Goldsmith Paul: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeGoldsmith Paul: General Debate[Sitting date: 18 June 2014. Volume:699;Page:18631. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]PAUL GOLDSMITH (National):I want to start by referring to the Hon John Banks and I am conscious that we have a debate about him following this one. The court has adjudicated on Mr Banks that he did the wrong thing and he has certainly paid a high price for that and people will make their own judgment on that. But I do hope that as his active public service of nearly four decades draws to a close people will recognise that for all his faults he tried his best and he made a significant contribution. It was he who first drew me into politics 18 years ago when I began writing his biography as a green history graduate then working at the Waitangi Tribunal for better or worse and I am grateful to him for that.Three months out from the election speculation about what will happen in the seat of Epsom is picking up strongly and commentators can speculate all they like. As we all remember the party vote was the primary objective for us in the 2011 election and whether that remains the case in 2014 is for another day and the Prime Minister has said that many times. But let us not forget that under MMP it is the party with the most party votes that wins the election and that is the simple reality in Epsom and in every other electorate in the country. The overwhelming sentiment that I hear day in day out—as my family and I live in Epsom—at school functions at the supermarket and on the doorstep is that people want John Key to remain Prime Minister and the National Government to remain in power. This is not at all surprising because this Government has done a magnificent job in steering the economy through these past 6 difficult years through difficult economic times. People can see we are heading in the right direction. The economy is growing at around 4 percent inflation is subdued interest rates have been kept lower for longer average wages are rising faster than inflation and unemployment is falling.This is the time to consolidate the gains and continue the never-ending challenge of improving New Zealand’s international competitiveness which is what sustains our living standards. Consistency and predictability lead to confidence confidence encourages people to invest and investment leads to growth and jobs. Epsom which includes the suburbs of Remuera Parnell Epsom and parts of Mt Eden is full of wealth creators—people who have their own businesses who take risks and employ people. I meet with them every day and I celebrate their success. Their success is New Zealanders’ success. They look to the Government not to solve all their problems but simply to create an environment of consistency and predictability. They expect the Government to be managed properly and for spending to be disciplined. That is why they support John Key Bill English and this Government in large numbers. I am proud to play a small role in that in Parliament and on the ground in Epsom.What most people struggle to understand is why on earth we would want to lurch in a new direction just as we have got the country heading in the right direction—why we would want a capital gains tax why we would want to overturn monetary policy and why we would want to nationalise electricity and become a global leader in climate change policy. So we contrast John Key as a leader with whom you know what you get with Mr Cunliffe who cannot recall writing a letter in favour of—David Shearer: Judith Collins?PAUL GOLDSMITH: Is that not interesting—is that not interesting? Donghua Liu—Mr Cunliffe cannot recall whether or not he wrote a letter to him. I remember somebody else being in a similar predicament. I am reminded of a quote from a well-known UK fictional politician that seems highly relevant to Mr Cunliffe and it starts: “After the smiles after the handshakes after the arms round shoulders and the merry hollow laughter after the conditional promise and the purchased friendship after the elusive dangling reward the nagging threat ... After all that the calculation of the odds the sifting of the probabilities and then the fear ... Fear in the smell of damp newsprint and the crackle of the radio ... Fear that this might be the day we wake to find the magic gone.” And I am afraid that that is what is happening with Mr Cunliffe and the Labour Party members. They are hanging their heads in shame at the moment. All the list MPs know they will not be coming back. There is very good probability there will—David Shearer: You’re a list MP.PAUL GOLDSMITH: Well at least National is likely to have list MPs after the election. Labour under all the probabilities will have zero list MPs and their stunning careers—Sue Moroney’s stunning career is going to be coming to an end the way things are going and I feel very sorry for her on that account.It is very interesting to see John Armstrong and many of the commentators saying right now right here today that Mr Cunliffe is in deep trouble and Labour is in deep trouble. It is a beautiful thing to watch. Thank you.