Hon ANNE TOLLEY (Minister of Education) Link to this
I move, That the House take note of miscellaneous business. At the 2008 election National promised five trades academies. National promised to deliver five trades academies. Well, this week we have announced that next year there will be 21 trades academies—21. There will be 10 more trades academies starting next year. The number of students attending those trades academies will rise from 700 this year to 2,000 next year. These are 2,000 young people who are at risk of falling out of the school system. After attending these trades academies they will be better prepared to take up apprenticeships, to enter the workplace, or to go on to further study.
Next year the number of 16 and 17-year-olds who are taking part in the wider Youth Guarantee, trades academies, and service academies, all supported by this National John Key - led Government, will rise to 10,000; 10,000 16 and 17-year-olds next year—yep, 10,000. That is an outstanding effort, not just from this Government but from the schools, from the tertiary institutions, and from business and industry across this country, which have said: “We value these young people. We know that they are not necessarily succeeding in academia, in schooling, and we value them. We want them to be able to make a contribution as good New Zealand citizens, and we’re prepared to get behind and support them.” Next year there will be 10,000 16 and 17-year-olds in training.
These trades academies have opened in New Zealand this year, for the first time ever. We have never had trades academies before. Between 125 and 150 schools are taking part in the scheme. These are partnerships between schools, tertiary institutions—in some cases polytechs and in some cases private training enterprises—and industry and business. A couple of these trades academies are being run by industry training organisations themselves. In particular, primary industry training organisations are working with 17 high schools right around New Zealand, making sure that young people who are interested in horticulture, agriculture, and forestry have the opportunity whilst they are still at school to take part in industry training and start on the way to getting their industry qualifications.
At the same time, of course, they are continuing their school work. They are continuing to do English, maths, and science. They are continuing to play sport, and continuing to take part in drama, in art, and in all the things that students enjoy about school. When we talk to these young people, and ask: “How’s it going?”—the scheme has being going for only 6 months—we can see the light in their eyes. For the first time in a long, long time, learning is interesting for many of them. Learning is something they want to do. In fact, one tutor at Christchurch said to me that he had had a call from a student’s mother, asking: “Is he really turning up at polytech at 8 o’clock in the morning? Is he really there? Because he’s never been anywhere at 8 o’clock in the morning in his life.” The tutor had to say: “Yes, he is there at 8 o’clock and often he is there before me.” When I talk to these young people up and down the country, they say that for the first time in many, many years they want to go to school. They want to learn.
In Christchurch on Monday the tutors were telling me that the students are doing so well with their maths and English that their schools are surprised at the scores they are getting in quite complicated maths and English studies. This is hard work, and we have to be aware that schools and tertiary institutions have worked really hard to put this scheme together. It has meant changes to their timetables, changes to their funding, and changes around staffing. It is not easy.
We cannot just throw money at training and hope that young people will suddenly stick at education or training. To show how tough it is we have only to look back at the Labour Government. In 1994 Helen Clark said: “Labour makes a commitment within 3 years to have all under-20-year-olds in education, employment, and training.” That was in 1994. Again in 1998 she repeated the same.
JACINDA ARDERN (Labour) Link to this
I am proud to be a member of the Labour Party, which is still sticking with the aspiration of making sure that every under-20-year-old is either earning or learning. National is a Government that has given up on that aspiration, as it has given up on young people. We do not see members on this side of the House walking away from something that we know is absolutely achievable. But if one listened to the Minister of Education, one would think we lived in some kind of rosy utopia. One would not think there were 58,000 young people not in education, training, or employment—58,000 young people doing absolutely nothing. The Minister claims that she has the answers to everything at secondary school level. The honest reality is that the Government has not done enough to address the fact that up until just 19 years of age we have 24,000 young people doing absolutely nothing.
What have we heard from the Government to address this issue? It has had almost 3 long years to address this issue and Labour has consistently raised the ways it could address that. What has the Government given us? It has given us make-work schemes, it has given us training places at the expense of other training places, it has cut $140 million out of skills and trade training, it has decimated the sector, not boosted it as it has claimed, and its last attempt was to give 1,600 young people a plastic card to moderate their purchasing of products that were already illegal for them to buy. That was the grand plan. Labour has said that that is just not good enough. There is absolutely no reason why 24,000 young people who are of the age where they should be in skills and trade training or education should be doing absolutely nothing. We are aspirational for young people, and that is why we have produced a package that at its full extent and its full potential has the possibility of placing 24,000 young people into work and into training, and into trade training in particular.
We have a plan. I have not heard a lot of commentary from members on the other side of the House about that plan. They know that we have fully addressed the scale of the issue, and it is enormous. That is why it will take an extra $250 million investment. The Government cannot claim that it is the same as its package. If it was, it would not cost $250 million to address. Not only have we set out what the plan would look like, but also we have set out how we would pay for it. It is a far bigger difference than what the Government has done in the past three youth unemployment packages. It said that its last one would cost roughly $25 million. There was no detail. It said that youth transition would just come out of baseline. That is not possible. There was no detail, and it is time that the Government was taken to task on the lack of detail it is giving the media, the public, and this side of the House.
Labour’s plan covers four areas. In relation to secondary schools, we said we would boost Gateway to make sure an extra 500 young vulnerable people are given access to industry-based training while in school. We have said we would keep trade academies because we acknowledge that they are doing good work, but we need more. We would overhaul Career Services because it is not serving our young people well. We would make sure that the Youth Transition Service was nationwide. No school leaver should leave school without a plan for further training, education, or employment, and under Labour they will not. We have listened to the Mayors Taskforce for Jobs, as opposed to the Minister, who bullied them, browbeat them, then ignored them. On skills, we would ensure that instead of 9,000 young people getting the dole, a subsidy would go to employers directly to give them an apprenticeship. It makes no sense to pay a young person a dole payment when we could be giving them skills and trade training and an apprenticeship on the job, and the industry has welcomed that. It has welcomed that because it knows that we are investing long term. We will invest in a subsidy for 12 months because that is how long an apprentice costs an employer. Not only that, we will ensure there are 5,000 more training places, and Māori trade training, Pasifika training, and mentoring for each. There will be a boost to the Conservation Corps.
And, most important, we acknowledge that none of this matters unless they have jobs to go to. Members on the other side of the House do not think the Government has any role in creating the economic conditions for job creation. Well, we do. On this side of the House we have created an end-to-end plan that is robust and that members opposite have been unable to pick a hole in, other than to accuse us of continuing to aspire to get young people earning or learning. I am proud of this plan. It gives young people hope and now it is time to vote for it.
SHANE ARDERN (National—Taranaki - King Country) Link to this
It is always interesting to follow on from the passionate speech of a second or third cousin on the other side of the House. As an active farmer and the MP for the Taranaki - King Country electorate, which includes a large chunk of the Waikato, it is more than interesting to listen to Labour members talking about what they want to do, as opposed to what Labour did do when it was in Government for 9 long years.
Last week, by comparison, I attended the opening of an $80 million substantial extension to the New Plymouth - based hospital, where on the same day the Hon Tony Ryall opened a new health centre in Stratford in the heart of the Taranaki - King Country electorate. These are substantial actual improvements in health services. There have been an extra 4,337 elective surgeries under the Waikato and Taranaki district health boards in the 2009-10 year. These are real numbers, not the artificial and substantially inflated numbers that we hear from members on the other side. We have given $4.4 million to our small and poorer rural communities to upgrade their sewerage facilities. Over 13,000 Taranaki and Waikato homes have been insulated through National’s Heat Smart scheme. There was a 4.4 percent drop in recorded crime in 2010 for central districts, and 3 percent for the Waikato.
These are real achievements from the John Key Government. We have spent $3 million on upgrading schools in the electorate. This Government has major policy initiatives that will have a positive and ongoing effect on rural New Zealand electorates like Taranaki - King Country. The Primary Growth Partnership has invested something like $447 million in industry promotion and innovation, on-farm innovation and promotion, jobs, growth, market opportunities, environmentally sustainable technologies, and a higher standard of living for the whole of New Zealand. [Interruption] It is interesting to hear the members on the other side, because one thing that they always forget and always ignore when they are in Government is that the agricultural sector of New Zealand—and Mr Speaker knows this as well as anyone in the House—is the backbone of New Zealand and is the way forward for this economy. The opportunities that have opened up for exporting high-quality protein foods to the world because of the work of the John Key Government and Ministers like Tim Groser, who have been signing up and opening up trade opportunities for us, have never been greater. They have never been greater in the history of New Zealand. There has never been a greater opportunity. What would our opponents do? What would happen if they were given the chance? Well, they would entertain what they have always entertained: a tax-and-borrow-and-hope policy that has failed. It has failed so many times that we cannot remember.
What else has the Key National Government done? There is $350 million worth of rural broadband initiative to be rolled out over the next few years. If we look at how we can compete internationally and become a very forward-thinking, modern, dynamic economy that is exporting that high-quality protein food to the world we see that one thing that is absolutely essential is for us to be linked to the world through high-speed technology and communications. So $350 million worth of broadband initiative will bring fast broadband to our rural communities.
Amendments to the Resource Management Act are always understated by members on the other side. You, Mr Speaker, as well as everyone else—and I know I should not bring the Speaker into the debate, so I will refrain from doing that—and most people in this House, know that there was a substantial reduction in growth and opportunity, and for a lot of the time it was without any real environmental impact. Reforming the Resource Management Act was an essential platform that the John Key National - led Government has undertaken. I look forward in the next 3 years, if we are successful at the next election, to growing the agricultural sector and improving our way in the world.
DAVID SHEARER (Labour—Mt Albert) Link to this
In 2008 John Key said in a speech at Ellerslie: “Young people are a group I’m passionate about. For they, more than anyone, will determine the future shape and prosperity of New Zealand. The energy and enthusiasm of the vast majority of our young people make me hugely optimistic for our country. But the sad fact is that a growing number are failing to deliver on their potential.” I could not agree more, but 3 years down the track, what have we got? We have a Government that has actually delivered us 18,000 more people into unemployment and not into training. This is not about Job Ops; this was about “photo ops”. This is a Prime Minister who has concentrated on getting his photo up rather than on getting the jobs and delivering for the young people of this country. There are 18,000 more young people not in training and not in education. What sort of legacy is that?
Let us look at some of the gimmicky projects this Government has rolled out in the last 3 years. We have Community Max, where people have learnt how to grow vegetables, but it does not turn that into any long-term jobs. We have boot camps, and these have failed absolutely miserably—90 percent of the people who went through those have started reoffending. We have created much more fit and able criminals. Even Sir Peter Gluckman in his report pointed out that this particular project has failed, as well.
Mr Joyce has shown his passion by stripping $145 million out of vocational training and skills—$145 million has come out rather than gone in. After 3 years of being passionate about our young people, we have seen something that is passionately dreadful. We have a situation where 18,000 more young people are unemployed and not in training, and that is pathetic. We know that 77,000 skilled people are needed in the construction area alone—77,000—yet we know that, under this Government, Modern Apprenticeships, which teach the very skills that we are looking for, have declined by 15,000. Do we have any aspirations or plans? Did Mr Joyce have any aspirations or plans when he stripped $145 million out of this for the building sector and for creating those 77,000 skilled people whom we need? And we know we need them. We know that the leaky building project will need building people. We know we are not building enough houses in New Zealand. We know that Christchurch needs a huge building effort, but right now employers are not able to take on apprentices.
What is Labour doing about it? We are making available 9,000 new places in apprenticeships. How are we doing that? We are doing that by enabling those people who once would have been paid the dole. We are helping employers to take on those people as apprentices. That is what we are doing. We are swapping the dole for assistance for employers to take on those people. There will be 9,000 additional apprenticeships. That is the sort of thing that one prepares for now, when one knows that further down the line we will need those people in those construction areas. There will be 1,000 new shared or group apprentices and 5,000 new training places. All up, there will be 25,000 training places and assisted employment places for those people whom I spoke about who are neither in employment nor in training. That is what Labour is passionate about.
We are passionate about our young people. We are not passionate about those photo opportunities that Mr Key has followed and did not deliver on in 2008. And we have had the audacity of the Minister of Education, who came into this House today to talk about and boast about what she will do in the future when she has delivered virtually nothing of what she said in 2008 she would do. It is a disgrace. It is a disgrace that she came in and boasted about what she has not done for the young people of this country.
TIM MACINDOE (National—Hamilton West) Link to this
I am very happy to tell Mr Shearer, who has just resumed his seat, that I spent last Saturday afternoon knocking on the doors of Melville and Frankton in the wonderful Hamilton West electorate. Even though it was a beautiful, sunny day in the winterless Waikato, it was not just that radiant sunshine that left me with a warm and happy feeling. Both Melville and Frankton are traditionally Labour-leaning areas but, judging by the response I was getting last Saturday, I have to say that members opposite should be worried—they should be very worried, indeed.
There is nothing arrogant about this, I say to Ms Fenton; it is simply realistic. I was getting the response that I have been getting consistently in recent months, and that is a very realistic one. Everybody knows that times are tough, and everybody knows there are real issues out there that people are grappling with. But the thing I am detecting everywhere I go is a very realistic mood, and a strong sense of appreciation that the Government is on the right path, focusing on the things that matter, and delivering policies that will make a difference and see us back into growth, out of debt, and providing a much brighter future for New Zealand.
People in my electorate tell me how grateful they are for the way our Government has stood by the people of Canterbury. I get that comment a lot. People tell me they are delighted that we are committed to reining in Government spending to prevent our debt from spiralling out of control. They are delighted that we are intervening in very positive ways in the lives of youth at risk and those who are in danger of being long-term welfare beneficiaries. These are the things that matter out in my electorate.
I say to Ms Beaumont that I had a very similar experience a couple of weeks ago, when I spoke to a Grey Power audience in my electorate. Again, Grey Power is not a traditional National Party audience, but what a wonderful, delightful group it was. That audience, and so many others, told me that despite the huge challenges that we have faced as a Government—and they know what they are—they are thrilled that we have rolled up our sleeves and tackled the things that matter, and that they can see we are delivering in a host of important areas. The public recognise and appreciate these facts and, most importantly—and this is what they were telling me on the doorsteps in my electorate—they have no desire whatsoever to go back to Labour’s failed policies of borrow and hope, and tax and spend. They know that Labour’s prescription will discourage private saving and investment, increase bureaucracy and red tape, and propel our doctors and other skilled graduates off to London and Sydney.
So I am very pleased that our Minister of Education kicked off today’s debate by speaking about the success of, and the huge increase in, the number of trades academies. Last week I was privileged to speak at the graduation of the very first intake of the Waikato Institute of Technology, or Wintec, of its trades academy. I was particularly pleased when I spoke to the students, who told me that as a result of doing those courses they were much more motivated at school. Their tutors told me that attendance was almost at 100 percent and the few absences were absolutely genuine, and not only that but the attitude and application of the students has been first rate. They have appreciated the opportunity, they have got stuck in, and they now have a real sense of purpose and hope. They are responding to a great initiative. Is it not fantastic that this Government has increased—by doubling—the number of new trades academies for next year? I say well done to Anne Tolley, and well done to this Government; that is a great thing for our country.
There are other significant developments in my city that I want to tell members about. We in Hamilton are leading the way in the roll-out of ultra-fast broadband, and I am thrilled about that. We have committed, as a Government, $1.2 billion to our ultra-fast broadband initiative, which will see fibre rolled out to 50,000 premises around New Zealand in the next 12 months, including schools, hospitals, and businesses. I am delighted that Hamilton is leading the way in this initiative. Just last week I was pounding the streets in Forest Lake. I have done a lot of walking. Members can see that it has taken pounds off me, and I am absolutely delighted; I am no longer the size that I was. But there I was out in Forest Lake, and I met the technicians who were literally on the footpath delivering the high fibre to the gate, and it was fantastic. I was able to have a chat with them, and to say thank you for what they were doing and that it would make a huge difference. Together, over the 8½-year roll-out, the Crown’s partnerships around the country will deliver about 25,000 kilometres of fibre—
Dr Cam Calder—25,000 kilometres of cable—enabling connections to about 1.1 million homes, over 100,000 businesses, in excess of 1,300 schools, and 6,000 medical facilities.
I would love to talk about the health initiatives that are happening. There is also a great development of our university campus, and new buildings and classroom refurbishments in schools. A whole lot is happening. I am absolutely delighted.
Hon JOHN BOSCAWEN (Leader—ACT) Link to this
We have come along this afternoon and heard from the Labour Party about its concern for youth unemployment. We have heard about the lost opportunity, and we have heard about the so-called disgrace. Everyone in this House knows the underlying cause for that. Without a doubt, there is one single major cause. I see Mr David Carter shaking his head. It is a pity Mr Carter and his colleagues are not prepared to recognise that problem.
There was a very close relationship between youth unemployment and unemployment in the rest of the community, up until 2007. If we follow a graph of the rate of unemployment over a number of economic cycles, and we compare it with the rate of youth unemployment, we find that there is a very close correlation. What happened in 2007? Against the strong opposition of the National Party, Labour pushed ahead with a law to abolish youth rates, a law that requires employers to offer a 16 or 17-year-old exactly the same wage as an adult, with the minimum wage currently being $13 an hour. What was the one impact of that? It was to be absolutely expected. The rate of youth unemployment increased dramatically. It was not because of the recession. Yes, the recession contributed, but the very close relationship between adult unemployment and youth unemployment, at that stage, diverged. It diverged for one very simple reason: it was more expensive to employ a younger person than it was previously. If an employer was faced with the opportunity of employing a 16 or 17-year-old straight out of school on the adult rate of $13 an hour, or employing a person with more experience, a mature person aged 25, 35, or 40, at exactly the same rate, what would that employer do? Well, we all know the answer to that.
Mr David Carter, Minister of Agriculture, who acknowledged me earlier, is a farmer. He has employed people. I ask Mr Carter: if he had the choice of employing a 25 or 35-year-old on his farm at $13 an hour, or a 16 or 17-year-old straight out of school, whom would he employ? Well, if you speak to other employers, other famers, you will know absolutely the answer to that—you will know absolutely the answer.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. I think, especially given your other life, talking about “you” employing people on “your” farm could be seen to be drawing you into the debate.
Mr SPEAKERThe former Minister should know better than to debate “you” this, “you” that. It is not consistent with our Standing Orders. The member should refer to the member’s farm or the Minister’s farm, not “you” or “your” farm.
Hon JOHN BOSCAWEN Link to this
Thank you, Mr Speaker. I am very happy to refer to Mr Carter’s farm. Mr Carter, like all other farmers, would know that when faced with the chance of employing a 16 or 17-year-old at the same rate as an older, more mature person, he would take the older, more mature person at any stage.
Today we have heard two speakers from Labour express concern about youth unemployment. Well, they know the solution. There is a very simple solution. It is to reinstitute youth rates. It is interesting that Jacinda Ardern this afternoon talked about the $250 million of taxpayers’ money that Labour would put into encouraging employers to take on an apprentice. What were Jacinda’s comments? She said that 12 months was how long it took an employer to recover the cost of an apprentice. That is the cost; that is the incentive. We actually have to provide an employer with an incentive to take on an apprentice, and it is that exact same incentive that Labour took away when it abolished youth rates. The tragedy of this—the absolute tragedy—is that most people with common sense in this House know that. I believe that every National member knows that, because National spoke out strongly against the abolition of youth rates in 2007 when it was pushed through by Labour. National had an opportunity to do something about that. It had the opportunity to reverse that law change when Sir Roger Douglas had a member’s bill before the House in 2009. What did National do? It voted down the bill.
The ACT Party will be taking a very active part in this election. We will be using the opportunity to go out and talk to New Zealanders about the things that need to be done to turn round this economy. We are talking about the waste of a young person sitting at home on the unemployment benefit, picking up $4.50 an hour while watching television. That is a waste of our young people, it is a waste of their potential, it is a tragedy, and every single person in this House knows that we can do something about it.
DARIEN FENTON (Labour) Link to this
I have to give it to the ACT Party: if they come up with one idea and they go on and on about it, and their great idea to win them the election is to cut wages—
Cut wages. No, cut wages. That is exactly what Sir Roger Douglas and National did in the 1990s—cut wages. Did that help to create jobs? Did it create skills? Did it develop our skills? What it did was lead to a low-wage, low-skill economy. So ACT’s whole policy is based on a false premise. I strongly suggest to the member that he go back and look at the history of what happened when this country cut wages and whether that created jobs. Did it create jobs in the 1990s? Of course it did not.
I am very proud of Labour’s plan to have all young people earning or learning. I congratulate my colleagues who have been involved in putting it together. I know it has taken an awful lot of work. It has been very well received. It is a very positive plan. I know that National cannot live with the idea that some in business actually think Labour does some good things, but they do. Have a look at the press releases from Business New Zealand and others. What the plan also does is add to a cohesive economic package we are putting together. We have announced some of it so far: our monetary policy and our tax policy. This is the skills and jobs—
Chris TremainWell, that party has no cohesive policy, except to cut jobs and lose jobs and owning our future. We will have a comprehensive package to take to the electorate that will have all the elements in it to change the economy instead of relying on past, failed ideas, as National continues to do.
The skills crisis we are seeing at the moment, which the Labour plan responds to, was absolutely predictable—absolutely predictable. All the problems that are there and everything we are facing right now are the fault of a National Government that failed to look ahead and see that we were going to have skills shortages. Things never stay the same. If we go back to the great ideas of this Government, we see the things it failed to do—particularly for the young people of New Zealand, who are bearing the brunt of its failure. They are the ones who are paying the price. Let us think about those ideas. We had the Job Summit, and that was supposed to deliver jobs. We are still waiting for that. The other big idea from National to create jobs was the 90-day trial period. How many jobs has that created for young people?
Hon Kate WilkinsonWell, the Minister of Labour says 15,000. She knows that that research she keeps citing is rubbish. It is absolute rubbish. Also, while I have the Minister’s attention, I say that she is doing the dance of the seven veils on returning to youth wages. We all know that she really wants to bring them back. Mr Key is being a little bit edgy on that. Again, those are the only ideas they can think of. Of course we had boot camps. How many jobs have they created? What have they done to change things?
I am really pleased about our policy. I am particularly pleased about the apprenticeship schemes. The previous speaker, John Boscawen, was talking about people sitting on the dole and how wasteful that is. We agree with that. That is why we will be subsidising employers to take on apprenticeships, to fund 9,000 additional apprenticeship places.
Why is subsidisation necessary? That member should talk to builders and find out how difficult it is in this climate for them to take on an apprentice. They need assistance to do it. Why should they take all the risk? We are going to help them with that. We are going to help make sure that those young people have much-needed skills. Also we will support group apprenticeships. That is a very good scheme. There are some group apprenticeships that exist already. What happens in a group apprenticeship scheme is the group takes on the responsibility of employing the apprentice, so the employer does not have that responsibility. They do all of the pastoral care, they deal with all the risk and employment relations, and they can also share out those apprenticeships between different employers. In the process leading up to our announcement, I visited a number of apprentices, apprentice providers, and industry training organisations. What our policy has come from is from listening to what those people were saying. Going back to builders, it is really hard for them to take on an apprenticeship at the moment. That is why we are supporting a real boost to make sure they can do so.
LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupō) Link to this
There is one thing that clearly sets this side of the House apart from the other side, and that is the difference in leadership. We have a Prime Minister in John Key who is providing a steady hand in very uncertain times. That is why New Zealand as a country is positioned to be in better shape than many other countries around the world, despite the level of global uncertainty that we are facing. New Zealand has a strong plan for getting back into the black. Unfortunately, members on the other side continue with their mantra of “tax more, spend more, get more debt”. It is interesting that when we talk to New Zealanders, they do not seem to have too much of an appetite for that.
I will talk about some of the things in the Taupō electorate. I was recently at the business excellence awards, which 500 people attended. Actually, it was a sell-out. I made a few comments to the group of business people who were gathered there. I passed on the comment that the Leader of the Opposition had made that day that it is “good fortune” when people succeed in business—“good fortune”. Actually, it is a hell of a lot more than good fortune. All of the people on this side of the House know exactly what it takes to do well in business. I talked to a roomful of people in Taupō who are courageous, who are dedicated, and who are resilient. Let us face facts: we have had some tough times, but those people are the ones who are doing it out there on the street and making it happen.
If we look at the people in business in the Taupō electorate, we see there is a quiet air of confidence. I will give members some examples. In Cambridge, anytime that a retail space becomes available, it is snapped up just like that. Two new supermarkets have been built in New Zealand so far this year, both of them in Tokoroa. There are three new dairy factories. Two have been consented for and one has just been completed, in Mōkai. That is a fantastic sign in terms of growing our exports in New Zealand, and that is what this side of the House is focused on. We are focused on growing our exports, because we know that that leads to jobs.
With regard to energy, just last week I was with Minister Hekia Parata at Contact Energy. Some significant investment projects are under way. One is the Tauhara project, which was consented to in record time because of the changes we made with the introduction of the Environmental Protection Authority. At Te Mihi, $623 million is being invested. These are great news stories in Taupō, and they really demonstrate the fact that there is confidence out there, there is confidence in this Government, and there is confidence in what we are doing for the economy.
A recent campaign undertaken by a local business organisation in Taupō was a “grab it” campaign. It was focused on what is generally a challenging time in the winter months, over the period of July and August. It was really interesting to see exactly what businesses can do when they pull together. I have recently found out that in August, both retail spending and the number of transactions were significantly up—in fact, they were higher than the average across New Zealand.
There is confidence out there. We are getting results. People have the confidence to take on staff, and that is exactly what we want to see. And that is before the Rugby World Cup hits town. Taupō is hosting three teams: Wales, Ireland, and South Africa. I must admit that, having seen the excitement of the Tongan supporters in Auckland on Monday, I did have a little wish that perhaps the Tongan team would be in our town, but never mind. This event will be a significant boost for the local economy. Not only that, but what businesses have been doing is putting in place things that will actually create more business in the long term with the initiative by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and the New Zealand 2011 Business Club. There is the Sika Show, which focuses on deer hunting; the inaugural Clean Energy Centre expo, with a whole raft of international guests; and the New Zealand Junior Rugby Festival, which in its own right is expecting 5,000 visitors.
I report from the people of Taupō that Taupō is in good heart, but it is not because of good fortune. It is because of courage, determination, and the ability to work hard. More important, it is because of the confidence in a John Key - led Government that we have the foundations in place for a strong economy that creates wealth and jobs and builds a brighter future.
KEITH LOCKE (Green) Link to this
Nicky Hager’s Other People’s Wars should prompt us to assess the so-called war on terror, which will be 10 years old this Sunday. The September 11 attack on the Word Trade Center caused such destruction and loss of life that it spooked the world community. The Bush administration seized the opportunity to increase State powers at the expense of civil liberties and to engage in foreign military adventures. Unfortunately, it pulled other Western countries, including New Zealand, in its wake. New Zealand SAS troops were sent to Afghanistan, the Terrorism Suppression Act was passed, and the police, the SIS, and the Defence Force were instructed to develop a much greater anti-terrorism capability.
Most New Zealanders have doubts about America’s wars and now they would rather our SAS was not involved in Afghanistan. Nicky Hager’s book reinforces this particular view. It is a war where our SAS and our intelligence operatives embedded with the Americans have been providing targets for missile attacks, often by drone planes, which commonly kill civilians. Prisoners captured by our SAS have been handed over to possible mistreatment in US or Afghan detention centres. Nicky Hager also questions how separate our provincial reconstruction team in Bamian Province is from the larger war, despite the Defence Force saying when the team was sent that its “Personnel are not going to war.”, and that “The focus of this mission is reconstruction.”
Yesterday defence Minister, Wayne Mapp, did not deny that there were US operatives in Bamian collecting intelligence, including, it seems, signals intelligence for the wider war. The New Zealand public relations people do not tell the whole story. For example, we are told that our provincial reconstruction team has handed over some responsibilities to the local police, which is good, but it seems that surplus New Zealand soldiers have been assigned to the north-east corner of Bamian Province, away from the peaceful, Hazara-populated zone, where they are more likely to be engaged in the wider war.
The Hager book details that New Zealand helped American and British occupation forces in Iraq with our frigate Te Kaha by escorting American troop ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Also, Kiwi army engineers based in Basra from 2003 helped by repairing British combat riverboats and helping the British occupation force to build roadblocks to control what were described as Iraqi rioters.
Domestically, our police and SIS have been on a mission to justify their extra anti-terrorist staffing and find some actual terrorists. This has led to unwarranted suspicion being placed on refugees and migrants, most notably in the Ahmed Zaoui case, where a democratic opponent of the Algerian regime was imprisoned in New Zealand because of pressure from other Western Governments that tended to support the Algerian dictatorship. Even local political activists have been labelled terrorists, as in the so-called Tūhoe raids of 2007. Thankfully, with the dropping of most of the charges yesterday, this case is collapsing.
Of course, the one group the SIS did not want to spy on, because these people are supposedly Western allies, was Israel’s Mossad agents. They happen to be the only group engaged in terrorism-related crime in New Zealand in the last decade. Mossad agents obtained fraudulent New Zealand passports to use in terror acts in other countries of the sort they have carried out in Jordan and last year in Dubai.
So what can be done at the end of the war-on-terror decade to rectify this situation? The Greens offer the following suggestions, all of which will achieve the Government-stated objective of reducing State expenditure. Firstly, we should move quickly to withdraw our SAS unit from Afghanistan. Secondly, we should sell off our two frigates, which, unlike the multi-role vessels and the patrol boats, are only useful for helping in America’s wars. Thirdly, we should significantly reduce the budget of the SIS in light of the realisation that it is not practical to have so much resource devoted to finding terrorists in New Zealand when we have not discovered a single terrorist in the past decade. Finally, we should listen to the New Zealand people more. They do not want our foreign policy and our defence policy to simply be a carbon copy of the United States’ policy. They are tiring of this war on terror.
KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI (National) Link to this
It is my privilege to participate in today’s general debate as a member of the National Party. I would also like to share the experience I have had while being out and about among the Indian and ethnic communities during the past few months. It was my honour to accompany our Prime Minister, the Rt Hon John Key, on his State visit to India. National is very focused on improving New Zealand’s relationship with India, which is the fastest-growing economy in the world. It is very important for New Zealand to look for new markets for the products produced in New Zealand.
The economy is recovering. The National-led Government is taking New Zealand forward by reducing our debts, getting back to surplus within 3 years, and building a faster-growing economy. We are getting on top of Government debt by keeping it below 30 percent of GDP, and we are on track to surplus by 2014-15. Over the next few years we have an opportunity to build a solid foundation for a faster-growing economy and more jobs.
It is the week of our largest sporting event. The Rugby World Cup 2011 is an unprecedented opportunity for New Zealand. It will be the biggest event ever held in this country, and we plan to make the most of it. The tournament will be watched by millions of viewers around the globe. We will be showcasing New Zealand to the world. I have seen enthusiasm over the past few weeks within the communities in South Auckland. Shops in Manukau have flag bunting up, people are adopting their second teams, and a great atmosphere of excitement is building. I have no doubt that the All Blacks will win, and I am looking forward to watching the games.
National has added additional funds for education, health, transport, and law and order, all of which are very important areas for ethnic communities and Indians. National has made South Auckland a safe community. Crime has reduced, family violence has decreased, and the streets are safer. That is reflected in the latest crime statistics of all recorded crimes in the Auckland district last year. The highest percentage of 43 percent was recorded for theft and related offences, followed by unlawful entry, burglary, and breaking and entering, at 17 percent. Recorded crimes in Auckland per head of population are the lowest they have been for the last 15 years. We have introduced tough laws and new legislation, boosted police numbers, and given them new tools to deal with crime. It is good to see in my electorate that this is making a difference. Taxi drivers in the taxi industry are very happy with the instalment of the new cameras in their taxis. They now feel safer, and there is a huge sense of relief and satisfaction that the killer of Hiren Mohini, the taxi driver who died last year, has been brought to justice.
Aucklanders can look forward to faster and more reliable electric trains, thanks to National’s $1.6 billion investment upgrade in extending and electrifying Auckland’s rail network. National’s investment in Auckland rail will give the region more independence and flexibility in how it runs its services. Motorists will not have to pay an additional regional fuel tax of 10c per litre.
As a person of Asian ethnicity, it is a common practice, and expected, that we save for our old age and for generations to come. This is a value that is instilled in us from birth. The proposal of mixed ownership is very attractive to the ethnic community. Small investors such as mum and dad investors will be able to invest in New Zealand companies. There is strong Kiwi demand for shares in State-owned enterprises. New Zealanders are expected to own at least 85 to 90 percent of five companies under National’s mixed-ownership policy, including the Government’s majority shareholding.
CAROL BEAUMONT (Labour) Link to this
I want to return to the issue of our young people, because, as is often said, young people are our future. New Zealand has the worst youth unemployment record in the OECD—that is right: the worst in the OECD. That is a disgrace. There are 58,000 15 to 24-year-olds who are not in work, not in training, and not in school, and 24,000 of those are under the age of 20. These are our children and our grandchildren; these are the people whom we will expect to take their part in our economy, and we are throwing them on the scrap heap. The Government’s response to date has been nothing short of lazy and piecemeal. This is the issue that should be at the forefront of all of our attention. It should not be about spin, and it should not be about gimmicks, but that is precisely what this Government’s response to youth unemployment has been.
In contrast, Labour has a coherent plan. We have a coherent economic plan, unlike the Government, which does not have a plan. Our plan will focus on productivity and lifting investment in our productive economy.
—and it is not about taxing more. That is just another example of Government spin—of National spin. It is about reforming our tax policy. We will be investing in research and development, we will be dealing with a volatile New Zealand dollar, and as part of that economic plan we will be looking at significant investment in the area of skills.
Other members have spoken about our youth skills and employment package, and I want to talk about one particular aspect. But can I add the fact that I am also very proud of this package. This is a package that will really make a difference, and that really resonates in our communities. I have to say that Melville must have changed a lot since I went to school there and lived there. I find it hard to believe that the people of Melville would be happy about 58,000 young people being on the scrap heap. I do not know whom Mr Macindoe was talking to.
Anyway, Modern Apprenticeships have declined by 10 percent in the past 2 years under this Government. Labour has come up with a plan that would see employers receiving a subsidy of $8,700, and that would be for an additional 9,000 apprenticeship places—that is right: 9,000 more apprenticeship places. That has been welcomed across the board by business groups, by unions, and by the building and construction industry in particular, which is suffering from major skills shortages, and is facing a rebuild in Christchurch with no people to do it. It has been welcomed across the board, because this is a good idea.
We do have to spend money in this area, but it is an investment; it is an investment in our future and it is an investment in our young people. Every parent and grandparent, and every decent-thinking New Zealander, wants that sort of investment in something like an apprenticeship, which provides a really effective form of learning. It has stood the test of time. It is a process whereby those who have skills impart those skills to our young people in a workplace context. It is about giving young people a future. I have spoken to principals who have talked about the difference that getting a young person, who is at risk of disengaging from school, on an apprenticeship makes to their whole life course. It gives them a whole range of opportunities, it gives them hope, and it gives them pride, because they are doing something they can see and something that makes a difference in our economy, because we do have massive skill gaps.
A person who does an apprenticeship has a range of opportunities. They can continue doing that work as an employee. They can establish their own business in that area. They can go overseas with a recognisable qualification that will be well rewarded. They can build a good future for themselves and their families. More apprenticeships are important to plug the very real skill gaps that we have in our country. We have lost so many skilled New Zealanders to Australia. Even the Prime Minister of Australia sees us as part of their skills strategy. We have a problem, and the Government is failing to address that problem.
Of course, the apprenticeship model has the other great feature, which is that the young person is earning and learning at the same time. I can tell members that on the streets of Maungakiekie, when I have been talking about this package, people believe that this is a good idea, an idea whose time has come.
JAMI-LEE ROSS (National—Botany) Link to this
I commented to a few people earlier today that I expected there to be much wailing and gnashing of teeth from the Opposition during the debate on the voluntary student membership bill, but little did I know that this would start an hour earlier, during the general debate. The reality out there in the community just does not align with the Labour Party’s view of the world. The people in the community know that, and they will make their decision in November this year.
I want to talk about something very positive for New Zealand, very positive for the country, which is starting in just 2 days’ time. It is something we should all be proud of as New Zealanders. It is something that I know everyone has been looking forward to for a long time, and it all starts on Friday with the Rugby World Cup. It is a big opportunity for New Zealand. It is a very good thing that we are having this tournament—the third-biggest tournament in the world—coming to New Zealand.
I acknowledge that there is a quarter of a billion dollars in economic benefits, just for Auckland alone—the city I am from—and $700 million of economic benefit for the nation as a whole. It is a time for pride in our country, it is a time to stand up as New Zealanders and support the mighty All Blacks. It is a time to showcase to the world everything that is good about New Zealand, everything that we as a country achieve, and everything that we want to sell to the world—the image of New Zealand as a great place to live and a great place to do business. We will see 95,000 visitors coming to New Zealand, many of those in just the first week alone.
We will be showcasing to the world everything that is good about New Zealand through the REAL New Zealand Showcase event.
Those of you who have been down to the Cloud on the waterfront will have seen that it is a brilliant entertainment facility for New Zealanders. It is a place where we will be hosting the REAL New Zealand Showcase. It will present the best of New Zealand business and industry to the world through a nationwide programme of events.
Hon Rick BarkerI am getting some heckling from the Opposition. Let me remind the House that the Cloud on the waterfront is something Trevor Mallard could never achieve. It took Murray McCully to come along to get something on the waterfront. Trevor could not achieve it. Do members remember the stadium that Trevor could not achieve? It took Murray McCully to come along and bring the Cloud to Auckland. Thank goodness he has done that.
The REAL New Zealand Showcase that is down there at the Cloud will be supported by events around the country. It will showcase to the world the industries we have and the people we have working out in the community who are building their businesses. They want to sell the industry and sell everything that they have available to the world so that they can help to further build this economy. There will be 18 export industry sectors at the REAL New Zealand Showcase, staging 230 events across New Zealand. I am proud to be a member of the party that has helped to bring this to the country through the REAL New Zealand Showcase. It is all about building the economy, as well.
Let me remind the House what the National-led Government is doing about the economy. We will bring us back to surplus by 2014-15. We are investing over $30 billion in assets over the next 5 years. We are spending $5.5 billion on recovery in Canterbury. We have had across-the-board tax cuts. We are reducing regulation and red tape. We have got more money for health, more money for education, and more money for law and order. I know that New Zealanders out there are proud to see what this National-led Government has been doing across the board.
We heard a bit about what the Opposition members have been talking about with regard to youth unemployment. Let me remind the House of two things that Labour wants to do that would hurt young people in the country. The 90-day trial period has been great for young people. It has given young people a chance to get into employment. Labour would kill it off. Labour wants to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. We would see 6,000 young people out there who would be on the unemployment heap just by virtue of that policy. We are hearing simple-mindedness from members across the House that would do New Zealand a lot of harm. Thank goodness—thank goodness—we will continue to have a John Key - led Government, should we be so fortunate to be re-elected in November this year.