed in the past and it will not be followed now. It is a very sad day.  
I will raise a question for the Minister. I was not on the Commerce Committee so I guess I really have to refer to this as both a member of the public and a member of Parliament. One of the things the select committee has recommended within the charter is that programmes should contribute towards the intellectual scientific cultural spiritual and ethnic development that reflects the diverse beliefs of New Zealanders. Where does  
Coronation Street 
 fit in within that? Where does  
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? 
 fit in with that? Where does  
Friends 
 fit in with that? No one has any millionaire friends in  
Coronation Street— 
that is for real! The real reason I asked those questions is that they are the programmes that sell the advertising that runs the network and none of them will be on television when the socialist agenda is rammed down our throats. The Minister may want to take a call to tell us what we will be watching. It will not be  
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? 
  
Friends 
 or  
Coronation Street 
. It will be a whole lot of programmes from a socialist agenda. That is what we will be watching.