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  <channel>
<title>RNZ: Parliament - Question Time</title>
<link>http://www.radionz.co.nz/radionz/programmes/parliament</link>
<description>The New Zealand Parliament - Question for Oral Answer</description>
<image>
  <title>RNZ: Parliament - Question Time</title>
  <url>http://www.radionz.co.nz/assets/programmes/icons/217/300_parliamentq-640.jpg?1323741970</url>
  <link>http://www.radionz.co.nz/radionz/programmes/parliament</link>
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<language>en-nz</language>
<copyright>(C) Radio New Zealand 2012</copyright>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 23 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Questions to Ministers
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?
  TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: How will Budget 2012 support sustainable growth?
  HONE HARAWIRA to the Minister of Finance: What are the Government&rsquo;s fiscal policies doing to stop the loss of New Zealanders to Australia, which has now hit an 11-year high?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement on page 1 of the Budget 2011 Executive Summary, where he states that growth is &ldquo;forecast to reach 4 percent next year and the economy forecast to create 170,000 new jobs over the next four years&rdquo;?
  COLIN KING to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: What evidence has he received of the financial performance of New Zealand universities?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Have all the projects identified in the National Infrastructure Plan been assessed against Treasury&rsquo;s Better Business Cases for Capital Proposals guidelines to ensure they represent good value for money; if not, why not?
  Hon NANAIA MAHUTA to the Minister of Education: Does she stand by her statement &ldquo;Under current settings, we could have expected 1,000 more teachers to be added by 2016&rdquo;; if so, what proportion of those teachers would have been employed in primary schools?
  Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister for Social Development: What role will the Work and Income Board have in the Government&rsquo;s recently announced welfare reforms?
  Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Housing: Does he stand by all his statements on housing?
  BRENDAN HORAN to the Minister of Transport: Has he made a decision to fund the repair of the Napier-Gisborne rail network; if not, why not?
  Dr JACKIE BLUE to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What recent progress has the Government made in combating the trade of objectionable images of children?
  KRIS FAAFOI to the Minister of Police: What is the basis for her assertion that there will be no negative effect on Police frontline services despite no new money for Vote Police in tomorrow&rsquo;s Budget and given that Police face potential cost increases of $470 million over the next four years in wages alone?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 May 2012 14:02:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 22 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Questions to Ministers
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in the Minister of Finance?
  PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister of Finance: How will the Budget this week contribute to the Government&rsquo;s long-term programme to build a more competitive economy?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: In light of his comment that &ldquo;this Budget will start making the long-term changes that National promised to make and that are needed to lift New Zealand&rsquo;s long-term economic performance&rdquo;, what was the forecast growth in Budget 2009 for each out-year to date and what has been the actual growth in each of these out-years?
  JACQUI DEAN to the Minister of Corrections: What recent announcements has she made about reducing reoffending?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by the Prime Minister&rsquo;s statement with regard to asset sales that the Prime Minister is &ldquo;much more of a mind to accept the Treasury&rsquo;s advice than &hellip; BERL&rsquo;s&rdquo;; if so, has he seen the Treasury&rsquo;s advice that asset sales would decrease the Government&rsquo;s operating balance before gains and losses by nearly $100 million per year?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his Budget 2011 statement that the amount of new debt raised by the Government on a weekly basis in 2012 &ldquo;will fall by more than two-thirds to around $100 million&rdquo;?
  SHANE ARDERN to the Minister for Primary Industries: What further decisions has the Government made in response to the Ministerial Inquiry into Foreign Charter Fishing Vessels?
  Hon NANAIA MAHUTA to the Minister of Education: How many new teachers are forecast to be employed in 2016 based on the current student to teacher ratios and roll growth and how does this compare to the number of teachers who will be employed in 2016 under the new ratios she announced last week?
  SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister of Education: What initiatives has she announced in Budget 2012 to raise student achievement?
  Su&#39;a WILLIAM SIO to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement on job creation &ldquo;We can effect things like labour laws and if you look at the jobs creation that we have been promoting; the SkyCity convention centre, more mining and exploration, Australian companies coming back &hellip; they will create jobs.&rdquo;?
  KATRINA SHANKS to the Minister for Social Development: How are youth services around New Zealand celebrating this year&rsquo;s Youth Week?
  MOJO MATHERS to the Minister of Health: Did he seek any advice on the effect raising prescription charges would have on New Zealanders with disabilities; if not, why not?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 22 May 2012 14:05:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 10 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Questions to Ministers
  SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister of Finance: How will the Budget on 24 May continue the Government&rsquo;s long-term programme to build a more competitive economy?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Does the Budget Policy Statement 2012 show that the Government&rsquo;s proposed asset sales programme would decrease the Government&rsquo;s operating balance before gains and losses by nearly $100 million per year?
  JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Social Development: Does she stand by her statement that &ldquo;Welfare is having the biggest reforms that this country has seen for decades&rdquo;?
  KATRINA SHANKS to the Minister for Social Development: How will the Budget 2012 welfare reforms support teen parents to provide better outcomes for themselves and their children?
  CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Attorney-General: How many District Court Judges currently hold permanent warrants, and of those Judges, how many are unavailable to sit full-time in the District Courts because they hold other appointments?
  Dr PAUL HUTCHISON to the Minister of Health: What improvements have been made to the way that district health boards provide elective services for their patients, and what have been the results of these?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he still have confidence in the Minister for Social Development and the Associate Ministers for Social Development; if so, why?
  Su&#39;a WILLIAM SIO to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: Does he stand by all his answers to Oral Question No 2 on 3 May 2012 on employment matters?
  MELISSA LEE to the Minister of Housing: What recent announcements has he made about funding from the Social Housing Unit?
  Hon DAMIEN O&#39;CONNOR to the Minister for Primary Industries: Does he have confidence in Biosecurity New Zealand?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Conservation: What are the benefits of the marine reserve proposed for Akaroa Harbour?
  Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister of Consumer Affairs: What progress is the Government making on tougher loan-shark laws?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 10 May 2012 14:03:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 9 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Questions to Ministers
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Is it still a fundamental purpose of his Government to narrow the wage gap between New Zealand and Australia, and to grow local wages in New Zealand?
  TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he received on the economy?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: In dollar terms, what is the shortfall in the tax-take for the nine months to March revealed in yesterday&rsquo;s Financial Statements compared to October&rsquo;s pre-election update?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: How much has been raised to date by the Earthquake Kiwi Bonds and, at this rate, how many years will it take to cover the Government&rsquo;s estimated $5.5 billion liability resulting from the Canterbury earthquakes?
  Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister for Social Development: How will Budget 2012 provide greater support for young people most at risk of long-term welfare dependency?
  Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Does he stand by the Prime Minister&rsquo;s statement regarding asset sales that &ldquo;We are not going to do anything tricky there&rdquo;?
  Dr JIAN YANG to the Associate Minister of Health: How is the Government expanding its programme to reduce rheumatic fever in vulnerable communities?
  Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Housing: Does he stand by all his comments regarding housing?
  JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Transport: What is the plan to pay for the Government&rsquo;s transport expenditure given that the Ministry of Transport&rsquo;s Briefing to the Incoming Minister warns of a funding shortfall of $4.9 billion if high oil prices and low GDP growth continue?
  MARK MITCHELL to the Minister for Economic Development: How is the Government improving value for money in its procurement of services for the public sector?
  DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: Does she stand by her statement that &ldquo;I do not want to see unnecessary change for change&rsquo;s sake. Rather I am looking to put in place pragmatic solutions as we implement our manifesto commitments and let employers, employees and business focus on what they do best.&rdquo;?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he still have confidence in the Minister for Social Development and the Associate Ministers for Social Development; if so, why?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 09 May 2012 14:01:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 8 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Questions to Ministers
  Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Finance: What steps has the Government taken to responsibly manage its finances and stop the increase in public debt?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all of his statements?
  METIRIA TUREI to the Prime Minister: Does he still stand by his statement that &ldquo;The welfare system will always be there to support those who genuinely need it&rdquo;?
  Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister for Social Development: What recent announcements has she made on the Government&rsquo;s welfare reforms to support more people off welfare?
  DENIS O&#39;ROURKE to the Prime Minister: Did he involve Auckland City Council in discussions he or his staff had with SkyCity about a national convention centre in Auckland during 2009 and 2010?
  JOHN HAYES to the Minister of Defence: What reports has he received regarding New Zealand Defence Force training exercises?
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: How many people will lose access to some or all of their student allowance as a result of the changes he announced last week?
  MARK MITCHELL to the Minister of Justice: What steps is the Government taking to reduce unnecessary parole hearings?
  JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Social Development: What proportion of the 87,000 young people not in employment, training or education will be assisted by her youth services package?
  HOLLY WALKER to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: What official advice, if any, has he received about how increasing the student loan repayment rate will impact on young families and those on low incomes?
  Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Prime Minister: Does he believe Hon John Banks when he said on Friday, 27 April 2012 that he could not remember a helicopter trip to the Dotcom mansion, and if not, was Mr Banks&rsquo; comment consistent with clause 2.53 of the Cabinet Office Manual which states &ldquo;&hellip; at all times, Ministers are expected to act lawfully and to behave in a way that upholds, and is seen to uphold, the highest ethical standards. Ultimately Ministers are accountable to the Prime Minister for their behaviour.&rdquo;?
  CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Minister of Broadcasting: What progress is the Government making towards the digital switchover?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 08 May 2012 14:03:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 3 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Does he agree with National Bank Chief Economist Cameron Bagrie that we are not seeing an export-led recovery, and increased activity in &ldquo;spending centric&rdquo; sectors such as housing is &ldquo;not the stuff of a durable, long-term, sustainable upswing&rdquo;?
  JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: Does the most recent National Employment Indicator show that there are more or fewer jobs now than when his Government came into office in 2008?
  Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister of Finance: What will be the Government&rsquo;s approach in the Budget to ensure it remains on track to fiscal surplus in 2014/15?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What is the percentage reduction in foreign policy or diplomatic staff he has set out in his paper to the Cabinet Committee on State Sector Reform and Expenditure Control, dated 26 April 2012?
  JAMI-LEE ROSS to the Minister of Health: What decisions has the Government made in relation to providing better services at Counties Manukau District Health Board?
  TE URUROA FLAVELL to the Minister of Education: What support did her Ministry offer to Moerewa School before the decision was made to close the satellite senior class and send in a Commissioner, Mike Eru, and what is the purpose of his appointment?
  Hon NANAIA MAHUTA to the Associate Minister of Education: Has he read or received the Ministry of Education advice provided to the previous Minister of Education, which states charter schools &ldquo;have not consistently led to significant increases in achievement&rdquo;?
  DENIS O&#39;ROURKE to the Minister of Defence: Is he satisfied that all issues arising from the 2010 ANZAC Day helicopter accident have been properly dealt with by the Government and the RNZAF?
  MIKE SABIN to the Associate Minister of Social Development: What steps has the Government recently taken to combat welfare fraud?
  Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Prime Minister: Did the assurances that Hon John Banks gave his office regarding his compliance with the Local Electoral Act, which he has accepted, include an assurance that any donations for radio advertising during the 2010 mayoral election were correctly recorded?
  CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Minister of Conservation: What are the likely benefits of the new tourism-conservation partnership with Air New Zealand?
  CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement to the Otago Daily Times on 21 April 2012 that he was not aware of KiwiRail&rsquo;s decision to sell off the Dunedin Hillside workshop prior to the announcement?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 03 May 2012 14:04:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 2 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he believe that Hon John Banks has behaved in a manner that &ldquo;upholds, and is seen to uphold the highest ethical standards&rdquo; as required by the Cabinet Manual?
  BARBARA STEWART to the Prime Minister: Did Mr Banks explain to the Prime Minister&rsquo;s Chief of Staff that he would use &ldquo;obfuscation&rdquo; in his dealings with the media over the &ldquo;anonymous&rdquo; donations from Kim Dotcom?
  MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: How does the Government intend to strengthen the Public Finance Act 1989 in the Budget this month?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: In the most recent World Economic Outlook published by the IMF in April 2012, which of the 34 advanced economies listed is forecast to have a worse current account deficit (as a percentage of GDP) than New Zealand in 2013?
  METIRIA TUREI to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all the answers he gave to Oral Question No 4 yesterday?
  KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI to the Minister for Economic Development: What action is the Government taking to improve co-ordination of the business growth agenda?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What damage, if any, has been done to staff confidence and retention by the change proposals for his Ministry announced on 23 February 2012, and does he intend to announce on 10 May 2012 a reversal of many of the proposals?
  SIMON O&#39;CONNOR to the Minister of Labour: What steps is the Government taking to improve workplace health and safety?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Conservation: Does her proposed extension of the Marine Mammal Sanctuary for Maui&rsquo;s dolphins allow the use of set nets, drift nets, and trawl nets within the sanctuary?
  IAN McKELVIE to the Minister of Corrections: What reports has she received about trade training within prisons?
  Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Has he required that all his Ministers involved in the Canterbury earthquake recovery read the briefing paper dated 10 May 2011 prepared by Chief Science Advisor, Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, into the psychosocial consequences of the Canterbury earthquakes; if not, why not?
  NIKKI KAYE to the Minister of Education: What evidence has she seen of excellent achievement in scholarship exams?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 02 May 2012 14:03:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 1 May 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister of Finance: What will be the main focus of the Government&rsquo;s Budget on 24 May?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: What assurances, if any, has he directly received from Hon John Banks regarding donations he received for his political campaigns and when did he receive those assurances?
  DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Immigration: What changes has the Government announced to deter mass arrivals of illegal immigrants and people smugglers from targeting New Zealand?
  METIRIA TUREI to the Prime Minister: What advice, if any, has he received on Hon John Banks&rsquo; alleged actions regarding donations from Kim Dotcom?
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister for Land Information: On what date did Hon John Banks lobby him on behalf of the application of Kim Dotcom to purchase property in Coatesville, and how did Mr Banks communicate this lobbying?
  Dr JACKIE BLUE to the Minister of Justice: How will the Alcohol Reform Bill provide for better community involvement in managing alcohol?
  Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Associate Minister of Education: What progress has he made on setting the criteria for establishing charter schools?
  STEFFAN BROWNING to the Minister for Land Information: Do overseas owned companies need Overseas Investment Office approval to exclusively occupy coastal marine space?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all of his Ministers; if so why?
  JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What progress has the Government made on its policy of delivering faster broadband for New Zealand?
  HONE HARAWIRA to the Minister of Housing: What assurances can he give that there will be no requirement for any existing tenant in any State house to move out of the area as a result of the Tamaki Transformation Programme for the Glen Innes redevelopment, which involves reducing the number of Housing New Zealand -owned houses from 156 to 78?
  Hon MARYAN STREET to the Minister of Health: What reports has he received concerning Pharmac&rsquo;s provisional sole supplier contract with Pharmaco to provide new blood glucose meters for the 120,000 -plus diabetics who use them?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 01 May 2012 14:04:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 5 April 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his answers to questions in the House this year?
  TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: What is the impact on the Crown&rsquo;s finances of the Government&rsquo;s tax changes since the 2008 election?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement of 5 July 2010 that &ldquo;I&rsquo;d hate to see New Zealanders as tenants in their own country&rdquo;; if not, why not?
  Dr JACKIE BLUE to the Associate Minister of Health: What reports has he received about the Prime Minister&rsquo;s Youth Mental Health Project, announced yesterday?
  Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister for Economic Development: Does he agree with South Australian Treasurer Paul Snelling in relation to SkyCity that &ldquo;there cannot and will not be any connection between any change to their regulatory arrangements governing the casino and their investment&rdquo;, and can he assure the House that a similar standard will be upheld by this Government?
  JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Transport: Did the Government compare the costs and benefits of the Roads of National Significance against those of other transport projects before announcing them to ensure that it is getting best value for public money; if not, why not?
  MELISSA LEE to the Minister for Social Development: What recent announcements have been made to improve the way the Government deals with young people who have mental health problems?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What concerns, if any, have been expressed to him that proposed changes to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will damage New Zealand&rsquo;s promotion of its international trade and foreign policy interests?
  SIMON O&#39;CONNOR to the Associate Minister of Education: What recent announcements has the Government made on the school network upgrade project?
  PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister of Finance: Have Treasury officials reviewed Ministry of Transport calculations including projected traffic volume growth, per capita change in volumes over the last seven years and the alignment with GDP, and if so, is he satisfied that the currently planned transport spend is good value for money?
  NICKY WAGNER to the Minister of Energy and Resources: What initiatives has the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority implemented to help support Christchurch&rsquo;s Recovery?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Has he received advice on the economic impacts of a major oil spill off the coast of Kaikoura?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:04:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 4 April 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[TODD McCLAY to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he received on the Government&rsquo;s financial position?
Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that &ldquo;if you go and have a look at the tax cuts, they literally were neutral&rdquo; 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&rsquo;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&rsquo;s CBD in light of the Christchurch City Council&rsquo;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 &ldquo;We are comfortable with the current arrangements we have&rdquo; with regards to Chinese telco Huawei&rsquo;s involvement in our national broadband infrastructure, given that Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard also said last week that &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve taken a decision in the national interest&rdquo; to ban Huawei from even tendering for its broadband network?


  Questions to Members
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee: Is it his intention to call the Treasury to appear before the committee to comment on the Report from the Controller and Auditor-General on The Treasury: Implementing and managing the Crown Retail Deposit Guarantee Scheme; if not, why not?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:01:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 3 April 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Has he had any recent discussions with the Prime Minister of Australia over security and intelligence concerns Australia has expressed over Huawei?
  JOHN HAYES to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the Government&rsquo;s plan to return to Budget surplus in 2014/15?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all statements made by him and on his behalf?
  JACQUI DEAN to the Minister of Police: What recent reports has she received about reductions in recorded crime?
  CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Minister of Justice: Why has she declined to accept the Law Commission&rsquo;s recommendation, supported by the Privacy Commissioner, to increase the Privacy Commissioner&rsquo;s investigative powers, including by giving her the power to issue compliance notices, and to conduct information-handling audits?
  COLIN KING to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: What action is the Government taking to boost international education promotion for Christchurch?
  JULIE ANNE GENTER to the Minister of Transport: Why is the Government prioritising State highway projects with low benefit cost ratios, given that traffic volumes are back to 2004 levels and the Crown is borrowing $12 billion a year?
  Dr JIAN YANG to the Minister of Immigration: What changes has the Government made to make it easier for low-risk, high-value students to come to New Zealand?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Does he take responsibility for the $9.2 million being spent on the change process in his Ministry this year and does he consider it money well spent?
  MARK MITCHELL to the Minister of Justice: What is the Government doing to reduce knife crime in New Zealand?
  Hon RUTH DYSON to the Minister for Primary Industries: Will he extend the area of proposed protection for Maui&rsquo;s dolphins beyond the proposed levels in the consultation document, if submissions are overwhelmingly in favour of larger protection areas?
  TE URUROA FLAVELL to the Minister for Social Development: What opportunity is there for providers to demonstrate that they have improved practice in order to achieve the Minister&rsquo;s new &ldquo;fresh look for Family Start&rdquo;; and what support has the Ministry for Social Development put in place for providers to understand the ramifications of these changes announced on 24 March?
  

&nbsp;
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  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:05:00 +1200</pubDate>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 29 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in the Minister for ACC?
  MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What are the fiscal and economic benefits of selling minority shareholdings in four State-owned energy companies and Air New Zealand?
  ANDREW LITTLE to the Minister for ACC: When was the email she received between 12 March 2012 and 18 March 2012 from Michelle Boag concerning Bronwyn Pullar and the involvement of both in a meeting over a mass privacy breach first printed by her or a staff member in her office?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Will he implement a nationwide moratorium on new fracking wells until the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment can assure the public it is safe?
  ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for Social Development: How will this year&rsquo;s annual general adjustment provide greater certainty to those receiving benefits and New Zealand Superannuation?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Has he had any recent discussions with the Prime Minister of Australia over security and intelligence concerns Australia has expressed over Huawei?
  CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Minister of Police: Did the Police Commissioner or any of his staff inform the Prime Minister or any of his staff of the decision not to prosecute Mr Bradley Ambrose; if so, on what date?
  JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister of Energy and Resources: What progress has the Government made towards increasing the proportion of electricity generated from renewable energy sources in New Zealand?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: What written reports did he receive from the Treasury during the five months after his appointment as Minister of Finance in late 2008 describing the increases in deposits in finance companies after they entered the Crown guarantee scheme, as referred to in paragraphs 6.2 and 6.5 of the Auditor General&rsquo;s performance audit report on the Treasury&rsquo;s handling of the Crown Retail Deposit Scheme, and what did those reports tell him, if anything, about how much the Crown&rsquo;s exposure to those financial companies had increased?
  KEVIN HAGUE to the Minister for ACC: What advice has she received about when ACC Board Chairman John Judge first became aware of the issues that were the subject of the December meeting between senior ACC managers, Bronwyn Pullar and Michelle Boag; and if she hasn&rsquo;t asked for that advice, why not?
  Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Housing: What action is the Government taking to make housing more affordable?
  LOUISE UPSTON to the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations: What progress has the Government made towards enacting deeds of settlement with iwi in legislation?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:05:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="23881220" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120329-1405-question_time_for_29_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 28 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  SIMON BRIDGES to the Minister of Finance: What measures is the Government taking to responsibly manage its finances and reduce the build-up in debt?
  CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Attorney-General: Were the Prosecution Guidelines dated 1 January 2010 applied to the decision not to prosecute Mr Ambrose over the Tea Tape complaint?
  TIM MACINDOE to the Minister for Social Development: How will the Government&rsquo;s proposed welfare changes give greater flexibility to support beneficiaries back into work?
  Hon TREVOR MALLARD to the Minister for ACC: Does she stand by her answers to all supplementary questions to Oral Questions No. 2 and No. 9 yesterday?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Has the Treasury underestimated the forecast lost profits to the Crown from the sale of State-owned energy companies in light of Mighty River Power&rsquo;s enhanced earnings and dividend announcement?
  MIKE SABIN to the Minister of Corrections: What reports has she received about the amount of drug use in prisons?
  RICHARD PROSSER to the Minister for Primary Industries: Does he have confidence in New Zealand&rsquo;s current biosecurity arrangements?
  DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Transport: What is the Government doing to reduce compliance costs for motorists?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Conservation: How many adult Maui&rsquo;s dolphins are estimated to be alive today and can she guarantee that on her watch no more Maui&rsquo;s dolphins will die of human-induced causes?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What is the cost budgeted for this financial year of the 30 or more positions in the Change Programme Office within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the consultants engaged by the Ministry on the change process?
  KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI to the Minister of Statistics: What information has he received on preparations for the 2013 Census?
  Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister for Economic Development: Is the Government considering legislative or regulatory concessions with respect to SkyCity Casino in order to build an international convention centre; if so, why?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:01:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="24851096" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120328-1401-question_time_for_28_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 27 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  KEVIN HAGUE to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by the answers given on his behalf to all my questions in the House on Thursday, 22 March?
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister for ACC: Does she have confidence in the Board of ACC?
  IAN McKELVIE to the Minister for Economic Development: What actions is the Government taking to increase employer confidence to hire new workers?
  DENIS O&#39;ROURKE to the Prime Minister: Has he received any recent reports or briefings from the Police?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Attorney-General: How often has the Solictor-General appeared in Court representing the Crown in cases involving the interests of a Prime Minister during an election campaign?
  TIM MACINDOE to the Minister for Social Development: Why is the Government reforming New Zealand&rsquo;s welfare system?
  Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister of Finance: What did he mean regarding public sector CEO pay increases when he said &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a couple of bigger pay increases, I think three with the energy companies, which will be probably related to the share float that&rsquo;s coming&rdquo;?
  NIKKI KAYE to the Associate Minister of Education: What announcements have been made about the first school property public private partnership in New Zealand?
  ANDREW LITTLE to the Minister for ACC: Which of the investigations now underway in ACC &ndash; the Malcolm Crompton&ndash;led investigation into privacy issues or the Police investigation into alleged blackmail &ndash; will deal with the disclosure of former ACC Minister Nick Smith&rsquo;s letter regarding Bronwyn Pullar to the media?
  JACQUI DEAN to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What progress has the Government made to combat the trade of objectionable images of children?
  DAVID CLENDON to the Minister of Corrections: Does she agree with the United Kingdom Ministry of Justice report that states &ldquo;there is no evidence that, on average, prison is more cost-effective at preventing reoffending than community sentences.&rdquo;?
  CLARE CURRAN to the Prime Minister: Why has the New Zealand Government taken a different decision to the Australian Government with regard to security matters relating to Huawei&rsquo;s involvement in broadband projects?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 27 Mar 2012 14:05:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="17750701" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120327-1405-question_time_for_27_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 22 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Question Time for 22 March 2012
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 22 Mar 2012 14:07:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="24166180" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120322-1407-question_time_for_22_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 21 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  SHANE ARDERN to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the economy?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he expect all his Ministers to comply with the responsibilities set out in the Cabinet Manual?
  JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister of Justice: What steps is the Government taking to improve public services in law and order?
  GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister of Local Government: Will he take the same approach to compliance with the Cabinet Manual as Minister for Local Government as he did as Minister for ACC?
  DENIS O&#39;ROURKE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Does he stand by all his recent statements?
  EUGENIE SAGE to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement, &ldquo;I am not going to do something silly with the Department of Conservation estate&rdquo;?
  Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister for Economic Development: What, if any, are the capital costs, write-downs and redundancy costs expected from the merger of the Ministry of Economic Development with the Ministry of Science and Innovation, Department of Labour and Department of Building and Housing?
  Dr PAUL HUTCHISON to the Minister of Health: What progress is being made in relation to the Government&rsquo;s key result of increasing infant immunisation rates and reducing the incidence of rheumatic fever?
  Hon MARYAN STREET to the Minister of Health: Does he support Pharmac&rsquo;s provisional decision to engage Auckland company, Pharmaco, to be the sole supplier of new diabetic meters?
  PESETA SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister for Social Development: Has she received any reports on the Future Focus welfare changes in 2010?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Have New Zealand heads of mission overseas been recalled to a meeting in Wellington on 2 April, and if so what is the cost of holding this meeting?
  Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM to the Minister for Climate Change Issues: Is he concerned by a recent report of an international team of scientists that, even with a two degree celsius rise in average global temperature, future generations could face sea levels of up to 12 to 22 metres higher than at present?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:01:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="21781760" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120321-1401-question_time_for_21_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 20 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements with regard to asset sales?
  KEVIN HAGUE to the Minister for ACC: Does she consider an independent inquiry into ACC&rsquo;s management of the incident in which personal information relating to 6,700 claimants was sent to Bronwyn Pullar is needed; if not, why not?
  PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister of Finance: How will the Government&rsquo;s programme for delivering better public services within tight financial constraints contribute to the Government&rsquo;s economic plan?
  Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Local Government: What recommendations from at least three government reviews of local government since 2006 are yet to be implemented, and if any have not been implemented yet, why not?
  NICKY WAGNER to the Minister of Local Government: What steps is the Government taking to address the average national 7% per annum rate increase and the quadrupling of local government debt from $2 billion to $8 billion since the major reforms of 2002?
  CHRIS HIPKINS to the Minister of State Services: Does he agree that few problems are solved by significant reorganisations &ndash; in fact many more tend to be created and it is easy to underestimate the amount of energy and inspiration soaked up by institutional change, as well as the loss of personal and institutional knowledge?
  TIM MACINDOE to the Minister for Social Development: How will the current welfare reforms support the Government&rsquo;s better public services programme?
  ANDREW LITTLE to the Minister for ACC: Will she set up an independent inquiry to reassure all New Zealanders that ACC and its Ministers act with the utmost integrity when in possession of people&rsquo;s intimate and sensitive information?
  COLIN KING to the Minister for Economic Development: What actions are the Government taking to drive business growth in New Zealand?
  HOLLY WALKER to the Minister of Housing: Is he concerned that poor quality and overcrowded housing is contributing to high rates of infectious and respiratory diseases among Māori children?
  JAMI-LEE ROSS to the Associate Minister of Transport: What is the Government doing to raise awareness about upcoming changes to the give way rules?
  BARBARA STEWART to the Minister of Health: Does he stand by all his statements as Minister of Health?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:18:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="21407008" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120320-1418-question_time_for_20_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 8 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the economy?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Māori Affairs: Is he satisfied with the financial management of the Whānau Integration, Innovation and Engagement Fund, administered by Te Puni Kōkiri?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: What is the projected growth, if any, of New Zealand&rsquo;s international liabilities under this Government&rsquo;s policies, and what are the components of those liabilities?
  EUGENIE SAGE to the Minister for the Environment: Is water quality in New Zealand being negatively affected by livestock in rivers and lakes?
  Dr CAM CALDER to the Minister of Corrections: What progress has been made on the proposal to build a public-private prison at Wiri?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Will proposed changes to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade undermine its ability to carry out its role in promoting New Zealand&rsquo;s trade, security and consular interests?
  LOUISE UPSTON to the Minister of Women&#39;s Affairs: What commitment is the Government willing to make to increase the number of women on State sector boards?
  DENIS O&#39;ROURKE to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Is he satisfied with the rate of progress of the Christchurch earthquake recovery?
  Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM to the Minister for Climate Change Issues: Did New Zealand meet the 28 February deadline for its submission to the United Nations on increasing the level of ambition in global greenhouse gas mitigation, as agreed by parties in the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action; if not, why not?
  DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: Does she stand by her answer to Written Question No 00916 (2012) that &ldquo;the Government is focused on building a more competitive economy, which will lead to more jobs and higher wages&rdquo;?
  JOHN HAYES to the Minister of Defence: What updates can he give on new Defence Force capability?
  CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: Is he confident that current Government broadcasting policy upholds the standards of an independent and free press; if so, why?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:02:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="22091569" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120308-1402-question_time_for_8_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for  7 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements?
  PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the performance of the public service?
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement about asset sales that it was the Governments intention that &ldquo;every New Zealander who wants shares gets them&rdquo;?
  SIMON O&#39;CONNOR to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: What progress has been made in expanding the Youth Guarantee Scheme to provide more 16 and 17 year-olds with fees-free tertiary training this year?
  Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister for Economic Development: Does he stand by his statement that &ldquo;the global financial crisis and the Canterbury earthquakes were not projected in any of those forecasts&rdquo;?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Local Government: Has he been in communication with the Auckland Council over financial management issues, and if so, on what occasions this year?
  MIKE SABIN to the Minister for Social Development: How will the Government&rsquo;s recently announced changes target young people not in education, employment or training?
  DENISE ROCHE to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his comment that the Government has a &ldquo;sinking lid policy&rdquo; for pokie machines?
  Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by the statement made on his behalf in answer to Oral Question No 1 on 1 March 2012, that &ldquo;I do know what is in the coalition agreement&rdquo; and, if so, does he agree that the United Future-National confidence and supply agreement does not require United Future to vote for the Government&rsquo;s asset sales legislation?
  TODD McCLAY to the Associate Minister of Conservation: What benefits will the Game Animal Council Bill bring for recreational hunters?
  Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Housing: What response has he received to the &ldquo;Smarter. Faster. Fairer&rdquo; tenancy service which provides an 0800 phone customer service centre response to people with housing needs?
  JAMI-LEE ROSS to the Minister for ACC: What initiatives are underway to help raise awareness about falls in the home?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Mar 2012 14:04:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="19812702" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120307-1404-question_time_for_7_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 6 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on the Government&rsquo;s financial position?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements on the sale of State-owned assets?
  JACQUI DEAN to the Minister for the Environment: How much funding has the Government committed to the Fresh Start for Fresh Water clean-up fund for the projects announced at the Bluegreens Forum at the weekend for the Manawatu River and the Wairarapa, Wainono and Waituna Lagoons?
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his recent statements?
  CATHERINE DELAHUNTY to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Will the Review of New Zealand Minerals Royalty Rates ensure that royalties are paid on all mines in New Zealand?
  COLIN KING to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What progress has been made to improve access to broadband in New Zealand schools?
  Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Why is there no provision in the Government&rsquo;s asset sales legislation to ensure preferential treatment for individual New Zealand buyers despite the Prime Minister&rsquo;s promise that &ldquo;Kiwi mums and dads will be at the front of the queue&rdquo;?
  TE URUROA FLAVELL to the Minister for the Environment: Have Iwi Māori raised any issues with him about the proposals in the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Bill; if so, what?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Why is the Government requiring the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to find operating savings and make cuts of $40 million a year?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Local Government: Does he have confidence in the financial management of the Auckland Council?
  MELISSA LEE to the Minister for Social Development: How is Government working with the Auckland Council and the Auckland Chamber of Commerce to support young Aucklanders into employment opportunities?
  KRIS FAAFOI to the Minister of Police: Is it correct that &ldquo;Police bosses are considering laying off staff and closing some stations in an effort to save $360 million over the next three years&rdquo; as reported in the NZ Herald?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 06 Mar 2012 14:03:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="17953930" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120306-1403-question_time_for_6_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 1 March 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that &ldquo;the mixed ownership programme will be good for&hellip;the economy as a whole; if so, will it be good for the economy as a whole if these mixed ownership companies then sell New Zealand electricity generating assets into foreign ownership?
  LOUISE UPSTON to the Minister of Transport: What important transport projects are underway in the Waikato region?
  Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister for Economic Development: Does he stand by his statement, in his answer to Oral Question No 8 yesterday, that the current account deficit is forecast in the PREFU to deteriorate by &ldquo;about just under $5 billion over the next 4 years&rdquo;?
  SIMON O&#39;CONNOR to the Minister of Justice: What initiatives is the Government planning in the justice system to help reduce drug and alcohol related offending?
  Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: What current account deficit, in dollars, was projected in the pre-election fiscal update by the Treasury for 2012 and for 2016; and does he agree with Hon Steven Joyce&rsquo;s answer in Oral Question No 8 yesterday, that &ldquo;the pre-election update last year forecast the current account deficit to widen by about just under $5 billion over the next 4 years&rdquo;?
  IAN McKELVIE to the Minister for Primary Industries: Has he received the report of the Ministerial Inquiry into Foreign Charter Vessels?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Local Government: Does he have confidence in the financial management of Auckland City Council?
  DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: What action, if any, does the Government intend to take in respect of industrial action currently occurring in New Zealand?
  MICHAEL WOODHOUSE to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What recent progress has the Government made to improve New Zealanders&rsquo; access to broadband?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Transport: Will he commit to holding a Royal Commission or a Commission of Inquiry into the Government&rsquo;s response to the grounding of the Rena?
  CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: What duties if any, does he believe he has to protect the Broadcasting Commission, also known as NZ On Air, and broadcasters from political interference?
  SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister for the Environment: What action has the Government taken to assist local councils to deal with the possible contamination of residential and community properties in Moanataiari?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:05:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="23140751" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120301-1405-question_time_for_1_march_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 29 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[
  DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his recent statements?
  SIMON BRIDGES to the Minister of Finance: What will be the main focus of Budget 2012?
  Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Finance: Does he believe it is his responsibility, if it is his intention to sell strategic assets, to obtain the best possible price; if not, why not?
  HONE HARAWIRA to the Minister for Social Development: Does she agree with the comment in today&rsquo;s New Zealand Herald that she is stripping away the rights of beneficiaries that she herself had as a sole parent; if not, why not?
  Hon PHIL GOFF to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Does he support proposals to make redundant 63 people in policy and diplomatic positions within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade; if so, why?
  SCOTT SIMPSON to the Minister for Social Development: How do the Government&rsquo;s recently announced welfare reforms balance obligations with incentives?
  GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Does he stand by his statement that he is &ldquo;not aware of any reason to justify a moratorium&rdquo; on fracking in New Zealand?
  MARK MITCHELL to the Minister for Economic Development: What reports has he received demonstrating New Zealand&rsquo;s improved export performance?
  Hon NANAIA MAHUTA to the Minister of Education: Does she have confidence in her Ministry?
  ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for Social Development: What response has she had to the Government&rsquo;s Green Paper for Vulnerable Children?
  JAN LOGIE to the Minister of Corrections: Does she agree with the finding of the Chief Ombudsman that &ldquo;transgender prisoners are particularly vulnerable to abuse and/or sexual assault&rdquo;?
  CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: Does he stand by his primary answer to Oral Question No 11 on Wednesday, 15 February 2012?
  

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 14:02:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="23719473" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120229-1402-question_time_for_29_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 28 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[MAGGIE BARRY to the Minister of Finance: What reports has he received on Government debt?
METIRIA TUREI to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement in relation to the Government&rsquo;s welfare reforms announced yesterday that &ldquo;&hellip;there are plenty of jobs out there for people if they look really hard&rdquo;; if so, why?
DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?
MIKE SABIN to the Minister for Social Development: What changes has the Government recently announced for those on welfare?
Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: Is it his normal practice to &ldquo;guess&rdquo; when determining the business case for selling billions of dollars&rsquo; worth of assets?
Dr JIAN YANG to the Minister of Health: What improvements have there been in the National Health Targets?
JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Social Development: Does she stand by her statement &ldquo;There are jobs&rdquo;?
ALFRED NGARO to the Minister of Justice: What progress has been made on the MMP review triggered by the referendum at last year&rsquo;s election?
Hon MARYAN STREET to the Minister of Health: How much funding for district health boards in the 2011-12 Budget was new money for additional services and cost of living adjustments, and how much was the result of reprioritisation of funding which had been maintained from previous budgets?
KATRINA SHANKS to the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations: What progress has recently been made towards the completion of historical Treaty of Waitangi settlements?
BARBARA STEWART to the Minister of Health: Does he agree with the proposal by Pharmac to limit diabetic New Zealanders&rsquo; access to subsidised glucose-testing equipment?
JAN LOGIE to the Minister for Social Development: Does she agree with the statement in her Cabinet paper that &ldquo;Evidence shows that support for beneficiaries to undertake study, such as the Training Incentive Allowance, can be effective in increasing the time participants spend off benefits.&rdquo;?

&nbsp;
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 28 Feb 2012 14:05:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="20243569" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120228-1405-question_time_for_28_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 16 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[1. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Has he had time to read and digest the judgement of Justice Miller regarding the Crafar farm deal; if so, does he stand by his comments made in the House yesterday?
2. Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister for Land Information: Does he believe he and the Government have conducted themselves competently and appropriately in relation to the decision to approve the purchase of the Crafar farms by a foreign buyer; if not, what did they do wrong?
3. JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister of Finance: What reports has the Government issued on the economy?
4. JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Social Development: Does she have confidence that Work and Income meets their own &quot;case management approach&quot; expectations?
5. JAN LOGIE to the Minister for Social Development: Does she have concerns that changes to the eligibility for the Training Incentive Allowance are causing single parent beneficiaries to consider working in the sex industry?
6. Dr CAM CALDER to the Minister of Health: What improvements have there been to services for patients as a result of greater collaboration between District Health Boards?
7. Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Does he still intend to sell 49 per cent of the four State-owned energy companies?
8. JAMI-LEE ROSS to the Minister of Local Government: What analysis has he received on rate increases across New Zealand&#39;s 78 councils following the enactment of new local government legislation in 2002?
9. Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Does he stand by the part of his statement of 27 January, announcing the extension of the red zone offer to retirement villages, that letters of offer would be sent to each resident and CERA would work with village owners as quickly as possible to ensure the residents are assisted; if not, why not?
10. Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister for Land Information: Did Overseas Investment Office officials meet with Chinese political consul Cheng Lei late last year; if so, did they discuss Shanghai Pengxin&#39;s bid for the Crafar farms?
11. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: What is the name of the documentary which was withheld in the papers released publicly by NZ On Air titled &quot;Records of decisions made at working group meeting&quot;?
12. Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister for Economic Development: What progress has he made declaring the Volvo Ocean Race Stopover a major event under the Major Events Management Act 2007?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:03:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="26335854" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120216-1403-question_time_for_16_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 15 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[1. DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?
2. TODD McCLAY to the Minister for Economic Development: What evidence has he seen of businesses having the confidence to invest in large capital projects in New Zealand?
3. GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all the answers he gave to Oral Question No 6 yesterday?
4. TE URUROA FLAVELL to the Minister for Social Development: E pehea te Minita e mohio ai kei te piki te ora o nga tamariki i roto i nga ringaringa o Child, Youth and Family? o Translation: How will she ensure that children are not made more vulnerable than when they went into the care of Child, Youth and Family?
5. Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: What is Treasury&#39;s projection for New Zealand&#39;s current account balance for the next four years?
6. NIKKI KAYE to the Minister of Education: What reports has she received about early childhood education enrolments in 2011?
7. Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Will he give an assurance that New Zealand&#39;s armed forces will not be used in any possible military intervention in Syria in violation of the United Nations Charter?
8. NICKY WAGNER to the Minister of Local Government: What reports, if any, has he received on labour costs in the local government sector as compared to central government and the private sector?
9. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Corrections: Does she have confidence in her Chief Executive and his staff?
10. Dr JACKIE BLUE to the Minister for Courts: What initiatives are underway to assist court staff to improve the collection of outstanding fines?
11. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: What advice and reports, if any, has he received about the Rt Hon John Key&#39;s electorate chair Stephen McElrea&#39;s potential conflict of interest in his role as a board member of New Zealand On Air?
12. CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What announcements has she made regarding the igovt scheme, and making it easier for people to verify their identities to government agencies?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:02:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="17333380" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120215-1402-question_time_for_15_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 14 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Questions to Ministers 1. JOHN HAYES to the Minister of Finance: What progress is being made in rebalancing New Zealand's economy towards paying our way in the world? 2. DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement made with regard to the revenue from asset sales "I don't know the exact number that they have in their books today"? 3. Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister for Land Information: Did New Zealand's Free Trade Agreement with China influence his decision to approve the sale of the Crafar farms to the Shanghai Pengxin Group? 4. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in his Minister responsible for Whanau Ora in fulfilling the objectives set out in the Relationship Accord and Confidence and Supply Agreement between his party and the Maori Party dated 11 December 2011? 5. ALFRED NGARO to the Minister for Social Development: What reports has she received about proposed welfare reform in other jurisdictions? 6. GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that "the PM's Hour" on Radio Live on 30 September 2011 was an "election free zone"; if so, why? 7. Dr CAM CALDER to the Minister of Justice: What are her priorities in regard to bail laws over the coming three years? 8. Hon DAVID PARKER to the Minister of Finance: Does he have confidence in The Treasury? 9. CATHERINE DELAHUNTY to the Minister of Health: What is the total cost of legal action spent to date by his Ministry to oppose the claim that family members have the right to be paid to care for adult disabled children? 10. CHARLES CHAUVEL to the Minister of Justice: Do fire-fighters, ambulance officers, and the small number of other types of first responders legally required to attend and assist in accident and emergency situations deserve the same level of legal protection from assault as police and prison officers when they are carrying out their duties; if not, why not? 11. CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Minister for Racing: What announcements has he made relating to safety on racecourses? 12. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: Does he believe that appointing the Rt Hon John Key's electorate chair Stephen McElrea to the board of NZ On Air was appropriate?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:02:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="20580733" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120214-1402-question_time_for_14_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 9 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Questions to Ministers  
1. GARETH HUGHES to the Minister for Primary Industries: Will he extend the Taranaki set net ban after the recent death of a Maui's dolphin in a fishing net?  
2. DAVID BENNETT to the Minister for Economic Development: What actions is the Government taking to boost economic linkages with China?  
3. GRANT ROBERTSON to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that his hour-long show on Radio Live on 30 September 2011 was an "election free zone"?  
4. Dr PAUL HUTCHISON to the Minister of Health: What improvements, if any, have been made to the Government's national health targets?  
5. Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Did he discuss with the Christchurch City Mayor reported claims that there had been overtures from within The Treasury that there was scope for the city's rates to be increased or for assets to be sold to pay for the quake recovery, and that this could be done under the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Act before he called him a clown; if not, why not?  
6. JACQUI DEAN to the Minister of Local Government: What reports has he received on increases in local government council debt since the Local Government Act 2002 was enacted?  
7. DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Labour: Does she stand by her statement that the new minimum wage announced yesterday "strikes the right balance between protecting low paid workers and ensuring that jobs are not lost."?  
8. PESETA SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister of Consumer Affairs: What recent announcements has the Government made on protecting consumers from loan sharks?  
9. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: Is he aware that Stephen McElrea is part of a working group within NZ On Air, which includes a representative of MediaWorks, and which is determining details of a documentary about Whānau Ora?  
10. TIM MACINDOE to the Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector: What recent announcement has she made in her portfolio that will benefit communities?  
11. HOLLY WALKER to the Minister for Social Development: Does she consider low family incomes to be a major contributor to childhood vulnerability?  
12. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he still have confidence in all his Ministers?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:02:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="16724247" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120209-1402-question_time_for_9_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 8 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Questions to Ministers  
1. DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement in the House yesterday, in answer to Oral Question No 2, that his Government is selling assets because "New Zealanders want less debt, more productive assets, and an economy that is going to function, not a load more debt"?  
2. PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister for Economic Development: What progress is the Government making in implementing its economic growth agenda?  
3. PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister of Transport: Does the Government consider it important for its transport spending to be cost-effective and provide a good return on investment?  
4. Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: What, according to the Crown Ownership Monitoring Unit, was the average total shareholder return of Genesis, Meridian, Mighty River Power and Solid Energy over the last five years and how does that compare to the average cost of borrowing to the Government right now?  
5. NICKY WAGNER to the Minister of Local Government: What reports has he received on how much rates increased nationally in the decade since the Local Government Act 2002 and how does this compare to the previous decade?  
6. GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister for the Environment: Does he stand by his statement made in the House yesterday in relation to the grounding of the Rena that "the statute sets down very clearly that I as Minister for the Environment should not be encouraging or discouraging a proper, independent decision by Environment Bay of Plenty as to whether they should or should not take a prosecution"?  
7. KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI to the Minister of Broadcasting: What recent announcements has the Government made on progress towards digital switchover?  
8. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he still have confidence in all his Ministers?  
9. Hon LIANNE DALZIEL to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: How many written comments were received on the draft Recovery Plan for the Christchurch CBD and is it his intention to consider them all before making a decision on the draft Recovery Plan for the CBD, in accordance with the process set out on the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority's website?  
10. MELISSA LEE to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What recent steps have there been to promote New Zealand citizenship as a successful settlement pathway for migrants?  
11. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister of Broadcasting: Does he stand by the Prime Minister's statement in relation to the appointment of the Prime Minister's electorate chairman Stephen McElrea to the NZ On Air board that "if you look at the vast array of appointments we make, I think the balance is about right"?  
12. CATHERINE DELAHUNTY to the Minister of Education: Will she rule out implementing Treasury's advice to increase class sizes in schools?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:09:00 +1300</pubDate>
  <enclosure type="audio/ogg" length="21781135" url="http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/parl/parl-20120208-1409-question_time_for_8_february_2012-00.ogg"/>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Question Time for 7 February 2012</title>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Questions to Ministers  
1. SIMON BRIDGES to the Minister of Finance: What are the Government's priorities for the economy in its second term?  
2. DAVID SHEARER to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement "National will deliver a strong, stable government - and build a stronger economy with less debt and more jobs"?  
3. Dr RUSSEL NORMAN to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: What steps, if any, has he taken to ensure that should the Government sell 49 percent of Mighty River Power, Meridian, Genesis and Solid Energy, "New Zealand investors will be at the front of the queue for shareholding, and that there will be widespread and substantial New Zealand share ownership"?  
4. NIKKI KAYE to the Minister of Education: What reports has she received on the 2011 NCEA results?  
5. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in all his Ministers?  
6. GRANT ROBERTSON to the Minister for the Environment: What is the estimated total cost for the clean up after the grounding of the Rena?  
7. PESETA SAM LOTU-IIGA to the Minister for Social Development: What progress has been made on the Government's Green Paper for vulnerable children?  
8. Hon DAVID PARKER to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in the decisions of all of his Ministers who were involved in the process for the sale of the Crafar farms?  
9. SHANE ARDERN to the Minister for Primary Industries: What is the purpose of the Government's recently announced proposed changes to the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act 2001?  
10. Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: What has the Government publicly said in response to the attack by Syrian forces on its own citizens in Homs, and how does it see the crisis there being resolved?  
11. JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Social Development: Has she read the Children's Commissioner's newsletter Children and poverty: moving beyond rhetoric?  
12. CHRIS AUCHINVOLE to the Minister of Customs: What recent reports has he received about SmartGate?
]]>
  </description>
  <pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:17:00 +1300</pubDate>
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