Cosgrove Clayton: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeCosgrove Clayton: General Debate[Sitting date: 04 September 2013. Volume:693;Page:13246. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Labour): That speech almost made Nick Smith look stable. Can I say this: that Minister of Finance is the Minister who proves he could not run a bath let alone a State-owned enterprise. Under that Minister’s watch Solid Energy an export award - winning company was driven into the ground because that Minister went to sleep at the wheel and it is costing New Zealanders in excess of $350 million. Then we get to theTīwai deal. Mr English stood up yesterday on Radio New Zealand with Kathryn Ryan and keeps saying every day that the great deal he did withTīwai—a multibillion-dollar company. He halves its notice period it gets cheaper electricity and then just because he is Santa Claus—talk about us taxing and spending—he lobs in another 30 million bucks just to make it feel warm and cosy of course after the billion-dollar profits it makes. And then he says to us all: “The reason we had to do this was we had to protect the jobs in Invercargill andTīwai.”Then he got caught with his trousers around his political ankles by Kathryn Ryan when she asked him: “Did you get a guarantee forTīwai? Did you get a guarantee that they will keep every job up until 1 January 2017?”. The answer in that sort of laconic Southland lilt was “No.” The second question: “Did you bother to ask for a guarantee?”. Again in thatswede-like Southland fashion he said “No.” He did not even have the gumption but he was honest enough at that point to tell New Zealanders to even ask RioTinto: “Boys would you hang on to the jobs at least until 1 January 2017?”. What he also knew was that before the ink was dry on the deal on the Tuesday it was already sacking maintenance workers and that is a fact in the media. It was already announcing restructuring.I say to that Minister of Finance: “What a legacy.” Solid Energy—could not do anything would not do anything; just let it all happen. There was $123 million of bonuses not to the boys in the coal-pit. Oh no. It went to the white-collar fellers who actually ran the company into the ground. Then of course on asset sales trumpeting the Future Investment Fund we find out after the Prime Minister makes it up that oh no it is not going to hospitals and schools. The $100 million allocated which the poor old Prime Minister did not even know he had signed off in his Budget—$100 million to Solid Energy to bail it out.And then we find the other little gift that was thrown in. Where is the money coming from we found out for the Mighty River Power free shares? Oh out of the Future Investment Fund. So there is $100 million there is another $40 million from the slush fund and a couple of other little doozies—things like “strengthening capability on security and risk management”. God help us if anybody needed to do that that mob does but it should not come out of the Future Investment Fund. Then there is another one: “Analysis of outcomes Cabinet investment function”. I do not know what that means but it sounds quite trendy. But what does it come out of? The Future Investment Fund. Not a hospital not a school not a bridge not a roadway. I will tell you what Mr English you never have the guts to tell that to the people of New Zealand—Mr SPEAKER: Order!Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE: When that Minister said he was going to sell off—[Interruption] Oh no he did not. He never said it was going to go for free shares. He never said it was going to go to bail out Solid Energy. We all remember the photo of that member with the platinum-plated spade at the briquette plant down in Southland saying how wonderful it was as he let the bonuses be paid out. This is the same plant of course that Mark Ford is having to close down and sack workers from. Oh he wasvery proud there. He was a lion in his constituency—a lion—but he and old Liberace his Minister for State Owned Enterprises of course said: “Oh no nothing we will do. We will not intervene.” But when it came to Meridian Energy of course—Hon Chester Borrows: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Hon Annette King: Stop chewing.Mr SPEAKER: Order! This is a point of order and it will be heard in silence.Hon Chester Borrows: In this speech from the Hon Clayton Cosgrove twice he used unparliamentary language: once in reference to the Hon Bill English accusing him of being untruthful and secondly when he referred to a member over here as Liberace.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I have heard enough. The member did not use the word I think the Hon Chester Borrows has raised: “lying”. He used the word “lion” in the electorate.Hon Chester Borrows: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: Is this a fresh point of order?Hon Chester Borrows: Yes it is. It was not the word “lion”. It was further back in his speech when he related comments made by the Hon Bill English and it was not the word “lion”. I was not confused by that word.Mr SPEAKER: I am unsure what the word was but the member to whom it was directed certainly did not take any offence. I think he was quite enjoying the debate. It was a robust debate and this is the general debate. The member can carry on.Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE: I do not know what the Minister for Courts was chewing. It might have been some sort of medication or whatever I do not know but obviously it has got to him. The point here despite all the silly points of order because they want to hide this away is that the Minister of Finance went to the country on a spurious claim saying that he would sell assets to buy other assets—sell revenue-generating assets of course to buy non - revenue-generating assets. He never told the people of New Zealand that the slush fund would be used for $140 million—$100 million to Solid Energy to bail out his mess-up and $40 million for the free shares.Now we have got Meridian Energy—you know buy now pay later get a set of steak knives. That boy should be on “As Seen On TV”—the Shopping Channel. He would sell anything. He made it up. He was not honest with the people of New Zealand. He should pull the pin and allow the people to have their say through a referendum.