Ross Jami-LeeJAMI-LEE ROSS (National—Botany): Thank you very much. I'd like to speak to Vote Transport under this economic sector. I'd like to talk about the issues that were raised at the Transport and Infrastructure Committee when we heard from the Minister of Transport. We had the Associate Minister Julie Anne Genter there. I'm not sure where Shane Jones was; he was probably off doing something else on that day. At that select committee hearing we discussed quite extensively the funding of transport in New Zealand.This side of the House is deeply disappointed with the way in which the Government is funding and taxing New Zealanders by billions of dollars over the new few years—in extra fuel taxes extra road-user charges and extra regional fuel taxes. These are taxes which we don't believe New Zealanders need to be paying but this Government is so hell-bent on doing anything they can to get light rail into Auckland that they're taxing New Zealanders around the country for the privilege of subsidising light rail in Auckland.Today in question time I asked the Minister questions about his extra fuel taxes. It turns out that the Government by their own numbers are extracting an extra billion dollars in extra fuel taxes from New Zealanders over the next three years. That funding is going towards particularly subsidising trams in Auckland. At the same time that the Government is doing that they're ripping $5 billion from the regions around the country. We discussed this in the select committee because on this side of the House we were reflecting concerns expressed by New Zealanders up and down the country who are seeing roading projects—important economic development opportunities—being lost because of the policies of this Government. I know that there are members opposite who actually care about regions like Northland who care about regions like the Bay of Plenty and Tauranga. Those MPs opposite that purport to care about those regions should actually be the ones out there flying the flag for these important economic development opportunities.When one talks to people up in Northland the number one economic opportunity that they talk about is a four-lane carriageway from Northland to Auckland—the number one economic opportunity which has been slashed by this Government. There are also a number of projects around the country that are being re-evaluated unashamedly by the Government. There are lives that are being lost on the road between Tauranga and Katikati—a project which was shovel ready; it was at the procurement stage and it got ripped from the community right when it was about to get started.At the same time that this Government is ripping $5 billion from the regions taxing people more they're also giving councils up and down the country the ability to raise extra taxes through regional fuel taxes. I look forward to being on the campaign trail with those members opposite in a couple of years' time and reminding New Zealanders that the policies this Government is implementing will see many more taxes going into place. It's not just Auckland—at the select committee we did discuss the Auckland regional fuel tax and the fact that the Minister's letting the council off the hook with extra funding but those fuel taxes are going everywhere around the country fairly soon.A particular area we did focus on in the select committee was the light rail scheme. I asked the Minister what the benefit to cost ratio was for light rail in Auckland. The Minister simply doesn't know what the benefit to cost ratio is for light rail in Auckland. Despite the fact that they've committed to $6 billion worth of light rail in Auckland they don't know what the benefit to cost ratio is. But more importantly they're actually getting the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) to change the modelling and change the analysis to fit the project particularly. Let's get this clear: the Government doesn't know what the benefit to cost ratio will be for $6 billion worth of light rail or trams in Auckland. They're changing the way in which NZTA models the data and assesses the projects just to make it fit for that project. At the same time they're taxing New Zealanders by an extra billion dollars through extra fuel excises and road-user charges and Aucklanders will be paying even more.We know based on the cost of fuel and how it's already gone up by 20c a litre under this Government—and Phil Twyford's extra taxes which amount to another 25c a litre—that New Zealanders will be paying 40c to 45c more a litre by the end of this term than they were paying a year ago. That's 40c a litre that this Government is taxing people putting petrol prices up and seeing cost escalations under their policies.I don't believe this Government's got it right on transport. I don't believe New Zealanders should have to fund Auckland's trams and I don't believe New Zealanders should have to put up with the great weight going on top of the cost of living because of this Government. They are costing New Zealanders in the pocket. They're making poor policy and we oppose it.