Harawira - Budget Debate
te-pati-maori
Wed May 23 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Harawira - Budget Debate
Wednesday, 23 May 2007, 1:32 pm
Press Release: The Maori Party
Budget Debate
Hone Harawira, Maori Party
Tuesday 22 May 2007; 8.30pm
Mr Speaker, setting a Budget might seem like a mammoth task, but it ain’t really, and neither should it. Budgets are simply a reflection of a government’s priorities in its management of the nation’s affairs.
Some governments like to put their money into people, some like to put an emphasis on business growth. The tough part for the not so well off, is that this government seems to have a fixation with corporate tax cuts, while providing little of value to those at the bottom of the economic ladder.
MAORI
And sadly for Maori people, the last few budgets confirm the fact that this government has little respect for the Treaty and for treaty rights, and has no genuine regard to the health, education and employment needs of Māori.
In a land where the Treaty is called the founding document of our nation, this progressive downgrading of funding for Māori initiatives and the reduction of targeted funding to reduce disparities between Maori and Pakeha is a chilling message to all New Zealanders who care about justice.
But let’s not be mean. Well, when you see that the budget total was actually $3.3 billion, 0.6% of the budget for Maori adds up to being even uglier than you first thought.
Yes, yes, yes – we all heard the trumpeting from the Minister of Maori Affairs that government was spending $172 million on Maori, but the reality was way different. For a start, although the Minister of Māori Affairs says government will be spending $102 million on Kohanga and Kura over the next few years, in fact there are no line items in the Budget figures in the budget to confirm that at all. None whatsoever.
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Which leaves $70 million, which don’t sound too bad either, except that that’s over the next four years – not next year at all.
What that means is that if they’re spending $20 million this year, then they’ll be spending less and less over the next three years, if they’re saying the total will be $70 million.
Mr Speaker, when the shim-sham game of the Minister of Finance and Tonto are finally exposed in the light of day, the reality is far from the promise.
I remember the summing up of my defence in the Patu Court cases arising out of the Springbok Tour, when I attacked the police for trying to weave a spell of innuendo to con the jury into convicting me of some very serious charges based on the flimsiest of evidence.
And I remember a phrase I used to describe their tactics, which describes exactly, government’s spin on Maori funding in the Budget - “if you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, then bamboozle them with purutiko”.
But let’s give credit where credit’s due – and there’s precious little credit due to this government for anything Māori in this Budget, so this bit will be short. We welcome the $4.4m for Vote Education, the $2.5m for Māori Wardens, the $2.5m for the Waitangi Tribunal, and the $7.6m for Māori broadcasting, although splitting a million dollars amongst 22 radio stations won’t go very far.
HEALTH
But we note that there has not been one cent, not one brass razzo, not one penny specifically targeted to reducing the major health problems for Māori – smoking, diabetes and heart disease. Not one cent.
Mr Speaker, diabetes is so bad amongst Māori that we call the Diabetes Ward up Whangarei Hospital, the Māori Ward, because you can catch up with whanau from all over Tai Tokerau there either visiting, or as patients.
And the Minister of Health himself will tell you how much it’s costing the nation to deal with diabetes, smoking and heart related health problems for Māori and Pasifika people all over Aotearoa.
This Budget was a prime opportunity to deal with the massive health problems being faced by Māori and the massive financial drain being caused by it, and yet, as the Associate Minister of Health Mita Ririnui himself admitted on Radio Waatea, there was no flagship Maori health initiative in this year’s Budget.
Nothing to deal with what Professor Paul Zimmet calls a disproportionate toll of diabetes upon indigenous peoples and a “tragedy threatening to consume world economies and bankrupt health systems”.
Nothing for heart disease. Nothing for tobacco control. Nothing for Māori.
At a time of top-heavy death rates amongst Māori children; and a time when kaumatua and kuia still die nearly a decade before Pākehā, this government chooses to offer nothing for Māori health.
EDUCATION
And at a time when Australia has just announced a $280m Indigenous Education Direct Assistance Programme, including $105m specifically targeted to help Koori students with their literacy and numeracy; and $42m specifically targeted to help Koori kids stay at school, our government is spending how much? A measly $4.4m – a measly $4.4m.
At a time when more than 50% of Māori students leave school without even getting NCEA level 1 and when Māori attendance at schools is alarmingly low, when Māori are nearly 50% of all suspensions, this government is spending nothing on Māori educational development programmes, and nothing on Māori student retention programmes.
In fact there is quite simply nothing at all in this Budget to address the recommendations of the United Nations Special Rapporteur for government to deal with its complete failure to address Maori under-achievement in education.
KIWISAVER
And as for the Kiwi Slaver Bill – well for Maori, it’s just another sad little joke.
First of all, the statisticians tell us that the average Maori income is $20,000, and yet the Budget projects that to maximize benefits you will need to have an income of at least $25,000 – so that’s about 60% of Maori who will miss out.
Then you find out that for those on low incomes, the immediate effect ain’t going to be savings at all – in fact it’ll be more like a tax increase – because they’ll be taking another 4% out of your wages. Four percent don’t sound like a lot, but when you’re on a low income, it’s gold.
Then you find out that the scheme is not a government scheme at all.
Then you find out that your hard-earned dollars are going into the hands of private companies to invest in company shares and properties. Effectively, government has privatised superannuation and turned it over to financial institutions, whose primary goal is not client welfare, but corporate profit.
Then you find out that government does not guarantee these schemes, so that if their investments go belly up, so will your Kiwi Slave dollars.
And then finally, you realise that Maori in the Kiwi Slave scheme will be paying all their lives, and then dying ten years before their Pakeha colleagues so they won’t get the benefits anyway.
Mr Speaker, if that’s the legacy of this government, then heaven help the poor Maori who gets caught up in this scheme.
Savings are cool, but helping the rich get richer, and hoping they don’t blow your money, sux.
TREATY 2 U
Now this Treaty 2 U. I mean, is this supposed to be a sick joke or what?
Government spends $530,000 on a blow up tent and a truck, call it a treaty education programme, and some Burke dares to call it Maori funding?
Mr Speaker, it’s hard to take this government seriously when they have to scrabble around looking for something they can call Maori funding, and they come up with something as weak and as worthless as this little project.
POSITIVE THINKING
But the Māori Party is not just here to praise or to condemn current practice.
We take seriously our role of “defending Māori rights and advancing Māori interests for the benefit of the WHOLE nation”, so here are a few thoughts about how government might have targeted funding to Māori to address treaty rights, reduce disparities, and save millions of dollars currently being wasted by bureaucratic nepotism.
Treaty
The Treaty has been the source of much discontent. The Māori Party suggests the appointment of a Treaty Commissioner to promote the Treaty as the basis for a positive future, so that we can all get on with dealing to the real problems in society.
Budget Review
We call for the government to open the books so we can all see how much money is actually being spent on social rescue programmes for Māori, and what results are being achieved. Taxpayers deserve to know, and Māori are sick of being blamed for departmental incompetence.
Unbundle the Funding
John Tamihere got blasted by Labour for daring to say that social problems are managed better by communities than by bureaucrats, but he was right. The Māori Party believes that community control of social funding will generate far better returns for society than the bloated social budgets that this government uses to control people’s lives.
Education
If it’s true that kura kids do well, than why is government cutting off funding to Māori language teachers? The Māori Party calls for the immediate employment of 1000 new Māori language teachers, because successful teaching leads to successful students, and successful students become successful citizens.
Unemployment
Statisticians confirm that most social problems come from Māori on the dole, so why doesn’t government focus on reducing Māori’s current dole level of 36%? Targeted funding and positive support programmes are effective in reducing unemployment levels overseas. Why not here?
Conclusion
Folks – budgets aren’t rocket science. They’re about priorities. The Māori Party’s priorities are people. Unfortunately, Labour’s budget promises of corporate tax cuts, suggests their priorities lie elsewhere.
ENDS
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