﻿Mr SPEAKER: Question No 3, Metiria Turei.
METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green) to the PM: Does he stand by all his statements?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY (PM): Yes.
Metiria Turei: Why on earth should NZers have to pay $130 million
to make Skycity’s privately owned convention centre
“bigger and more flasher”, as he said yesterday?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: NZers will not be paying $130 million for that.
[MEMBERS INTERJECT]
Metiria Turei: How much does he expect NZers will have to pay
to make Skycity’s privately owned convention centre “bigger and more flasher”?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: The Government’s preference is that it pays nothing
and that is why it was surprised that the Green Party did not support the deal,
because now she seems to be very attracted to a convention centre
that does not cost anything.
Metiria Turei: What other benefits to Skycity is his Government negotiating
other than cash or gambling concessions to help Skycity meet its shortfall
for its bigger and flasher convention centre?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I am not going to go into the negotiations
that are being held with Skycity because that would not be beneficial to anybody,
except to say that the Government’s preferred position is that the Crown
does not have to make any contribution to a $402 million convention centre.
Metiria Turei: When did the Government lift
the restricted covenant on the Television NZ (TVNZ) land
that prevented Skycity from building anything
other than a convention centre on that land?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I do not have those details with me.
You would need to refer that
to the Minister who has been responsible, Steven Joyce.
Metiria Turei: Why did his Government ignore advice from officials
that the TVNZ land was more valuable to Skycity if it was being used for a hotel
and therefore Ministers should recalculate the value of the deal to Skycity?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I just simply do not have those details.
You would need to ask the Minister responsible.
Metiria Turei: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! I have a point of order
and I wish to hear it in silence.
Metiria Turei: I seek leave to table advice to Ministers
obtained by the Green Party showing that officials advised them
in January last year that the TVNZ land is more valuable to—[Interruption]
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I just need—[Interruption]
It has been explained enough. I need the source.
Metiria Turei: The source is Official Information Act information
provided to the Green Party.
Hon Gerry Brownlee: Oh, it’s on the website.
Metiria Turei: No, it is not publicly available.
Mr SPEAKER: I will—[Interruption] Order! I will put the leave
and the House can decide. Leave is sought to table that particular
Official Information Act document. Is there any objection?
There is none. It can be tabled.
Metiria Turei: How could the PM have possibly negotiated a worse deal
than one that increases gambling harm to NZers, virtually gifts a casino
a prime piece of public land to build a glitzy hotel on,
and now leaves taxpayers with a bill of $130 million
just to make Skycity’s building “more flasher”?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I would reject the basis of the member’s questions,
but what I would say is that as the Minister of Tourism
I can say that the evidence supports strongly the view
that an international convention centre in Auckland
would not only create a lot of jobs during the construction phase
but actually bring tens of thousands— arguably hundreds of thousands—
of people to NZ over time to go to conventions.
The evidence shows that those convention dwellers spend more
than the average tourist when they come to NZ.
We know that people who come to conventions come back
with their families and travel around NZ. That is the reason why
if you look at pretty much every state in Australia
they have an international convention centre.
Personally, I happen to think that if a convention centre
can be built in Auckland along with another big hotel there,
that would add to what would be an impressive part of downtown Auckland
and service the economy well.
But we know the member is opposed to economic growth—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order!
The answer—[Interruption] Order!
Question No 4.
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