Parliament 4 April 2012
Oral Questions 2 pm – 3 pm
- TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he received on the Government’s financial position?
- Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that “if you go and have a look at the tax cuts, they literally were neutral” and, if so, what is the projected net cost of the first four years of the 2010 tax package?
- DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?
- Dr PAUL HUTCHISON to the Associate Minister of Health: How will young New Zealanders receive better mental health services under the new Government package announced by the Prime Minister today?
- Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister for Land Information: Has he or any other Minister this week sought further information on Shanghai Pengxin’s application for his approval to buy the Crafar farms, and if so, is it coincidence or purpose that this will further delay his decision on the application?
- NIKKI KAYE to the Minister of Education: What initiatives is she introducing to help schools tackle youth mental health?
- JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Transport: Has the Government reviewed its highway building programme in light of the warning in the briefing to the incoming Minister that there will be a $4.9 billion funding shortfall if oil prices remain high and economic growth remains low; if not, why not?
- CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Minister of Justice: Does she stand by all the answers she has given to questions asked of her to date?
- NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Economic Development: What action has the Government taken to contribute to the recovery of high-tech businesses in Christchurch?
- Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: When will he approve a Recovery Plan for Christchurch’s CBD in light of the Christchurch City Council’s announcement that it will commence its Annual Plan processes next week?
- Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in the Overseas Investment Office and his Ministers, Hon Jonathan Coleman and Hon Maurice Williamson over the issue of the latest Crafar farms deal; if so, why?
- CLARE CURRAN to the Prime Minister: What did he mean when he told the NZ Herald and other media last week that “We are comfortable with the current arrangements we have” with regards to Chinese telco Huawei’s involvement in our national broadband infrastructure, given that Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard also said last week that “We’ve taken a decision in the national interest” to ban Huawei from even tendering for its broadband network?
Today there are four questions from National, five questions from Labour, two from the Greens and one from NZ First.
Patsy of the day goes to Q6 – What initiatives is she introducing to help schools tackle youth mental health?
Labour have their normal gotcha question to the PM, one on Crafar farms, a gotcha to Judith Collins, CERA and Huawei.
Greens are on tax cuts and roads.
NZ First also on the Crafar farms.
General Debate 3 pm – 4 pm
The weekly free for all. 12 speeches of five minutes each on any topic.
Members Bills 4 pm – 6 pm and 7.30 pm – 10 pm
- Military Manoeuvres Act Repeal Bill – third reading
- Fair Trading (Soliciting on Behalf of Charities) Amendment Bill – second reading continued
- Sustainable Biofuel Bill – second reading
- Crown Minerals (Protection of Public Conservation Land Listed in the Fourth Schedule) Amendment Bill – first reading
- Environment Canterbury (Democracy Restoration) Amendment Bill – first reading
This is the third non-Government bills sitting day this year. The first two bills should get done before the dinner break. The third bill may not take up a full two hours either. Hence it is almost certain the Crown Minerals Bill will be debated, and a small possibility the ECan bill may be reached. If the Crown Minerals Bill finishes its debate, then there will be a ballot for a new bill for first reading.
The Military Manoeuvres Repeal Bill was introduced in June 2010 by Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi (Nat) and seeks to repeal the Military Manoeuvres Act 1915 which allows the Government to declare any land available for a period specified for military manoeuvres. It has not been used for over 30 years. It was supported by all parties at first reading, at select committee and at third reading.
The Fair Trading (Soliciting on Behalf of Charities) Amendment Bill was introduced in November 2009 by Amy Adams (Nat) and is now in the name of Michael Woodhouse (Nat). It seeks to increase the transparency and public accountability of third-party businesses that collect funds on behalf of registered charities, by mandating disclosure of how much money actually goes to the charity. It was supported by all parties at first reading, and after amendment by the Commerce Committee also by all parties.
The Sustainable Biofuel Bill was introduced in June 2009 by Jeanette Fitzsimons (Green) and is now in the name of Kennedy Graham (Green) and aims to ensure that biofuels that are supplied or sold in New Zealand from 01 May 2010 are sustainable biofuels by banning non-sustainable biofuels. It passed first reading without dissent on a voice vote. However the Local Government and Environment Committee has recommended that the bill not be passed as there is a low probability of unsustainable biofuels being imported into New Zealand due to lack of demand. The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment also said the bill should not proceed as “it could not work in practice as it would impose its environmental standards only on biofuel production” There was no dissenting report to this recommendation not to proceed.
The Crown Minerals (Protection of Public Conservation Land Listed in the Fourth Schedule) Amendment Bill was introduced in April 2010 by Metiria Turei (Green). It seeks to prevent land being removed from the protection of Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991. It will mean the Government can add land to Schedule 4, but once added only Parliament can remove it.
The Environment Canterbury (Democracy Restoration) Amendment Bill was introduced in September 2010 by Ruth Dyson (Lab). It would require elections to be held for Environment Canterbury within three months of the bill being passed. It is worth noting that presuming the normal six months select committee process, it would probably only pass in early 2013, and hence bring forward the scheduled October 2013 election by only a few months.