Questions to Ministers

1. JANET MACKEY to the Minister of Justice: Will any action be taken to deal with serious drug and alcohol abuse as a cause of youth offending arising from the Taskforce on Youth Crime?

2. Hon BILL ENGLISH to the Prime Minister: Does she want the Alliance list members of the Executive who are no longer Alliance party members in her Government, given Hon Jim Anderton's previous statements that nomination for an Alliance list seat was "predicated upon membership, and particularly continuing membership of the Alliance" and that Alliance list members who cease to be members of the Alliance but remain in Parliament "[dilute] the principle of proportionality which is central to the Electoral Act 1993"; if so, why?

3. KEITH LOCKE to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Will he support the request from Ali Kazak, the Palestinian diplomat he met yesterday, for New Zealand to join more than 50 other countries in recognising a Palestinian state and establishing full diplomatic relations with it; if not, why not?

4. Hon BILL ENGLISH to the Prime Minister: What is her response to Willie Jackson's statement that "[Hon] Jim [Anderton] can kid himself that he's the leader in Parliament but we all know that the leader of the Alliance will be [Hon] Laila [Harré]", and what impact do such statements have on coalition stability?

5. CHRIS CARTER to the Minister of Immigration: How many people were declined a permit to enter New Zealand at the border between 1 January and 31 December 2000, and how does that compare to the numbers of declined permits between 1 January and 31 December 2001?

6. Hon RICHARD PREBBLE to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Has he read New Zealand Post Limited deputy chairman Mr Syd Bradley's letter to Dr Ross Armstrong of 6 September 2001, referring to "serious accounting standards being breeched" and calling for a "full external audit" of overseas operations; if so, what action, if any has he taken?

7. RON MARK to the Minister of Corrections: What importance does his department place upon meeting the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi when reaching administrative decisions?

8. Hon MURRAY McCULLY to the Minister for State Owned Enterprises: Has he seen the statement of the deputy chairman of New Zealand Post Limited, Mr Syd Bradley, in a confidential letter dated 6 September 2001, to the chairman of New Zealand Post Limited, Dr Armstrong, that in relation to the chief executive of New Zealand Post Limited, Mr Elmar Toime, he does "not now have the necessary trust and confidence in his judgment and decision-making for him to continue to lead the company for another term"; if so, what actions does he propose to take?

9. JUDY KEALL to the Minister of Health: What recent initiatives have been put in place to improve access to pharmaceuticals and reduce hospital admissions?

10. GERRY BROWNLEE to the Minister of Social Services and Employment: What criteria do budding artists have to fulfil to qualify for the "artists' dole" scheme?

11. H V ROSS ROBERTSON to the Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage: How is the Government seeking to encourage New Zealanders to save the nation's memories of war?

12. Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Corrections: What programmes, if any, are available to convicted fraudsters in prison to help them mend their ways?

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