Parliament - Live Stream and Question Time

Dr JAMES McDOWALL to the Minister of Tourism: Does he stand by all of his statements and actions?

ARENA WILLIAMS to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he seen of how the economy is performing a year on from the decision to move to alert level 4?

Dr SHANE RETI to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her Government’s statements and actions?

GINNY ANDERSEN to the Minister of Housing: What reaction has she seen to the new supply side measures announced as part of the Government’s housing package on Tuesday?

CHRIS BISHOP to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: Is he satisfied with the management of the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out, and will the Government set an official target of how many New Zealanders should get the COVID-19 vaccine?

Dr TRACEY McLELLAN to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: How have New Zealand’s COVID-19 health protection measures improved over the past year?

Hon DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Agriculture: Does he stand by his comment in regards to horticulture worker shortages, “The Minister of Immigration has indicated … that at this stage there is no capacity to bring in any more RSE workers”; if so, has he asked Cabinet colleagues what progress has been made on the Pacific COVID-safe travel zone?

RICARDO MENÉNDEZ MARCH to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What is her response to the findings of MSD’s Experiences of Money Management in the Youth Service report that payments are often inadequate, and that compulsory money management may lead to further debt, stigma, and hinders our young people?

BARBARA EDMONDS to the Minister of Revenue: What reports has he seen about the proposed change to interest tax deductibility for existing residential rental properties?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Minister of Housing: Can she confirm that neither the final design nor the criteria for the Housing Acceleration Fund have been decided on by Cabinet, and by what date will that scheme result in a single new house being built?

INGRID LEARY to the Minister of Immigration: What recent reports has he seen on the additional 2,000 Recognised Seasonal Employer workers brought in under a class border exception to support the horticulture and wine industries?

NICOLE McKEE to the Minister of Police: What actions, if any, have been taken to speed up the process for the approximately 10,000 people caught in a firearm licence application backlog?

Dr DUNCAN WEBB to the Minister of Finance: What reactions has he seen to his announcement yesterday of the Government’s housing package to back first-home buyers?

Hon JUDITH COLLINS to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her Government’s statements and actions?

ANAHILA KANONGATA'A-SUISUIKI to the Minister of Housing: What recent announcements has she made about supporting first-home buyers?

Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that “What we are committed to is making sure that houses are more affordable”; if so, does the Government have a position on what ratio of median house price to median household income would mean we have affordable housing in Aotearoa?

GLEN BENNETT to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What reports has she seen about employment in the construction sector?

ANDREW BAYLY to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by all of his statements and actions?

BROOKE VAN VELDEN to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by her statement regarding the Government’s housing policy, that it will “tip the balance in favour of first-home buyers through our demand measures”?

BARBARA EDMONDS to the Minister of Revenue: Why is the Government exempting new builds from changes to the bright-line test and interest deductibility rules?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Minister of Housing: Does she stand by her response to concerns that the First Home Grants and Loans caps are too low, “so for the lower quartile, the fourth quartile of that, that is the median point of houses currently that had been sold in March in 2021”; if so, how many homes at this price point will the Housing Acceleration Fund aim to get built in the next 24 months?

Dr ANAE NERU LEAVASA to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What recent announcements has she made about supporting the COVID-19 response across the Pacific?

Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Research, Science and Innovation: Does she stand by the Government’s research and development policies; if so, does she agree with PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Research and Development National Director that, with the new funding system, “businesses would have no choice but to delay projects, in the worst-case scenario cancelling them altogether, and actually having to get rid of highly-skilled staff … It’s the complete opposite effect of what was intended”?

HELEN WHITE to the Minister of Transport: Is the Government helping to keep New Zealand connected with trade partners and maintaining international passenger services; if so, how?

Hon JUDITH COLLINS to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her Government’s statements and actions?

Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that “we cannot afford to put the current economic recovery at risk by allowing house prices to spiral out of control”; if so, what impact, if any, will the Government’s housing package announced this morning have on the ratio of house prices to household income in the short term?

BARBARA EDMONDS to the Minister of Finance: What actions is the Government taking to support stability and fairness in the economy by managing demand for housing?

ANDREW BAYLY to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by all his statements and actions?

PAUL EAGLE to the Minister of Housing: What announcements has she made about unlocking housing supply in New Zealand?

CHRIS BISHOP to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: When the Government was negotiating a joint decision-making framework with Australia for the proposed trans-Tasman safe travel zone, did the Government develop a back-up plan in case agreement was not reached in the negotiations; if so, what was the plan?

MARJA LUBECK to the Minister of Education: What is the Government doing to extend its current level of support to meet the skills needs of the construction industry and other trades?

DAVID SEYMOUR to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by her statement, “between 1991 and 2019, New Zealand house prices had the highest real growth in the OECD at 266 percent”; if so, will the policies announced today reduce real house price growth?

DEBBIE NGAREWA-PACKER to the Minister of Corrections: Does he have confidence in the Department of Corrections and its CEO?

Dr ANAE NERU LEAVASA to the Minister of Health: What recent announcements has he made on mental wellbeing telehealth supports for youth?

Hon TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Tourism: Why did he not announce any new support for tourism when in Queenstown last week?

JO LUXTON to the Minister for Small Business: What reports has he seen on the take-up by small businesses of Digital Boost?

INGRID LEARY to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he seen on the New Zealand economy?

BROOKE VAN VELDEN to the Minister of Health: Why is the fixed nature of the pharmaceutical budget and total amount of funding allocated for pharmaceuticals out of scope of the announced review into Pharmac?

Dr SHANE RETI to the Minister of Health: Does he stand by all his statements and actions around reducing the number of district health boards?

MARJA LUBECK to the Minister of Education: What progress has the Government made in preparing for increased student numbers north of Auckland?

Hon MICHAEL WOODHOUSE to the Minister of Transport: Does the Auckland Transport Alignment Project 2021–31 investment programme include funding to accelerate planning for an additional Auckland harbour crossing; if not, why not?

ANGIE WARREN-CLARK to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What initiatives has she recently launched to support food security?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Associate Minister of Housing (Homelessness): Does the Aotearoa/New Zealand Homelessness Action Plan aim to reduce the use of emergency accommodation such as motels; if so, how many more people are living in motels today compared to when the plan was announced in February 2020?

PAUL EAGLE to the Minister for Māori Development: What recent Papakāinga announcement has he made for Māori on the Chatham Islands?

SIMEON BROWN to the Minister of Police: Is she confident the Government will meet its target of 1,800 new police officers over three years; if not, how will police have enough resources to deal with increasing gang violence?

Hon EUGENIE SAGE to the Minister for the Environment: Does he stand by his statement that “Immediate improvements in IWG”—intensive winter grazing—“practices this season are required”, and does he expect those improvements to occur before winter begins?

TONI SEVERIN to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety: Does he agree with the advice provided to him regarding increasing the minimum wage this year that the impacts of the increase include “lower job growth and reduced hours”, and that “effects are most likely to impact some demographic groups such as youth, Māori and women”; if not, why not?

JO LUXTON to the Associate Minister of Education: What recent reports has she seen on progress towards implementing Learning Support Coordinators in schools?

Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that “all parts of the economic apparatus” need to address rampant increases in house prices; if so, will the Government’s upcoming announcements include bold policies to reduce house prices in a controlled way?

Dr DUNCAN WEBB to the Minister of Finance: What has been the impact of the COVID-19 response package he announced on 17 March 2020?

CHRIS BISHOP to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: Did a Cabinet committee consider a paper relating to a trans-Tasman safe travel zone this morning; if so, was there a discussion about what the earliest date could be for the opening of a safe travel zone if New Zealand acted unilaterally to do so?

BROOKE VAN VELDEN to the Minister of Housing: Does she stand by all the Government’s statements and actions in relation to the Land for Housing Programme?

WILLOW-JEAN PRIME to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What updates has she received on the progress of Mana in Mahi?

Hon DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Agriculture: Does he stand by his statement from 23 February 2021, “The shortages projected pretty much every season by horticulture and viticulture have never fully been realised … Some employers never have trouble getting staff; others always seem to have challenges”; if so, does he believe labour shortages in the horticulture sector are an employer issue?

JAMIE STRANGE to the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs: What recent announcement has he made about consumers who are accessing financial advice?

Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister of Education: Does he stand by all his statements and policies on education?

BARBARA EDMONDS to the Associate Minister of Education (Pacific Peoples): What is the Government doing to support the education needs of Pacific learners and families impacted by COVID-19?

BARBARA KURIGER to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Does she stand by her statement in 2018, “We have around 10.5 years of gas … This has been the number that it has been for the last 20 years ... Nothing has changed. The member needs to realise that there is 100,000 square kilometres off the coast of New Zealand that is available for exploration”?

GINNY ANDERSEN to the Minister of Customs: What is Customs doing to support the recovery of the New Zealand economy from the impacts of COVID-19?

TIM VAN DE MOLEN to the Minister for Building and Construction: Does she stand by all her statements and actions regarding the construction sector?

To be announced.

INGRID LEARY to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he seen on the New Zealand economy?

RAWIRI WAITITI to the Minister of Police: Does she agree that the New Zealand Police are racially profiling Māori, given that police are photographing Māori youth and using tactical pain against Māori more than any other ethnicity?

Dr SHANE RETI to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: When will the coronavirus vaccine be available to everyone in New Zealand, and does he have confidence in the infrastructure required for the roll-out?

Dr TRACEY McLELLAN to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: What progress has the Government made in securing a strong vaccine portfolio for all New Zealanders?

Hon TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Tourism: Does he view a trans-Tasman bubble as a priority for the tourism sector, and by what date does he expect a trans-Tasman bubble to be in place?

ANAHILA KANONGATA'A-SUISUIKI to the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage: What action is the Government taking to help inspire students in schools and kura to get creative and be involved in the arts?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Associate Minister of Housing (Public Housing): Why has the State house waiting list increased from 5,844 in September 2017 to 22,521 in December 2020, and by what date will it reduce back to 2017 levels?

MARK CAMERON to the Minister for Land Information: Does he stand by his statement on the Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill, made before his appointment to the Land Information portfolio that “My primary focus has been to ensure the bill recognises that Crown pastoral lands supports a prosperous high country pastoral farming industry and I’m confident that this new regime proposed by the Minister will ensure that sustainable pastoral farming on Crown land will continue to thrive”?

ARENA WILLIAMS to the Associate Minister of Health (Māori Health): What recent announcement has he made about the sequencing of the COVID-19 vaccination programme for Māori?

ERICA STANFORD to the Minister of Immigration: On what date did he first become aware of the anomaly between migrant nurses who arrived in New Zealand before our borders closed being unable to bring their families to New Zealand and nurses who arrived after our borders closed being able to do so, and what steps, if any, has he taken to address this disparity?

TANGI UTIKERE to the Minister for Pacific Peoples: What is the Government doing to support opportunities in Pacific housing?

TEANAU TUIONO to the Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs: What work is he doing with our Pacific neighbours through the South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme to protect the ocean?

Hon JUDITH COLLINS to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her Government’s policies and actions?

Dr DUNCAN WEBB to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he seen on the New Zealand economy?

ANDREW BAYLY to the Minister for Infrastructure: What are the 15 shovel-ready projects being re-scoped, and why has construction only started on less than a quarter of shovel-ready projects?

Dr LIZ CRAIG to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: What is the Government doing to ensure continual improvement in COVID-19 response?

DAVID SEYMOUR to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by her statement regarding the Government’s response to COVID-19, “What I’ll set out over the course of this month is how we anticipate transitioning from the restrictions that we have”; if so, when will a full and comprehensive plan be announced?

CHLÖE SWARBRICK to the Minister of Conservation: Will she commit to the target adopted by the Hauraki Gulf Forum of protecting at least 30 percent of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park?

TAMATI COFFEY to the Minister for Whānau Ora: What recent announcement has he made about Whānau Ora supporting whānau affected by the recent changes in COVID-19 alert levels?

CHRIS BISHOP to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: Will the Australian travel bubble that was agreed by Cabinet in principle and announced on 14 December 2020 be up and running by the end of the first quarter; if not, why not?

BARBARA EDMONDS to the Minister for Pacific Peoples: What actions did the Government take to communicate with Pacific communities during the recent alert level changes?

KAREN CHHOUR to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her statement, “We always hear about New Zealand being a great place to raise a family – and that’s certainly true. But we can always do more”?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Minister of Housing: Does she have confidence that taxpayers are getting good value for the money being spent by Government housing agencies; if so, what was the total cost incurred to make videos promoting the Progressive Home Ownership scheme?

IBRAHIM OMER to the Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities: What supports were in place for ethnic communities during recent alert level changes?

ANNA LORCK to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he seen on financial support given to businesses in the wake of recent alert level changes?

Hon JUDITH COLLINS to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all of her Government’s policies and actions?

ANGELA ROBERTS to the Minister of Education: What is the Government doing in schools to tackle material hardship for families while also improving educational outcomes?

DAVID SEYMOUR to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her statements and actions regarding the Government’s response to COVID-19?

STEPH LEWIS to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What support has the Ministry of Social Development provided to people and families affected by the recent COVID-19 restrictions?

ANDREW BAYLY to the Minister for Infrastructure: How many of the 170 projects announced by the Government, as part of its shovel-ready scheme announced in April last year, if any, has construction not started on?

Hon EUGENIE SAGE to the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries: How many habitats of particular significance for fisheries management have been defined and protected under section 9(c) of the Fisheries Act 1996 in the last 10 years?

WILLOW-JEAN PRIME to the Associate Minister of Education: What initiatives has the Government recently announced to remove barriers to participating in education for young people in schools?

CHRIS BISHOP to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety: Has the Government commenced a “fundamental review of the design of the [COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme]”, and what changes, if any, is the Government contemplating to the COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme?

TAMATI COFFEY to the Minister for Emergency Management: What progress has been made in building the capability and capacity of the emergency management workforce?

CHLÖE SWARBRICK to the Minister of Health: Does he consider the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 supports the Government’s commitment to “minimising drug harm and to treating drugs as a health issue”?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Minister of Housing: Does she stand by her statement that “Motels are not a suitable environment for vulnerable individuals, families and whanau and they are also not cost effective”; if so, how many people is the Government funding to live in motels now compared to the last quarter of 2017?

DAVID SEYMOUR to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: What advice, if any, has he received this year on the policy of varying quarantine arrangements for travellers arriving into New Zealand depending on the risks associated with their country of origin, such as has been put in place in Australia and Taiwan?

Dr SHANE RETI to the Prime Minister: How many children have been lifted out of poverty between the time she became Prime Minister to the end of June 2020?

Dr DUNCAN WEBB to the Minister of Finance: What has been the response to the Resurgence Support Payment that opened for applications on Tuesday?

NICOLA WILLIS to the Minister of Housing: Does she stand by her statement, “We will continue to build more public houses and make sure people move into them, and off the Public Housing Register as quickly as possible”; if so, what change has there been in the public housing register between November 2017 and today?

Hon MARAMA DAVIDSON to the Minister of Revenue: Has he seen a report that the wealthiest people in Aotearoa are paying an average of only 12 percent tax on their income, and 42 percent of them are paying below 10 percent tax; if so, does he think that is fair?

Dr ANAE NERU LEAVASA to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: What progress has been made on the roll-out of New Zealand’s COVID-19 vaccination programme?

DEBBIE NGAREWA-PACKER to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: Does she have concerns that for the financial years of 2019 and 2020, there has been no significant reduction of child poverty for tamariki Māori; if so, what is she doing to increase income support for tamariki Māori and their whānau?

NAISI CHEN to the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage: What recent announcements has she made about making the arts more accessible and inclusive?

SIMEON BROWN to the Minister of Police: Does she stand by all her policies and statements?

TAMATI COFFEY to the Minister for Māori Development: What recent reports has he seen on education and employment outcomes for rangatahi Māori?

MATT DOOCEY to the Minister of Health: What is his response to reports in the media from those with experience in the mental health sector who are concerned that progress on transforming the mental health system has stalled?

KIERAN McANULTY to the Minister of Transport: What progress has been made to restore and improve roads and rail in New Zealand’s regions?