6. Question No. 6—TransportNICOLA WILLIS (National) to the Associate Minister of TransportQuestion No. 6—Transport6. NICOLA WILLIS (National) to the Associate Minister of Transport: Does she stand by her statement that My opinion is based on advice from officials"; if so which of the briefings she received from her officials prior to 26 March 2019 on Let's Get Wellington Moving recommended prioritising rapid transit ahead of a second Mount Victoria tunnel? Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER (Associate Minister of Transport): In answer to the first part of the question yes I stand by my full statement yesterday that "My opinion is based on advice from officials and the officials provided a range of assessments of benefits and costs of different sequencing and different projects." To the second part I received a large amount of advice on Let's Get Wellington Moving prior to 26 March including the advice I mentioned yesterday from 3 October 2018 from the New Zealand Transport Agency which identified that the cycling public transport and rapid transit components of the package were expected to have higher benefit-cost ratios than the highway components and that rapid transit will support a 10 percent increase in public transport use improve travel times support an additional 2500 jobs and contribute to a $600 million value uplift along the corridor as well as moving eight times as many people as the second Mount Victoria tunnel. That's what informed our views about the privatisation of the programme. Nicola Willis: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. My question was actually very specific. If you look at the wording of it what I said was: which of the briefings she received recommended prioritising rapid— SPEAKER: I hate doing this to two questioners in a row. There was actually a date given for the briefing that was being quoted from. It was a date and a quote from it—that must cover part two. Nicola Willis: Well supplementary question. SPEAKER: Supplementary question Nicola Willis—but can I just say that the member should know better. Nicola Willis: I'll ask my question. On which page of which briefing can I find a specific recommendation from her officials that rapid transit should be prioritised ahead of a second Mount Victoria tunnel? Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER: I think the difficulty that member is having is understanding that our views on prioritisation were informed by a range of assessments about costs and benefits and the ability of the projects to deliver more mobility for Wellingtonians and that's what I've said. Nicola Willis: On which page of which briefing can I find a specific recommendation from her officials that rapid transit should be prioritised ahead of a second Mount Victoria tunnel? Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER: The decision to prioritise rapid transit over the Mount Victoria tunnel is based on evidence and advice from officials that rapid transit would have significantly more benefits and move more people and I don't understand why members opposite find it so difficult to understand why one would make a decision on prioritisation based on something that will deliver real benefits to Wellingtonians. Nicola Willis: Is it true that the actual recommendations from officials was that construction on a Mount Victoria tunnel should start by 2024 as indicated in this aide-mémoire of 26 March and that she rejected that official advice? Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER: I disagree with the characterisation of that as the only advice that we received on 26 March. Perhaps she will remember my answer yesterday that that very same aide-mémoire did recommend that the building of rapid transit public transport and walking and cycling prior to new road capacity would achieve the outcomes and desires that were identified as the principles and outcomes—SPEAKER: Order! Order! No sorry. I took some advice after yesterday from the shadow Leader of the House and turned down my left-side hearing aid. Notwithstanding that I'm having trouble hearing the Minister answering the question because she is being shouted down by members on my left. It's to stop. I think the member has probably said enough anyway. Nicola Willis: Where in the aide-mémoire of 26 March 2019 does it recommend that rapid transit be prioritised ahead of a Mount Victoria tunnel or is it actually the case that no such recommendation is made and that in fact it recommends—SPEAKER: Order! Order! The member has finished. Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER: There is a recommendation in the aide-mémoire from 26 March that suggests that if rapid transit is prioritised ahead of the Mount Vic tunnel a second Mount Vic tunnel might not be needed. There is also an aide-mémoire from 5 April which states "From a mode shift perspective it is important for the rapid transit other public transport walking and cycling investments to be built ahead of extra road capacity." This is to avoid additional congestion and additional cars coming into Wellington's central city which was an explicit—explicit—desire of the public of Wellington when they fed into the Let's Get Wellington Moving consultation."