5. Hon DAVID PARKER (Labour) Minister for Economic Development) Link to this
to the Minister for Economic Development
Has he been advised by the Prime Minister whether his appointment as Acting Minister for Economic Development is temporary or expected to carry on to the election?
Hon SIMON POWER (Acting Leader of the House) Link to this
No. The advice the Acting Minister received from the Prime Minister is the same as what he has stated publicly—namely, that these changes have been made for the foreseeable future and will be kept under review as the recovery progresses.
Given that his appointment is, as he has just said, for the foreseeable future, can he please tell the House what new plans he has to halt the slide in the New Zealand economy?
I can do no better than borrow a phrase from history used by the Hon John Tamihere in response to a similar type of question, and that answer was “Heaps!”.
Is the Minister aware that there are already low levels of confidence in the economy, and does he think it was wise, then, for members of his Government to add to New Zealanders’ feelings of insecurity by softening up the public for possible cuts to Working for Families and student loans?
In respect of the second part of the question, I do not believe that is what the Minister did, or what the Government has done, in any case.
Given those very low levels of confidence, why is the Government continuing to speculate on effective increases in taxes for middle-income New Zealanders via cuts to Working for Families and student loans?
The member opposite should not assume any of those things and should wait and see what the Government has in store.
Why can the Minister not see that more responsible leadership is needed to ensure that the wheels of the economy turn rather than fall off, and when will he bring forward some new ideas to get the economy running?