Questions to Ministers

1. Hon BILL ENGLISH to the Minister of Finance: In how many of his eight Budgets has he reduced statutory tax rates?

2. RON MARK to the Minister of Justice: Is the Government contemplating reintroducing consorting laws to limit the ability of criminals, particularly gangs, to meet and plan their crimes, given his answer to my question in the House yesterday stating “If there are further measures that can be taken to further strengthen the tool kit for police, we will do it.”; if not, why not?

3. GERRY BROWNLEE to the Minister of Police: Has she been advised of reports in the Dominion Post that Mongrel Mob members in Aramoho, Wanganui, were earlier this week “guarding their fort” and that “a Ford Falcon circled the area with a rifle prominently displayed in the back seat”; if so, what actions did police take?

4. MOANA MACKEY to the Minister of Finance: What reports, if any, has he received indicating support for the interest-free student loan policy?

5. KATHERINE RICH to the Minister of Education: Does he stand by his reported statement that his officials told ABC Learning Centres and Kidicorp that if the Government saw a line in their annual reports showing a return to shareholders, that would make the Government question whether it was paying those chains too much in subsidies; if not, why not?

6. RODNEY HIDE to the Prime Minister: Will her Government support the passing of Bradford’s Crimes (Substituted Section 59) Amendment Bill, given that 83 percent of New Zealanders have consistently opposed it?

7. Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister responsible for Climate Change Issues: How can the Government achieve the Prime Minister’s goal of carbon neutrality when the latest official figures on New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions show an increase of over eight million tonnes or 11.7 percent since Labour became Government?

8. DARIEN FENTON to the Minister of Health: What recent investment has been made into the health of our children?

9. JUDITH COLLINS to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: Does he stand by the statement of his predecessor, Hon Steve Maharey, who, in May 2005, said of the $127.8 million to be invested into new services to help sickness and invalid beneficiaries get back to work “While we understand the reasons for growth in numbers on these benefits, we believe with this strong investment and support and incentives we can reverse this trend”?

10. JILL PETTIS to the Minister of Communications: Has he received any recent reports on financing improvements to New Zealand’s broadband network?

11. BOB CLARKSON to the Minister for Building and Construction: Are the Government’s policies for fixing leaky homes working quickly and fairly?

12. RUSSELL FAIRBROTHER to the Minister for Building and Construction: What measures have been proposed to improve the energy efficiency of new homes?

ENDS

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