Hipkins asked Luxon about the cost of vehicle registration fees, which went up $25 this year and will go up $25 next year.
Finance Minister Nicola Willis bailed Luxon out with a patsy question, first trying to get Luxon to “confirm” whether one of the first things the Government did on taking office was to repeal Labour’s planned 12-cents-a litre hike – which is correct, National campaigned on scrapping Labour’s fuel tax hikes.
Speaker Gerry Brownlee, who has taken a tough line on patsy questions being used to attack a former Government, ruled that question out of order.
Willis came back, asking whether the Government had increased petrol taxes since it was elected. This was a way of asking the same question Willis was trying to ask before, but in a way less likely to get her in trouble with the Speaker.
Luxon answered in the negative.
Hipkins then weighed in, asking, “does the Government plan to increase petrol taxes by 12 cents a litre”.
Luxon replied to this, “the Government has had no discussions about increasing fuel taxes at this time ... ”
This piqued Hipkins, causing him to make a point of order to Brownlee, noting that the Government’s own document, the Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport had promised a 12-cents-a litre hike in 2027.
He asked Brownlee whether Luxon would be asked to correct the answer.
Brownlee noted it was Luxon’s prerogative to correct the answer.
The Government agrees to fuel tax hikes in its GPS on Land Transport, a document which it usually publishes every three years.
The most recent GPS scrapped Labour’s planned hikes, but increased registration fees and promised a 12-cents-a litre increase in January 2027.
The GPS was agreed by Cabinet and tabled in the House.
Hipkins’ claim that Luxon needs to correct the answer rests on the fact that it is not correct the Government “has had no discussions” about increasing fuel taxes – Cabinet not only discussed hiking fuel taxes, it agreed to do it.
Luxon’s defence rests on the interpretation of “at this time”. If it refers to not increasing fuel taxes “at this time”, then he is probably safe, as fuel tax won’t go up until 2027. If the phrase refers to discussions themselves, then the answer may be incorrect and he would need to correct it.
