QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

Thursday, 14 June 2001

Questions to Ministers

1. TAITO PHILLIP FIELD to the Minister of Social Services and Employment: What reports has he received on the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services' New Directions initiative?

2. GERRY BROWNLEE to the Minister of Education: Is he confident that teachers will have received enough training to successfully implement the National Certificate of Educational Achievement in 2002?

3. HELEN DUNCAN to the Minister of Education: What steps has he taken to improve quality and participation in early childhood education?

4. Hon MAURICE WILLIAMSON to the Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education): What is his response to the statement by the Vice-Chancellor of Otago University, Dr Graeme Fogelberg, that the Government's fee freeze deal will put his university "on an irreversible path" to becoming a "second class" institution and that a vote for the deal would mean implicitly accepting that the quality of Otago's teaching and research will be damaged permanently?

5. DAVID BENSON-POPE to the Minister of Research, Science and Technology: What has been the return on the Government's investment in the Technology New Zealand scheme?

6. Hon TONY RYALL to the Minister of Health: What is her response to comments made by the Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists that she and Dr Cullen "have their heads in the sand over their claims that there is fat in public hospitals" and that "They seem to be operating under the naïve belief that spending more in primary care reduces pressure on public hospitals."?

7. SUE KEDGLEY to the Minister of Health: Will she guarantee that, if any changes are proposed by the Australian Parliament to the decision-making structure of the Australia New Zealand Food Authority Board or the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Council, the New Zealand Parliament will have an opportunity to vote on those changes before the Government determines whether New Zealand will agree to any of them; if not, why not?

8. Dr MURIEL NEWMAN to the Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education): In light of the report in this morning's Dominion that nearly 2,000 people have used about $5 million in student loans to buy computers for study at a New Plymouth training establishment, but few finish the course, what steps, if any, has he taken to ensure that these loans are not being abused?

9. STEVE CHADWICK to the Minister of Health: Is she concerned with the state of oral health amongst young New Zealanders; if so, what steps is she taking to improve their oral health?

10. Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Conservation: Will she accept responsibility for any loss of life or the cost of any damaged infrastructure resulting from the expected 1.45 million cubic metre lahar on Mount Ruapehu, which is likely to occur within the next two to three years?

11. KEVIN CAMPBELL to the Minister of Corrections: Why is he building a new 650-bed prison for men at a site south of Auckland?

12. PANSY WONG to the Minister of Energy: What did he mean when he told the House yesterday that "the effect of a high wholesale price is to invite electricity consumers to get involved in energy efficiency activities"?

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>