4. Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Labour—Waimakariri) Link to this
to the Minister of Finance
Is he considering selling or partially selling any State-owned enterprises in the future; if so, which ones?
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance) Link to this
No. The Government’s position is clear. We made a commitment to New Zealanders that there will not be asset sales in this term of Parliament. If the position is to change, we will campaign on that at the next election. In the meantime, we are doing a much more important job, which is fixing the damage done by 10 years of mismanagement of $200 billion worth of State assets—
Mr SPEAKERWhen I get to my feet, I expect all members of the House to respond immediately. The question did not contain any political accusations in it, whatsoever. It just asked whether the Minister was considering selling or partially selling any State-owned enterprises in the future, and if so, which ones. It did not deserve an attack on the party of the questioner.
Hon Clayton Cosgrove Link to this
Why, then, did he tell a post-Budget luncheon in Christchurch that the Government is considering making a change of policy “to free up capital and put product on the market for Kiwi mums and dads”?
I made those comments in the context of discussing with that audience the need to lift our game with the $200 billion worth of assets that the Government owns. I pointed out to them that those assets will grow by $35 billion over the next 5 years, and that the Government is investing $6 billion per year in taxpayer-funded assets.
Hon Clayton Cosgrove Link to this
When he suggested at the luncheon that “there is a strong demand among the mums and dads for a Kiwi investment model and if we put product into the market people would buy it”, did he also point out to the audience that Kiwi mums and dads buying a State-owned asset such as Kiwibank would be buying something that they already own through their payment of taxes?
The member has pointed to a comment that someone made to me after that discussion, but, as I said then and I will say again now, we have got on with the much more important job of improving the shocking level of management left behind by the previous Government. It did not care about the State-owned assets, and it did a very poor job of managing them.
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga Link to this
What previous policies regarding the ownership of State-owned enterprises is the Minister aware of?
Over the years there have been a number of different positions. I am aware of a position stated by the previous Minister for State Owned Enterprises, Trevor Mallard, who advocated floats of State-owned enterprise businesses so that they could be listed on the stock exchange. He told a TV programme in 2006 that “that could help give a bit of depth to our capital markets and get some transparency around those companies, and I think that would help.” Presumably, that is still the policy of the Labour Party.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. The member did not fully quote me. It was—
The member cannot litigate an answer by way of a point of order. There was nothing wrong with the answer; I just think the last bit was unnecessary. The Minister made an allegation as to the current policy of the Labour Party, for which the Minister has no responsibility. There was nothing wrong with the answer up until then.
Hon Clayton Cosgrove Link to this
Who is correct: the Prime Minister, who said: “No consideration has been given to selling any State-owned enterprises yet.”; himself as Minister, when he said last Friday that the Government is considering a change of policy to “put product on the market for Kiwi mums and dads”; or the Kiwibank chairperson, Jim Bolger, who said: “They’re clearly working away on what their privatisation strategy may or may not be.”?
The Prime Minister is correct. The Government has not asked for advice or considered any advice on the matters that were raised, because we have been so busy fixing up the mess that we inherited—$200 billion worth of assets are owned by the taxpayer, and that Government left them in a mess.
Rahui KateneDoes he agree with Capital Market Development Taskforce chairperson Rob Cameron that it is time for iwi to begin thinking about how they are to organise themselves, and about which governance systems and investment vehicles they might use to play an active role in investing in New Zealand’s infrastructure; if so, what consultation has he had with iwi about the potential sale of State-owned enterprises?
We have not had any consultation with iwi about the ownership of State-owned enterprises. In the central North Island, for instance, a number of iwi have formed joint ventures with State-owned enterprises, which, I think, were sponsored by Dr Cullen of the previous Labour Government. We have certainly discussed with iwi their potential role in public-private partnerships, and I understand that a number of bidders for the first option of a partnership are consulting with iwi as we speak.
Hon Clayton Cosgrove Link to this
Does he stand by his statement last Friday that Kiwibank needs an “awful lot of capital”; if so, why did the outgoing Kiwibank chief executive officer, Sam Knowles, disagree with him when he said yesterday that Kiwibank is making enough profit to finance its growth, and if any additional capital is needed, it will be minimal?
Kiwibank is growing, and the Government is keen to support that growth. We have had discussions with Kiwibank over an extended period about what is required for that. I have to say that the Government, as shareholder, does not share all the views that the Kiwibank management hold about what is required for growth.