QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

Wednesday, 28 November 2001

Questions to Ministers

1. Hon RICHARD PREBBLE to the Minister of Finance: Given the McLeod Tax Review statement that "The 39 percent rate above $60,000 sends a negative signal to mobile, highly-skilled taxpayers", and "since the Government moved to increase the top personal marginal tax rate ..., the Australian Government has moved its corporate rate ... to 30 percent", why is he not moving to reduce the top rate of tax as recommended by the review?

2. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Defence: Has he been assured by Major General Dodson that he has not passed on, either verbally or otherwise, any information gleaned from his having accessed Ron Mark's files more than once, to any person to whom he should not have passed it on?

3. Hon BILL ENGLISH to the Minister of Labour: Will her proposed new fines for workplace stress and fatigue apply to Ministerial Services and the Parliamentary Service; if so, has she received any reports on how much, if any, each is expected to be fined on an annual basis?

4. Hon DOVER SAMUELS to the Minister for Industry and Regional Development: What reports has he received on support for regional development?

5. Hon GEORGINA TE HEUHEU to the Associate Minister of Justice: What involvement did the Prime Minister have in the decision to introduce the criminal defamation provision into the Electoral Amendment Bill (No 2)?

6. TAITO PHILLIP FIELD to the Minister of Social Services and Employment: What reports has he received on community partnerships to keep children safe?

7. SUE KEDGLEY to the Minister of Transport: Why has Transit New Zealand issued eviction notices to tenants in 12 Transit New Zealand-owned heritage buildings in the path of the proposed Wellington inner-city bypass before it has applied for construction funding to build the bypass?

8. Hon ROGER SOWRY to the Minister of Health: Will the Government instruct cancer centres to reimburse those cancer patients who travelled to Australia for radiation treatment which commenced prior to 6 September 2001; if not, why not?

9. NANAIA MAHUTA to the Minister of State Services: What steps has he taken to improve access to Government information and services via the internet?

10. SIMON POWER to the Minister of Labour: Does she stand by her comment on 15 November, regarding Susan Bathgate, that "There is no blame attached to her in this. Really, it's resulted from a lack of clarity so it could have happened to anyone in that sense."; if so, why?

11. HARRY DUYNHOVEN to the Minister for Accident Insurance: What progress has the Government made with the development of a Code of ACC Claimants' Rights, as required by the Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Compensation Act 2001?

12. Hon MURRAY McCULLY to the Minister of Labour: Did she, or any Minister or staff acting on her behalf, receive any representations from the National Distribution Union in relation to criminal charges faced by officials of that union following an incident at the premises of Carter Holt Harvey; if so, were any steps taken which led to the decision to withdraw those charges?

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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>>