Barry Soper: Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent on the Greens accusing the Government of driving Kiwis overseas

More accusations are being slung across the House, with the Greens indicating it's the Government that's forcing people across the ditch.

At today's Question Time, Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick asked the Prime Minister about the conditions making young Kiwis head to Australia.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says there's a number of factors behind the brain drain - and that many skilled workers are making their way into New Zealand.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
News talks. They'd be very Soper, senior political correspondent with
us this afternoon.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Hey ba, good afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:05):
Right, So in parliament all about the brain drain.

Speaker 2 (00:08):
A lot about the brain drain today and it was
lead really by the Greens. And but you know, the
government's being blamed for the issues that lead to people
leaving the country. And certainly a lot of people have
left the country. When you look at the year ending
March seventy thousand Kiwis had left New Zealand. It's one

(00:31):
hundred and ninety one people a day leaving the country.
So it is big. And I remember I always remember
back to John Ken the two thousand and eight campaign
sitting in the stadium in Wellington saying that this number
of people and again thirty four thousand, so it's double
that now that are leaving the country. There are a

(00:52):
number of reasons for it. Of course, economic disparity in
Australia seems to pay more than what New Zealand do.
They have the same lifestyle is another matter. Cost of living,
housing market, all that sort of thing, and there's a
brain exchange of course, people coming back into the country.
I'm a good example of that. Ryan you know, having

(01:12):
lived overseas for a number of years many years ago,
came back to the country. You learn a lot when
you're overseas. There I say that two National prime ministers
and John Key and Chris Luxon, spent much of their
working life overseas, came back and look what they brought
to the country. That's a debatable issue, but it's the

(01:34):
government's fault. If you listen to the Greens with their
co leader Chloe Swarbrick having a go at the Prime
Minister in the House this afternoon before she was shut
down by a very sensitive speaker, Jerry Brownlee, The Prime
Minister had been making what I thought was a fairly
salient point to Swarbrick.

Speaker 3 (01:53):
That's a bit ironic when you don't support oil and
gas and fast track and construction and getting things done
and built and actually where to go when they go
to Australia, they go work in oil and gas and mining.
Get on board support mining and the oil and gas band.
Let's get it done.

Speaker 4 (02:08):
Is it good for the economy for thousands of our
young people to be forced to spend their days applying
for hundreds of jobs receiving only one to two interviews,
leading them to see our country as a place with
quote no work, shit pay why stay?

Speaker 3 (02:26):
Very odd question than come I just primate as seat
not taking that questioning further.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
That was after the sea bomb, of course dropped a
cuttle moment ago err not. No notice was taken it
of it at the time, and I think Jerry has
learned a very valuable lesson in that.

Speaker 1 (02:44):
Watch your p's and ques he u n got this letter,
got a bit of an airing in the chamber.

Speaker 2 (02:48):
Oh yes, it just won't go away. Of course David
Seymour sent that letter before it was meant to be sent.
It's been withdrawn. Who knows how you do that. But anyway,
we said yesterday the Maldi part is co leader Rowery
way Tea. He decided to wade into the argument today
but seemed to have a little problem with a French language.

Speaker 5 (03:11):
How does he intend to repair the international reputational damage
caused by Deputy Prime Minister on behalf of his government
who described the un special repertoire quote insane unquote for
raising concerns about indigenous rates.

Speaker 3 (03:27):
Well, I think New Zealand should be very grateful that
we have an outstanding minister for foreign affairs. Someone there
is hugely respected around the world, and I trust him
to respond on all of our behalf.

Speaker 4 (03:40):
David similar, let's just speak and normally I let it go,
but seeing as we have guests from the French Senate,
can we please have it said not repertoire?

Speaker 2 (03:48):
Very sure.

Speaker 4 (03:48):
A good number of the House deeply appreciative of your correction,
and we'll put that in there in their folk am
for future reference.

Speaker 3 (03:58):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
Well, I don't think would be mentioned that much in Parliament,
but it apparently fell on deaf ears would seem too
white to tea because later he also said repertoire when
referring to that said gentleman to be to him.

Speaker 1 (04:14):
He's probably had his own issues with others in the
House and their pronunciations, no doubt about it.

Speaker 2 (04:21):
I'd stand guilty of that one.

Speaker 1 (04:23):
Caps barnyard classrooms finally been scrapped. Have you ever did
you taught in a barnyard classroom?

Speaker 4 (04:30):
No?

Speaker 2 (04:30):
See the good that while I was taught by sisters
of mercy, and they had to show a lot of
it to teach me, I've got to say, and we
were in small classrooms, and you know that was the
case of course, with the baby boomer generation, we had
rope learning and you know we knew the times table
off by.

Speaker 1 (04:48):
Heart, whips and canes, well, a lot of that.

Speaker 2 (04:50):
A lot of straps we had not forever getting the strap.
But you know, the education system has been something of
the political football has, isn't it over the years. Look
at David Longe in the late eighties he became Minister
of Education, declared himself as that and also Prime Minister
and introduced Tomorrow's Schools. Now, that's been one consistent I've

(05:12):
got to say, in the education system. He wanted to
decentralize it and replace it with school boards of trustees
and they're still in place. So that's one thing that
came out of that. But these barnyard classrooms, and I
heard your editorial about it. You imagine, I mean acoustics,
You're gonna have some kids sitting high in.

Speaker 1 (05:31):
Some kids and outrageous very and some learning. You know,
if you're trying to teach maths and they're doing arts
and crafts, I mean, the kids aren't going to be
watching you, are they No.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
They're not. And you can imagine kids, you know, if
you're in a classroom, say average size classroom, thirty kids.
You've got one hundred kids virtually and one big classroom
and three teachers. You can imagine trying to control that.
I have enough trouble controlling two kids at home. They'll
earn one hundred.

Speaker 1 (05:59):
Controlling myself exactly. I thank you, very good to see you.

Speaker 3 (06:03):
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