Major parties offer explanations after transport policy diversions

After comments from the transport minister and prime minister yesterday threw doubt on major projects like Auckland light rail and Wellington's transport programme, Labour has recommitted to both - but left the door open to future change.

National meanwhile has expressed confidence it can find the money needed to fund its own transport proposals, saying New Zealanders are "up for" alternative funding methods like toll roads and targeted rates.

Labour aiming to get Let's Get Wellington Moving moving

Transport Minister David Parker threw doubt on Labour's support for the Let's Get Wellington Moving (LGWM) and Auckland light rail projects on Monday when responding to the news National had promised to scrap both.

Parker, asked about public support for the two projects, said he was "not here to make announcements as to what our transport policy will be", refusing to commit to either ahead of October's election.

The situation was not helped by Prime Minister Chris Hipkins' responses to similar questions at the weekly post-Cabinet media briefing later that afternoon.

The leadership aimed to clear that up on Tuesday, with Hipkins telling Morning Report light rail in Auckland would be part of a future Labour-led government's plans - with the proviso that the exact form it would take could change.

Parker took a similar stance on LGWM - a programme set up under National in 2016 to improve transport in the capital after the Basin Reserve flyover was stalled, and backed by Labour in 2019 with a $6.4b pledge towards a mass rapid transit system and a range of other improvements.

"We're not going to drop it, we're committed to improving transport outcomes for Wellington. We are in discussions with Wellington City and Region [councils] as to how this thing can be progressed faster," Parker told reporters as he headed to this week's Labour caucus meeting.

"I think the frustrating thing for people is that 'Let's Get Wellington Moving' isn't. And so people are frustrated that there hasn't been enough progress made on the transport solutions that are needed."

Asked about that and light rail for Dominion Road, and how those projects would fit in Labour's election policy, Parker remained coy.

"You'll find our three funding priorities before the election when we release that information."

Hipkins meanwhile highlighted some priority projects for the LGWM programme.

"Clearly there still hasn't been progress on what is a major challenge for the Wellington region and we do need to make more progress on that," he said.

"Absolutely I think we need to be making more progress on that critical Ngauranga-to-the-airport corridor but we also need to make progress on things like mass rapid transit as well."

"I think cycleways and mass rapid transit are actually really important parts of getting all of our cities moving, and so local authorities should absolutely be focused on those things, but we've also got the balance to get right here - there are some key congestion points in our roading network that also need to be addressed."

National's leader Christopher Luxon said the Auckland light rail was an absolute waste of money no one wanted.

"This is a project that's deemed to cost New Zealand $29b, it's greater than the total package of what we announced yesterday and this is all this government's been talking about for the past six years and nothing has happened," he said.

"I want us in this country to have more ambition and more aspiration and when I look at what other countries are able to do, why can't we do that on infrastructure?"

National defends against 'fiscal hole' accusations

National's leadership backed its transport policy unveiled yesterday, giving more detail on where the promised private equity funding could come from, but questions remain however over exactly how much the policy would cost.

Hipkins on Tuesday was pointing to the $9.5b National wanted to source through private equity.

"The National Party now appear to have a $10b hole in their transport plans, where they think the Infrastructure Commission can just magic up $10b out of nowhere, I think they should be upfront with New Zealanders about where that's going to come from.

"Even if it was coming through things like private equity, through public private partnerships, end of the day someone's still got to pay for that, there still has to be a revenue source associated with that and they don't seem to know where that is."

National's leader Christopher Luxon did seem to know where it would be coming from.

"We actually think there is a whole alternative new set of funding tools that are available to us through the private capital markets, that's important because it means the projects can get done sooner and it also means that the New Zealand taxpayers are not paying for all of it."

"There is $11 trillion in sovereign wealth money around the world, there's over $50 trillion in pension funds around the world, they are awash with cash and they want to invest in long-term infrastructure projects including here in New Zealand.

"There's a whole bunch of work around value capture, targeted rates, public private partnerships, toll roads, other things like that, that are necessary.

"The New Zealand public are up for that - they want the infrastructure built, they know the difference it makes to their daily lives."

He said National would do deals under the party's proposed National Infrastructure Agency so funds like New Zealand Super and the Canadian Pension Plan could invest in such joint ventures. When it was put to him, he would not rule out such investments coming from China too.

"That will be one for the National Infrastructure Agency to think through - the best partner to deliver the project in the best possible way."

Hipkins was dubious about such approaches to funding infrastructure.

"When it comes to PPPs generally I take a relatively open approach. As Transmission Gully has highlighted though, they're not the great panacea, they're not necessarily going to get you out of having to pay what is a relatively hefty bill."

Luxon defended the motorway north of Wellington.

"Many people here in Wellington travel that Transmission Gully project and they are very grateful for that, each and every day, and it's improved their lives."

When asked about Parker's accusation of National's costings coming up short, Luxon targeted Labour's record.

"No disrespect, I don't take any lectures from the Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, Grant Robertson, or David Parker for that matter," he said.

"We've now got David Parker who's focusing exclusively on the Transport portfolio seems to have a disagreement with his own prime minister about Let's Get Wellington Moving and the city light rail project in Auckland and then having a go at us on costings. We have taken all the costings that have been officially provided, we've gone to the high end of that estimate and we've built contingency in. We know how to do our numbers and we've got a great plan."

Parker had said the most recent estimates for four of the projects under National's policy were between $2.4b and $4.8b higher than the costings National used. National's Transport spokesperson Simeon Brown in response said National had used official costings and Labour had not credibility on transport.

By the afternoon, National's Finance Spokesperson Nicola Willis was saying the numbers had been "trumped up by David Parker".

"Just three weeks ago Simeon Brown asked him for the latest costings ... conveniently yesterday the number is apparently twice what the minister had said it was," she said.

Parker said he had been advised the government's response had been clear the figure was from 2021.

It was put to Willis that Parker's figures were provided by Waka Kotahi and Greater Wellington Regional Council, and some were publicly available.

"Well, what we see is that we put in Parliamentary written questions on one of those specific projects, we were given a very different number ... we've taken a very good faith approach here."

Asked if National would remain committed to the roads should they indeed prove more expensive than expected, Willis offered no new information.

"We've set out our full commitments in our plan yesterday and those are the commitments we will stick to."

She noted National's plan included a $1.4b contingency fund in case of higher costs, but that figure falls far short of the amount

More to come on EVs - National

Luxon was also challenged over how his transport plan would account for the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to meet international commitments.

"We are committed to making sure we can deliver on our net carbon zero goals," he said. "The means by which we do that will be different from this government ... but whether you're an electric vehicle or a hydrogen truck you're going to need strong and resilient roads across New Zealand.

"We'll have more to say about EVs in particular before the election."

Brown also noted transport agency Waka Kotahi was working on bringing hybrids and electric vehicles into the Road User Charges scheme, alongside the ability to claim excise back so they were not being double charged.

"The exemption ends on the 1st of April next year for both those vehicles, and the NZTA is currently working on a process whereby people with hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybrids, to be able to recover their excise as well.

"That's what we said when we were in government we'd put the exemption in place till there's 2 percent of the light vehicle fleet was EVs, and it'll be about then."