QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

Thursday, 13 December 2001

Questions to Ministers

1. Dr WAYNE MAPP to the Minister of Justice: Is it his intention that serious violent offenders, including rapists, will be eligible for parole at one-third of their sentence under the Sentencing and Parole Reform Bill; if so, why?

2. HELEN DUNCAN to the Minister of Education: What is the purpose of the decile funding system for schools?

3. Dr LYNDA SCOTT to the Minister of Health: Does she stand by her spokesperson's comment on 4 December 2001 that the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992 was "working fine"?

4. LIZ GORDON to the Associate Minister of Labour: What are the features of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Paid Parental Leave) Amendment Bill designed to increase the accessibility of paid and unpaid parental leave for New Zealand workers?

5. RICHARD WORTH to the Minister of Defence: With the benefit of hindsight, does he regret the Government's decision to disband the air combat capacity of the Royal New Zealand Air Force; if not, why not?

6. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS to the Minister of Fisheries: What has been the Government's response to the Court of Appeal decision of 11 October 2001 involving several fishing companies against the Minister of Fisheries and the chief executive of the Ministry of Fisheries and, in particular, what is the Ministry doing now on scampi allocation that is different from the circumstances which led to Court action in the first instance in both the High Court and Court of Appeal and in which adverse comments were made about the Ministry and its chief executive?

7. GAVAN HERLIHY to the Minister of Agriculture: Does he agree that the Government is being "foolish" and "grossly irresponsible" in committing to ratify the Kyoto Protocol before our key trading partners and before the economic implications are understood, as stated by Federated Farmers president Alistair Polson?

8. JUDY KEALL to the Minister of Health: What has been the response to the Government's $3 billion cash injection into the health system?

9. Hon KEN SHIRLEY to the Minister of Police: What is his response to the claim in the December issue of the New Zealand Police Association Newsletter that burglary victims in Auckland have a three-day wait?

10. JEANETTE FITZSIMONS to the Associate Minister of Energy: What action will he take in light of the sudden collapse of a mine shaft in Waihi this morning, which put at risk the lives of three young children and led to the evacuation of up to 30 people from their homes?

11. Hon TONY RYALL to the Minister of Police: Is the fact that the Police have begun to recruit South Islanders specifically for work in the Auckland police districts an indication of the difficulty of recruiting police in Auckland; if not, what does it indicate?

12. TAITO PHILLIP FIELD to the Minister of Housing: Should tenants of State houses be concerned about their long-term tenancies?

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>>