10. Hon ANNETTE KING (Deputy Leader—Labour) Link to this
to the Prime Minister
Does he stand by all his statements relating to the House timetable for the second reading and subsequent stages of the Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill; if so, why?
Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister) Link to this
As the member will know, the House timetable has always been subject to change. I note that the Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill was introduced on 13 May, was reported back by the select committee on 4 September, and had its Committee stage and third reading on 15 September.
Why did the Prime Minister tell New Zealand that this bill had to be rushed through under urgency because the Minister of Local Government had to go overseas, when it has been revealed that the timing of the Minister’s trip was organised around a personal engagement rather than any formal requirements to be overseas, and does he believe that it was appropriate to put the House into urgency at a huge cost to taxpayers to facilitate a trip to suit a Minister’s girlfriend?
Firstly, it was important that the Minister was here when the bill was going through the House so that he could correct the misleading statements that the Opposition so often puts up. Secondly, the member will know that the Minister had a very busy time when he was overseas, but one thing I can confirm is that he was not at Twickenham watching football matches.
Did Mr Hide tell the Prime Minister about whether any of his meetings in London, Portland, Toronto, and Los Angeles were time-sensitive, including his trip to a Los Angeles theme park, or was the timing of his girlfriend’s family wedding the only reason the trip was undertaken at that time?
No. The Minister told me in writing that he had a vast array of meetings that were pertinent to his portfolio. I can tell the member that I have read the Minister’s report, and it was extremely thorough. I can absolutely confirm that I was not aware that he was going to any football matches, unlike members on the other side of the House. He did not go to any, as far as I am aware.
Which statement is correct: the statement by Rodney Hide, who said “I didn’t go into this trip lightly. I thought long and hard about it and knew I would have to justify it.”, or the Prime Minister’s comments that Mr Hide’s going at the same time as a family wedding was simply “a happy coincidence”, and that Mr Hide did not have enough time to plan such a thing?