During parliamentary question time in New Zealand last week, a recommendation was made by a member of the opposition party that New Zealand should look at the direction Finland had taken in trying to revitalise their economy, through the use of innovation and talent. The reply from the ruling National government head spokesperson for the day, the Right Honorable Gerry Brownlee was swift, brutal, and defied belief. After what was presumably a degree of pondering, Gerry announced that it would be madness to follow a country such as Finland which "has worse unemployment than us, can hardly feed the people who live there, has a terrible homicide rate, hardly educates their people and has no respect for women".
Yup, you heard it right. He said exactly that. But hey, maybe our Gerry knows his stuff. After all, he is an elected member of parliament, and we all know that those guys know their shit. So before we pass premature judgement on Gerry Brownlee, let's take a quick snapshot of the calibre and credentials of the idiot in question:
Since entering Parliament, Gerry has held roles as minister of Superannuation, Energy, Economic Development, ACC (accident health care), Transport, Local Government, Rugby World Cup (yes, that was a real job), and Earthquake Recovery. Talk about a guy who can't hold down a job. The reality is that he stays there long enough to make a complete arse of things, before getting quietly shuffled along to the next role.
As the minister for Economic Development he announced to the Parliament that he had specific targets and milestones for improving NZ's economic position in relation to other countries. When backed into a corner he was forced to admit that he didn't have any specific targets or milestones, but thought it would be a pretty good idea to try and improve our position. Sure, lying changes everything.
He owned personal shares in State owned assets while sitting in government which decided over those assets, helping Gerry's Economic Development.
He changed the law in order to shut down a union which supported actors seeking fair pay. Did wonders for the Economic Development of those people
As the Energy Minister he reversed a ban on the sale of incandescant lightbulbs which required people to buy energy efficient lightbulbs. (way to lead from the front, Gerry).
He took the second most expensive apartment (payed for by the taxpayer) of any sitting politician. It is also the largest. Who decided which politician got which house ? None other than our Gerry Brownlee. That one should probably be filed under Economic Development also. Gerry's.
His latest role as minister in charge of earthquake recovery is a new job specifically to deal with the rebuild of property in the earthquake damaged city of Christchurch. The perfect job for someone who lives in the city and is a property developer in the city. Not such a perfect position for someone who also has complete autonomy over any new property developments. No conflict there, Gerry.
Immediately following the Christchurch earthquakes, he went on national radio and denouced those families who had left the affected suburbs which now had no running water, sewerage system or electricity, after their homes were destroyed, as being "deserters".
When challenged about government insurance payouts following the Christchurch earthquakes, his sole response was to publish the personal insurance claim of the person who dared to challenge him.
Glowing credentials indeed.
Gerry Brownlee, here's some stuff you might have missed during your indepth search of Wikipedia. In 2011, Finland ranked higher than New Zealand in terms of economic prosperity. Probably means that they can feed themselves, Gerry. Finland also trounced New Zealand in healthcare and safety. In a survey measuring the difference in wealth betwen different parts of society in a country, Finland came in second, one place behind Japan. New Zealand was placed 6th from the bottom. OECD figures showed that family home incomes in Finland were 30% higher than those in New Zealand, while New Zealand had more than 4 times more families living below the poverty line than Finland. Again, Gerry, I think that probably means that the average Finn can feed themselves better than the average Kiwi. New Zealand has twice as many children as Finland living in overcrowded homes. New Zealand's infant mortality rate is twice that of Finland. Finland tops the world in average acedemic achievements for children, followed by Korea, Canada, and New Zealand. More than 40% of those people sitting in Finland's parliament today are women. As opposed to New Zealand's 30%. Starting to see a pattern forming, Gerry Brownlee ? Or do I need to drop a few more cookie crumbs to grab your attention ?
Gerry Brownlee, you've always been a complete ignorant dickhead. Fortunately, up until now, you've been a carefully hidden ignorant dickhead. Now we have to deal with the fact that the whole world has discovered that we've been hiding an ignorant dickhead in our cupboard. Thanks for dumping that one on us, pal. My ever reliable crystal ball sees another side step being planned for you as we speak. Minister of Pie Eating sound about right ? Drop kick.
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