New Zealand Parliamentary Debate

Questions for Oral Answer [4412]

Madam SPEAKER

: I called Dr Don Brash, but in the barrage, of course, no one heard me. So would members please just keep the level down.

Dr Don Brash

: Is the Prime Minister seriously asking this House to accept that Mr O'Connor exercised his discretion without knowing of Mr Field's involvement, despite the clear evidence from the file note and the phone log that he did; that Mr Swain, the then Minister of Immigration, visited Mr Field's house in Samoa and met the Thai nationals working on Mr Field's house without realising whom he had met; and that Mr Field, who had gone to great lengths to get Mr Siriwan to Samoa, did not realise he was actually working on his house there-because that, effectively, is what she is asking the House to swallow?

Rt Hon HELEN CLARK

: I am advising the House to accept Dr Ingram's conclusions, which do not bear out the smears of the Leader of the Opposition.

Rodney Hide

: Has the Prime Minister ever asked Taito Phillip Field whether he was advocating to Ministers on behalf of illegal immigrants in return for favours; if not, why did she not ask him; if so, what was his response?

Rt Hon HELEN CLARK

: I, obviously, as leader of the Labour Party, have had contact with Mr Field on this matter over quite a long period of time, and I am satisfied that he did not make such requests.

Rodney Hide

: In relation to the Ingram report, was the Prime Minister concerned to learn that the honourable Taito Phillip Field was writing as a member of Parliament to advocate that people vote for the Labour ticket, including for a man whom Mr Field knew was to go up on fraud charges and, indeed, that Mr Phillip Field was using parliamentary resources in order to do so-was that par for the course for Labour MPs?

Rt Hon HELEN CLARK

: I would be very surprised if Labour members of Parliament were not supporting Labour candidates in their area. Of course, from time to time candidates of political parties do let their parties down, like the ACT candidate who posed as a paraplegic to collect money and kept a lot of it for himself.

Rodney Hide

: I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. It may be that the Prime Minister chose not to address my question, but my concern was actually the use of parliamentary resources. Am I to take it that the Prime Minister has no objection to Labour MPs using parliamentary resources to advocate in a local government election on behalf of a Labour ticket, just as she did with her 400, 000 pledge card?

Madam SPEAKER

: There is no ministerial responsibility for that matter.

Industry-Training Programmes

2.

Hon MARIAN HOBBS( Labour-Wellington Central)

to the Minister for Tertiary Education: What reports, if any, has he received on the Government's industry training programmes?

Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN( Minister for Tertiary Education):

I am pleased to say that today I was able to congratulate in person the 2, 000

th

Modern Apprentice to have completed training, Mr Simon Jervis. Also, I have received an independent evaluation of the Modern Apprenticeships scheme. It shows that the scheme has had outstanding success in encouraging employers to hire and train more young people in the trades.

Hon Marian Hobbs

: What reports has the Minister received of employer attitudes towards the Modern Apprenticeships scheme?

Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN

: The report I released today shows that the Modern Apprenticeships scheme is an outstanding success with employers. Ninety-five percent of employers of Modern Apprentices would recommend the programme to young staff. Ninety-four percent of employees would recommend the programme to other potential employees and employers.