[Sitting date: 09 December 2014. Volume:702;Page:5. Text is subject to correction.]

5. JULIE ANNE GENTER (Green) to the Prime Minister : Does he stand by all his statements?

Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): Yes.

Julie Anne Genter : If he stands by his statement “The Government’s direction on transport in Auckland is clear—we want to accelerate vitally needed projects and get on with the job.” , will he commit to funding to start the City Rail Link next year?

Rt Hon JOHN KEY : No.

JULIE ANNE GENTER : If he will not commit funding to start the City Rail Link, why not?

Rt Hon JOHN KEY : We brought forward the construction of the central business district rail link by a decade. I might note that the Auckland City Council is going through the process of actually wanting to delay its overambitious start date of 2016 to 2018-19. The Government set clear conditions under which it would look at an accelerated start earlier than 2020 and those conditions have not been met.

Julie Anne Genter : I seek leave to table the patronage statistics, which show that rail patronage is on track to reach 20 million trips by—

Mr SPEAKER : The source of the document please.

Julie Anne Genter : It is Auckland Transport. It is in the board’s agenda.

Mr SPEAKER : On the basis that it is not freely available to members I will put the leave. [Interruption] Order! The member has every right to deny leave if he wants rather than interject when I am speaking. Leave is sought to table those particular statistics. Is there any objection? There is.

Julie Anne Genter : Is he telling Aucklanders, who are already standing on packed peak-hour trains, that the rail link is not needed urgently when the city cannot put on any more trains until the rail link is built?

Rt Hon JOHN KEY : The Government has spent about $1.7 billion on rail infrastructure in recent years. It has committed to everything from double-tracking, to electrification, and to new rolling stock, and it is committed to a 2020 start date on the central business district rail link. At the same time we are spending about a billion dollars a year, I think, in Auckland on roading and other motorway networks. I think the Government is investing very heavily in Auckland. If the member wants to continue to hold up pictures of trains that indicate people who are off to a National Party conference when we held it recently, I can only congratulate her on doing that.

ENDS

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