Urgent Debates Declined — Government Financial Position—June 2012 Balance of Payments and International Investment Position

Honourable members, I have received a letter from the Rt Hon Winston Peters seeking to debate under Standing Order 386 the Statistics New Zealand media release today entitled Balance of Payments and International Investment Position: June 2012 Quarter. The Government Statistician has sole responsibility for deciding the extent, form, and timing of the publications of statistics that Statistics New Zealand produces. The member in his application refers to the increasing current account deficit. For there to be a particular case of recent occurrence there must be either a new situation of importance or a new development in an existing situation of sufficient importance to warrant a debate being held. Neither a continuing problem nor an accumulation of information meets that test. The application is therefore declined.