This week begins Parliament’s centre-piece sitting block - because the third week will include budget day.
But before they get to unveil the spending plan for the coming year they have to finalise the review of the plan from two years ago. Yes, two years ago. Parliament’s budget cycle has a long tail of inquiries and reviews.
The final big performance number from the 2019-20 budget is the Annual Review Debate - a ten-hour long public quizzing of whichever ministers the opposition desires to quiz.
Minister of Local Government Nanaia Mahuta stands to speak from the Table in the debating chamber as her bill on Māori Wards goes through the Committee of the Whole House Photo: VNP / Daniela Maoate-Cox
Yes, the opposition choose the ministers to grill and the topics to ask about. It’s like the longest, most free-form question time you can imagine. Except for this occasion the ministers sit at the Front, like they would for a committee stage.
This week the line up of ministers was Finance, Agriculture, Environment, Health, Education - and quite unusually - the Speaker - who runs Parliament itself as well as having responsibility for the three organisations called Officers of Parliament.
Next week another line up of ministers will front up on their various departments' performances.
One of the ministers under the spotlight tonight is the Leader of the House, Minister of Education, for Covid-19 Response and for the Public Service - Chris Hipkins; so we asked him about the experience and how it works.
