Debates — General Debate

I move, That the House take note of miscellaneous business.

Today is 1 April. Apparently, April Fools’ Day stopped at 12 o’clock, but the fools are still sitting over there, fooling themselves that they’re not responsible for the degradation of fuel storage in New Zealand, and fooling themselves that they’re not responsible for the loss of Marsden Point, the erosion of economic resilience, and the weakening of national security. They can dance on the head of a pin, but it was Megan Woods—when she let the foreign investors come into the company owning the refinery—who signed off, as an overseas investment Minister, the decommissioning of the refinery. That fact cannot be eradicated. It will be understood. It will be repeated until midnight before the election as to where true blame lies for this terrible situation that we have inherited.

Of course, there’s something worse: there is the confusion, there is the ambiguity, and there is the running and hiding from accountability and responsibility related to all of the perfidy of COVID. Now, Ayesha Verrall—where did this woman come from? How come, from utter obscurity, Jacinda Ardern plucked that individual and appointed her as the cleverest person in the history of New Zealand on public health? Then, when she is challenged by my leader in recent times, she’s skulking, hiding, and refusing to stand up and explain to the public why she and the current Leader of the Opposition refused to stand up for the parents and the children who were unnecessarily vaccinated against scientific advice warning the Government of the time “do not endanger the lives of our children.”

No. We have something as authoritative as the royal commission, who has clearly identified where that blame—where that culpability—lies. But, no, this hitherto unknown personality of obscure origins plonked in here by Jacinda Ardern now won’t say a word. I doubt whether her public health qualifications actually enable her to hold that position. Fortunately, she’ll never be the Minister of Health. I see a Simeon Brown long arc of leadership and responsibility in health.

I can’t go much further without sharing good news such as the tremendous response that my leader and I have had about minerals policy. I look forward to advancing the prospects with suitable partners—indeed the United States of America—so we can open up, we can exploit, and we can create value out of our critical minerals, and I don’t want to hear all these Green fairytale Luddites who don’t understand economics, people who hate fossil fuels but every day demand to know how the Government’s going to find more money to pay for fossil fuels. None of them has arrived on a 10-speed, because, at best, they’ve got one-speed minds.

No; mining, digging, drilling—if there’s one thing that the Iran war shows us, we must use our own resources. Sadly, I’m going to be proven right. It’s actually quite a common experience in my whānau. We see an ongoing need for the utilisation not only of gas but also of coal. Who on earth are these CEOs of gentailers of New Zealand—who are for the knacker’s yard, as I’ve said on earlier occasions—to try and undermine our Minister for Energy and make fun, parody, try and get a cheap laugh out of the audience about his policy of proceeding to bring to us a commercial proposition pertaining to the building of infrastructure to receive gas? What do they do? They try to parody; they try to belittle.

Gentailers, a message from the Matua: your days of gouging, your days of bullying—

Hon Julie Anne Genter: You’re doing nothing about it.

Hon SHANE JONES: —your days of corporate thuggery are coming to the end. Wait until the end of the year—no, please don’t listen to all these fairytales of those who have had every opportunity. We are not going to be driven by Green Luddites or ill-informed people about energy security.

No New Zealander would want to be facing the challenges that we are facing now as a country; conditions that have nothing to do with any decisions any New Zealander has made. It’s very clear that we can’t control oil prices, we can’t control the conflict in the Middle East, but what we can control and what we can do as a Government is respond in a very considered and deliberate way.

I’m really proud of the work that the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, the Minister of Finance Nicola Willis, and other senior Ministers are doing to ensure that New Zealand gets through this challenge in a way that doesn’t scar our nation for years and years and years. You imagine if we were coming into this challenge around fuel prices with inflation at 7.3 percent. Think about that for a moment; think about what fuel prices would be doing right now. What is really important is that a Government rises to the challenge of whatever it confronts, but having made sensible decisions to get inflation under control, we are in a much stronger position to confront this.

Also, this is a Government who has absorbed and listened and read through the royal commission report into COVID to ensure that we do not make the same mistakes that the other side made. Because who has been affected the most deeply by high inflation? Those on low income; those on low incomes with fixed incomes.

That’s why every decision our Government is making is taking into consideration the need to respond and the need to provide targeted, temporary, and timely support, but not getting the firehose out and splashing the cash around so the very households that we’re trying to support right now are damaged for years and years to come. That’s why our Government has provided relief to 143,000 families to ease the pressure of fuel prices—as of today, 143,000 families. Yes, we have targeted those working families with children, because we know the additional costs that they face.

What we do know also is that from 1 April, 1.5 million New Zealanders—whether they are superannuitants, whether they receive the veteran’s pension, whether they are students, whether they are main beneficiaries, or actually whether they are non-beneficiaries who get additional support—also will see a lift today, on 1 April, to support the cost of living challenges. Our Government is responding in a very sensible way.

One of the other stark differences between our Government’s response in this challenge and the previous Government’s to COVID is we’re actually listening to industry. We are listening to the experts. We are working with them, we are getting their intel, we are using that on a daily basis to ensure that we are very lined up in terms of our response, because it is not something the Government can solve on our own. Working with industry is going to be absolutely critical in terms of how we come through the challenges that we face in the weeks and months ahead.

The fuel plan: considered, sensible, designed with industry. That is where I’m incredibly confident about the response that our Government has to what will unfold—and it is unpredictable. But I want New Zealanders to be very reassured that our Government has a plan. We have laid it out and announced that for the public on Friday, but we are very connected to the very people that we need to be—whether it’s overseas, whether it’s diplomatic connections, whether it’s industry here, we are planning for what might come. Also, we have responded: 143,000 households will get support for their fuel bills, and 1.5 million New Zealanders get additional support today.

I want to assure the New Zealand public that the coalition Government is working incredibly hard, staying very close to what is shifting and changing with these unpredictable times, but we will guide New Zealand through these challenging days. I want to finish my contribution with a tribute to my member and friend, the Hon Judith Collins, who has provided a great service to our nation and our country, and to wish her well in her future career.

For at least the past three decades, the Greens have consistently set out a pathway to better protect our people and our living systems against the inevitable topple of fossil fuel dependency—to a stable planet that we can all be proud of passing on to our mokopuna. In 2001, Rod Donald set out the Green Party’s vision for Aotearoa: “A crucial part of our vision involves New Zealand becoming a world-leader in ‘fossil-fuel proofing’ our economy. We are already seeing the high cost of car dependence as fuel prices accelerate.” That was 25 years ago. In 2024, the Greens put out He Ara Anamata, our plan to reduce climate emissions five times faster than this pamphlet plan of this current Government, to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel dependency, and improve people’s quality of life at the same time.

The best time for Governments to have listened to the Green Party would have been over 30 years ago; the second-best time is right now. I have my colleague Hūhana next to me, who has just returned from the North, where the Hokianga in the North and other parts of the country have been facing, at the front line, the climate change weather impacts that are seriously impacting on people’s life, livelihoods, and their daily stress.

I want to acknowledge Hūhana being on the ground with our people in the North, including in my valley in Hokianga, Te Hikutū hapū in Whirinaki, where we have lost houses, we have lost māra kai [food gardens], we have had to face the silt clean-up, the pollution that is to come, where people have lost their livelihoods, where our marae have had to open up to be able to house people and care for them, and where people are living on the edge and with the stress of not knowing what the future—the immediate future and the long-term future—for their life is.

We ask the Prime Minister and all of his Ministers to make sure that they are properly funding and resourcing local government to get on the ground urgently. There is no civil defence payment opened up for Hokianga and the North right now. Why? Why is their stress not enough? We urge the Prime Minister to urgently ensure that Crown and Government departments are on the ground, supporting these people so that local governments and regional governments can do the work that they want to do, and to better support these people who have been plunged into these crises and climate disasters.

At the same time this Prime Minister is locking us in to further dependency on fossil fuels. How absolutely maddening is that? The very people who are bearing that the most right now, who are paying for the results of a war that they did not decide to have—a war that this Prime Minister refuses to condemn even while it still continues to have a very real impact on our people right now. The Clean Car Discount wound back, the billion-dollar liquefied natural gas terminal, the $200 million for fossil fuel companies, a range of energy funds and efficiency funds that have been pulled back, and $20 billion a year on fossil fuels—$29 million a day. Imagine what we could do—to instead invest that in our people and an Aotearoa that is truly resilient; for a planet where everyone has their needs looked after, where we can live with dignity, where our living systems continue to provide the life that we all depend on: our clean water, our clean oceans, our clean soil, our healthy air. The actual basic human needs that we depend on instead of the climate-destroying and environment-destroying policies that this Government has put through.

I stand today to link all of the things that are happening today that the Greens have always understood were connected: our people living well, our energy systems, looking after our climate, making sure that we are sharing wealth in a way that is just, and in a way that our people deserve. Where is the action and the actual plan for moving us away, for generational thinking, and for ensuring that our mokopuna are not still clinging on to the fossil fuel - dependent systems that this Government is putting into place with even more concrete.

Meanwhile, the Greens continue to put up the solutions and the pathways to ensure that we are resilient and that what is in our control prioritises the wellbeing of our people and our planet. Thank you.

For me, parliamentarians who are parents, and also for those that were brought up in the late 1980s—I think they’re called millennials, which I think I am actually; just—there is a very famous series of children’s books called Where’s Wally? Now, Where’s Wally? is a book. it’s a brilliant illustration, and there’s a lot of things happening in the picture. The whole point of it is just being able to spot where Wally is. At school, I remember it was one of our favourite pastimes to sit down with a Where’s Wally? and try and find Wally, and it wasn’t actually that hard because you just had to find his glasses. That was the key.

But it reminded me very much of where’s the Prime Minister? Where is the Prime Minister? When he was asked just a couple of days ago in the media where is his leadership in relation to this Middle East conflict and the fuel plan that supposedly is needed for New Zealand, his response was, “Well, I’m the CEO.” No, no, no—the book’s not I’m the CEO; the book is Where is the Prime Minister? He is the leader of our country and has been remarkably missing from this fuel crisis. At a time when we have care and support workers who cannot afford to go to their jobs, who are having to decline jobs because they cannot afford the fuel, where is the Prime Minister? At a time when it’s going to cost, for some families, over $170 to fill their tank, where is the Prime Minister?

That is a question for the National Party MPs, because it’s quite clear that given the current polling, there may be other discussions that are happening, and there might be a new Prime Minister. But coming back to the fuel crisis, there are some serious questions that need answering about how prepared that Government is for what we are facing. The entire economy relies on the Government getting this right, from our food packaging to our threads, to any of the compartments that are needed for microchips. It is all interrelated, and it all comes from the feedstock that comes through that strait, that goes to those Asian countries, which are therefore exported to New Zealand. It’s not just about refined fuel—it’s not just about refined fuel.

I acknowledge the Minister Andrew Hoggard, who tried to give assurances today to suppliers, because what I’m hearing from suppliers is they are concerned around food packaging. This isn’t a niche issue; the whole economy depends on fuel. Members know—tradies, farmers, care and support workers, our nurses, our teachers, our students who need to get to school. The interesting thing is the possible closure of this strait wasn’t just happening this year; it was actually initially happening last year, in June 2025. When the Government saw that that was happening—because they get good advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade—what were you doing? Where was the Prime Minister? Why was he not thinking about the plan for if that strait had closed, or what is happening now, which is barely a trickle coming through that strait?

The Government published its own criteria for moving between phases. The interesting thing about that is it took them a couple of weeks just to give us more clarity on what the triggers were for phase 1 and 2, and they’re still considering stage 3 and 4. This has been four weeks since that strait has been closed. One of the important things is around the restrictions from source refineries. We should be concerned in this country if the countries that we source our refined fuels from are bringing in restrictions. We should be paying attention. Other countries all across the world are looking at restrictions; they are looking at packages to support their workers to ensure the economy runs. But this Government, because of their poor management of the economy in the last two years, where they borrowed more, they lost the fiscal headroom, we are now in a position where they can only help 7 percent of households; where 93 percent of households—“Too bad for you”, according to this Government. “Too bad.”

Tomorrow, we will finally hear how this Government, if the Prime Minister turns up, will support care and support workers. That comes down to the advocacy by those care and support workers and the people on this side of the House, who have been asking the right questions. Those Ministers need to ask more.

I know it’s April Fool’s today, but I just heard what I thought was a speech from the Labour’s finance spokesperson. I was fooled, actually. But let’s turn to the seriousness in the Middle East. I do want to acknowledge the uncertain times facing this country and New Zealanders right up and down, and to acknowledge the speeches in the House.

There are many things outside of our control, and some things that are inside. The war in Iran is something outside of our control. As finance Minister Nicola Willis said, this is not our war. We did not sign up to it, and we want the hostilities to end as quickly as possible so that oil can flow as freely as possible. But we have no say and control over that. What we do have control over is our own response. We heard from the Reserve Bank Governor—she made a speech a few days ago—and her view was very clear on the economic effects from the Middle East: higher inflation and lower growth. We cannot control those impacts, but we can control New Zealand’s response to that.

I want to talk about three aspects of our response for this crisis. The first is around fuel security. I heard the member saying, “Where’s our Prime Minister?” Well, he is on the phone talking to foreign leaders, making sure that we secure the fuel that we need to power up our economy. The good news is that New Zealand is well positioned. We have far better fuel stocks than other comparable countries like, say, our neighbours across the ditch. We’ve established a ministerial oversight group that is getting briefings twice daily—twice daily—from a talented group of people that are monitoring the situation.

The second is cushioning the negative effects from inflation on those that are most vulnerable. Today is a good day for those, because we have got timely, targeted, and temporary support coming to over 143,000 people right up and down New Zealand. That is through the targeted tax changes that will help provide support for families—up to $50 a week for those across the country.

The third area is maintaining our strong fiscal position. This is not a time for splashing around the cash. It is about maintaining the fiscal prudence to ensure that any support is timely, targeted, and temporary. That is from the lesson from COVID, as articulated by the New Zealand Treasury.

We have debt levels—nominal debt—of nearly $200 billion. The interest on that debt this year alone is nearing $10 billion. If we borrow more, like the other side were wont to do, what’s going to happen is the interest cost for servicing that debt goes even higher. We already had a downgrade by Moody’s, who have put our economy and Government on negative watch as a result, so there is no alternative to our approach. The only alternative that I’m hearing is to tax more, spend more, borrow more, and hope more.

I know that the next few months will be extremely tough for this country. There’s no doubt about it. We cannot sugarcoat that we cannot get away from the effects from the Middle East, but this too shall pass and I remain optimistic in this country. Brighter days will return because this Government has a good plan.

I do want to acknowledge the Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis. She’s doing an outstanding job to articulate the Government’s plan. The phases—we’re not in COVID 2.0. You’re not going to be going home to make sourdough. This is a different time and a different crisis, but I do want to acknowledge the leadership of our Government, and they’re doing a tremendous job to provide stability through this time.

I just want to finish with a quote from Victor Hugo: “Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.” I’m optimistic about this country. We’ve got a good plan. Brighter days will be coming ahead.

If someone is trying to clear things up to explain why everyone has got it wrong and he should be believed, no matter how implausible that might seem, given the evidence available, well, it always pays to check the record against the latest version of events. So it has proved with Chris Hipkins, who wandered across the parking lot last Friday to waiting reporters and told them he had “refreshed his memory on the COVID-19 vaccine advice timeline”.

Yes, a paper that he took to Cabinet in late March 2022 contained advice from the COVID-19 Vaccine Technical Advisory Group on the “unnecessary risk of teenagers getting myocarditis if they received a second dose of the vaccine”. He couldn’t recall it, but, yes, he took that to Cabinet and, yes, that advice was originally in a paper dated 9 December 2021, but, of course, he never saw that. He says it was never put to Ministers.

He also moved, during Friday’s stand-up, to distance himself from ever really getting involved in the issue of medical advice or vaccine safety when he was the COVID-19 Minister. That wasn’t appropriate. He left that stuff to the health experts. His new version of events was, “All of those 1 p.m. press conferences were fronted by a Minister and a public health official, and I, certainly for the ones that I was fronting, always left the advice on vaccine safety, health advice—I always left that to the relevant health officials at those meetings and I think that was appropriate. I’m not a health practitioner. I think it was appropriate that we left that to the relevant health officials.”

So to be clear, Chris Hipkins didn’t get advised about myocarditis risk in young people from vaccinations, even though, on 5 November 2021, the COVID-19 Vaccine Technical Advisory Group provided advice to the Ministry of Health that says that younger groups are “more at risk than older age groups of myocarditis after the second dose” and it recommended consideration of one dose for those 18 and under for the education mandate.

Then, on 9 December, even more advice was issued. It upgraded advice to say that two doses of the vaccine “may add unnecessary risk to increasing the likelihood of myocarditis”. The paper recommended considering one dose for under-18s for all vaccine mandates.

Chris Hipkins’ position today, as of last week’s memory refresh, is that in December 2021, he wasn’t getting specific advice from anyone about myocarditis risk from COVID vaccines, and he certainly would never give public health advice about vaccine safety or even health advice. He’s not a health professional; it’s not his job. It wouldn’t be responsible.

Here’s the problem with this story so far: only 12 days after the 9 December advice that he never saw, he was fronting the media next to a public health official, and he was speaking about the death of a young man who recently died of myocarditis following a COVID vaccination. He wasn’t just speaking broadly about it; he seemed to be well briefed on the medical risks of the vaccine. The One News headline read, “Risk of COVID far outweighs the risk of myocarditis - Hipkins” “Chris Hipkins has assured the COVID-19 vaccination is very safe after a Dunedin man’s death from vaccine-related myocarditis.”, the story says.

He then went on to do precisely what he said last Friday that he never did at a 1 p.m. press conference: “My overall message to all New Zealanders: the vaccine is very safe, that any small risk associated with the vaccine is by far outweighed by the risk of getting COVID-19 and so vaccination’s absolutely the best course of action.”, he said.

Well, thank you, Dr Hipkins. You managed to get vaccine safety and health advice into the same sound bite. His claim about something so important as the safety of young people and whether they should be legally mandated to have a second dose of the vaccine wasn’t brought to his attention simply defies belief. They were developing advice. They were issuing advice. He was clear he wouldn’t go in front of the media and speak so forcefully about it just 12 days after the paper he never read, or would he?

Fundamentally, there are only two possibilities here. Either he really did manage to avoid reading anything through this whole period, and when he spoke to the media doing the thing he now says he never did, he was doing it without having read any of the advice. Or when he did it, the Ministry of Health, who were issuing that advice didn’t think to get on the phone and say, “Excuse me, Minister. Given the advice we’ve sent you lately, you shouldn’t have said that.” I don’t think that that is remotely credible.

Here we have yet another contradiction of Chris Hipkins. He did it with Charlotte Bellis. He did it with the two women who were going up north, accused of being prostitutes. This is somebody who wants the trust of New Zealand just to be Prime Minister and here is yet more information as the story unwinds that he does not deserve that trust.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): Just before I call the next speaker, Mr Seymour, in general debates, generally we don’t read the whole speech. It’s unusual for you, but just a general warning that in general debates, reading speeches is a no-no. We expect there to actually be ideas here.

Well, Mr Speaker, I’d like to present you with my blank page of no notes that I’m about to not read from. It’s a pleasure to take a call in the general debate—

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): I love it when people listen to me.

KATIE NIMON: —to speak about the fuel crisis that we’re in front of at the moment. It’s very clear to me, from the speeches that we’ve heard from members opposite, that what they see in leadership is seeking the limelight in the theatrette, rather than quiet work in the background to secure fuel supply.

Now, if you talk to the people out in the community, as I do in Napier—and I’d just like to remind everyone, as I always do, that Napier goes from Hastings all the way to Gisborne—the people want us to be working hard for them to make sure that next week, the week after, and the week after that, they don’t turn up to the pump or they don’t go to their bowser on the farm and find it empty. In fact, that is the work that our Prime Minister is doing day after day, working with international leaders to make sure we have the supply.

Now, actually, it doesn’t matter to us who stands in front of the community to give them the message. The message is the message.

What I want to talk about is what we are doing. We are doing a number of things to give the community certainty and stability. We heard about the targeted, timely, and temporary response of funding and support to families. We’ve heard about the adjustment to incomes for those on benefits and pensioners. This all makes a difference. Now, yes, this happens every year, but, gosh, isn’t this a good time for it to happen. It all means more money in people’s back pockets—the adjustments necessary to cover the costs.

Now, aren’t we so lucky that, in fact, the work that this Government has done has put us in the best possible position we could be in heading into this crisis—a crisis which, we are reminded, is outside of our control. Something that we can control is our response to it—now, our leader is out there securing fuel so that we aren’t in the worst-case scenario position and so that we don’t have to get to phases 3 and 4.

The rest of our leaders are working very hard to communicate with the public, to talk to industry, and to make sure we are doing the right thing. Yes, you could stand up and make a convoluted announcement on day one without talking to anybody. What’s that going to achieve? Now, actually, these people are at the table, speaking for their people—whether it’s farmers, whether it’s manufacturers, whether it’s transport providers. All of these people need to give certainty and sustainable responses to our community.

Now, very fortunately for me, tomorrow me and my colleague Mike Butterick and my other colleague Catherine Wedd are going to be at the Hawke’s Bay Primary Sector Awards. What an amazing event this is. It’s actually the highlight of our year, isn’t it, Mike? We get to sit around a table and celebrate the success of our primary sector. Now, our primary sector—these ships are actually leaving our country, leaving our port, and going to the rest of the world; it’s not just the ships that are coming from the Middle East and Asia and coming to New Zealand with all the supplies we need—we are actually an export nation. Isn’t that amazing? These free-trade deals that the Hon Todd McClay is going around the world and securing for us are another part of the leadership that we require to make sure that we can keep fighting the good fight and be a viable and great-representing nation around the world.

Now, these farms, these growers, these amazing primary production leaders, are continuing to work. What they need from this Government is a sense of certainty and assurance that we are not going to freeze. We are not going to stand there in front of them and say, “We don’t know what we’re doing; we don’t know what to do.” Well, in fact, we do. We have given certainty every single day of this crisis, and the people appreciate it, and we listen. We listen, and we make changes, and there is nothing wrong with that. I get sick and tired when I hear members of the Opposition stand up and say, “Oh, they’ve U-turned; oh, they’ve changed their mind.” You know what? Isn’t that amazing leadership. To listen to the people and adjust our response to make sure that we are delivering for Kiwis and what they want.

Ryan Hamilton: Like fisheries.

KATIE NIMON: Like fisheries. That’s a great example, Ryan Hamilton. Didn’t we see a wonderful result in that amazing case of listening to the public, right? This is exactly what we’re here to do.

Once again, 1 April comes around, and there’s more money in people’s back pockets to be able to deal with the consequences of global crises that continue to occur. A strong, stable Government that’s out there delivering for New Zealanders, listening to them, communicating, not seeking the limelight in the theatrette and making a big song and dance about it—strong, stable leadership, getting the job done, listening to the people, and giving them a sense of certainty so that when Mike and Catherine and I go to the Primary Sector Awards tomorrow night, we are going to be able to celebrate an industry that’s able to listen to the people, work really hard, and deliver in growing our economy, in continuing to grow our economy, which is what we’ve set out to do and will continue to do.

We will not freeze. We will not sit back and think we’re going to do nothing and spray the cash around as we’ve heard. We’re going to continue to grow this economy despite international effects, and that is why we are the Government.

At a time when this country is facing a crisis, David Seymour spent his time in the general debate raking over events from four years ago—very complicated events—using the death of a 26-year-old to talk about the mandate for 12- to 17-year-olds, whether they should get a second dose of the vaccine, ignoring the fact that if you get COVID, you have a greater risk of myocarditis than there ever was from the vaccine. That was what David Seymour spent his time on, and that shows why the ACT Party is losing in the polls at the moment.

Let me set some of the record straight on what is going on with the crisis that is affecting our country at the moment. We need to remember that the parallel crisis when we were in Government was COVID, a completely unpredictable virus where no one knew what might happen in the world. In response to that crisis, when we saved 20,000 lives in New Zealand, when we saved businesses, and when we saved jobs, they say we got it wrong. Well, that’s absolutely ridiculous.

Here is the comparison with the current crisis. Although this crisis might be beyond our control, its consequences are highly predictable. We know what will happen if this country and other countries run out of fuel. We know the consequences. That Government, through its own reckless actions, has made those consequences even worse for us.

Let me talk about the reckless actions of this Government. When they first came into Government, they cancelled the Clean Car Discount, and what happened as a result of that? The number of electric vehicles (EV) being bought and put into circulation on our roads in this country fell dramatically. That’s a real shame because the more cars we got into the fleet three, four, five, and six years ago, the more electric second-hand vehicles there would be available now. That was the first mistake. The next mistake they made—and they did this in March 2024—was they removed the exemption for light electric vehicles and for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. They have removed the exemption for road user charges. They made it more expensive to own an EV. They made it harder to own an EV. They further discouraged the take-up of electric vehicles. Then, in November 2025, in another absolutely reckless action, they decreased the clean car importer standard. What does that mean? They have incentivised car importers to bring in many more internal combustion cars than electric vehicles.

In the last week or two, there has been an absolute run on electric vehicles. Dealers are sold out because, in this current crisis, people are seeing that the way to get around this country, that the way to preserve their access to all the things that are good in New Zealand, is through electric vehicles. But, step by step by step, that Government has removed all the advantages of electric vehicles. Step by step by step, they have taken away the incentives to own an electric vehicle. That is so short sighted. It’s short sighted in terms of the climate, and it is very, very short sighted in terms of New Zealand’s energy independence. The reason we are in trouble now is because we are dependent on overseas sources for the great majority of our energy, and they have actively worked against that.

Shane Jones—I think he’s the only one who calls himself Matua—said, in his speech, if there’s one thing that the Iran war shows us, it is that we must use our own resources. How right he is. We must use our own resources of wind. We must use our own resources of solar. We must use our own resources of hydro. We must use our own resources of geothermal. We must electrify our transport, and we have the resources to do it right here.

Our oceans and the resources that are bound in our moana are a precious resource to all of the people in Aotearoa, and the people of Te Tai Tonga have some serious reflections to consider. What the people need at this point in time with regard to the reforms and what they expect out of a Minister, is to put the people’s interests first. To have the people’s needs foremost: sustainability, kaitiakitanga, and the longevity of the kaimoana, the moana, and its resources at the heart of regulations, as we consider how to preserve those things going into the future. To ensure that our tamariki and mokopuna have got kaimoana in the moana going into the future—that’s not something that we can just hope will materialise; we have to be intentional.

What we don’t need is a Minister who puts the interests of the commercial crowd in the front—short-term gain and short-term profit over long-term sustainability and leaving something for the future. Unfortunately, the reforms that are before Parliament failed to address the root cause of our declining fisheries: namely overfishing, over-allocation, destructive fishing practices that have persisted for far too long. In the meantime, instead, he’s chosen to privilege these practices and risk worsening the problem; leaving a mess for our tamariki and our mokopuna to pick up and clean as we move forward. We can’t afford to put short-term financial gain ahead of the long-term sustainability of our moana.

For decades now, our fish stocks have been in decline—serious decline. The evidence is undeniable. If we think about our deep-sea species like hoki and orange roughy, they have almost been pushed to the brink of extinction. Our local fish in the South Island—the blue cod fishery—are in peril, right now, as we speak. We think about things closer to everyone around the country; our scallops, our pāua, our crayfish have all been in decline for years, and we have failed to take the steps to look after their longevity and ensure that they are there for the future. As we continue down this road, many of these species are being completely closed off. Scallops: off the menu; crayfish: off the menu. This is the reality for many places in the country, and it’s time for us to wake up. We must take steps that look after our fish stocks and leave something better for the future. Not just dwindling stocks; thriving stocks—this is what our children and our grandchildren deserve.

Yet here we are, giving more fish to commercial interests, making it easier for them to catch more with less oversight, blocking camera footage on boats, legalising the dumping of fish. All of these things only serve to undermine the fish stocks that we currently have. Allowing quota to be carried over for successive years; thinking that somehow a stock is going to miraculously recover itself—I tell you, it is a recipe for disaster, not to mention the proposal of removing minimum size limits, catch limits for commercial fishing. I tell you, we really need to get back to the drawing board.

All the while, the Minister has managed to ignore the Māori customary rights and ignore the recreational interests. Those are the people’s interests. Whilst the Minister might also talk and speak about the prevalence of the use of scientific data and the management of the stock, it’s been that same scientific management that has got us into the predicament we’re in right now. I doubt that it will be that same scientific management that will get us out. In fact, it could be time for some tangata whenua management. There are plenty of examples all around the country—all around the country. Rather than prioritising short-term commercial and financial gain, we need to make sure that there’s true transparency across the industry, that our children’s legacy, that our grandchildren’s legacy is looked after. It’s our tamariki and mokopuna who stand to lose the most under the current reforms.

Te Tai Tonga has a simple message for the Minister: leave some fish for the mokos, Shane—leave some fish for the mokos. That’s the message from Te Tai Tonga: be a good kaitiaki—be a good kaitiaki. Māori have always stood in our power as kaitiaki, and we will always look after the resource. We have to do better. We have to ensure that our people have access and that the resources are left in better condition than the one that we inherited. Kia ora tātou.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. It’s great to stand and speak in this general debate today. With the fuel crisis going on at the moment, it’s started to, I guess, trigger a few of us into those hauntings of COVID, when you’d wake up and feel controlled, you’d feel misled by the Government of the day. We’d hear about the “podium of truth”, and now we see so much deception. We heard from David Seymour talking earlier about the papers that Mr Hipkins read or didn’t read or remembered or couldn’t remember until his refresh. The Opposition might say, “Well, why is that important?” It’s important because it’s about trust. The Government is responsible for leading and communicating to people in times of crisis. A lot of that trust has been damaged—a lot of that trust has been damaged. So while we remember the “podium of truth”, like my good colleague Tama Potaka, we’re more interested in the crucible of outcomes—the crucible of outcomes. We’re interested in reality; we’re interested in pragmatic solutions.

So whilst there was so much wasteful spending—we saw the COVID royal commission of inquiry, and we saw $60 billion wasted, half of that not even associated with the direct response to COVID; shovel-ready projects that were nowhere near a shovel; lump-sum payments to dead people; a large-scale asset programme which left us with $10 billion in debt—a bit of a debacle. In the last two years, this Government’s been working very hard on restoring fiscal discipline, and you’ve started seeing signs of growth returning to the economy. We’ve seen GDP return. We’ve cut billions of dollars off the last couple of Budgets in reprioritisations and savings. Thank goodness we have, because imagine not having any buffer at all. Imagine that continued wasteful spending, that debt—we would be turning into a Third World country. I’m so pleased that we’ve got a Government that’s focused on doing the basics right.

Of course, our Prime Minister’s leading the charge in a very proactive way with this fuel crisis. Most people would have seen the four-phase fuel plan—very pragmatic; very straightforward. And, of course, the Prime Minister assures us this will be nothing like COVID, where people woke up every day in fear, wondering what the Government would say to us next; whether they’d extend the lockdowns they were overprescribed and shut down Auckland; whether they’d double-jab teenagers that didn’t need it. The four-phase plan that we’ve seen, that’s now in the public domain, is simple yet pragmatic, and it’s so good, even the Australians are starting to copy it.

The other thing, which is really important to note, is our Prime Minister on the proactive phase is reaching out to countries like Singapore, like Korea, like Australia, and working out how we diversify our reliance on fuel. We know that the Gulf supplies 20 percent, but there’s 80 percent of other alternatives, and we’re keeping all options open. The Prime Minister is proactively looking. There’s good communication with our community—it just shows the importance of resilience and diversification.

I’ll give you a good example of resilience and diversification: when our Prime Minister came to office, he said straight away, “Let’s do a trade deal with India.” The largest populace on Earth, the largest-growing middle-income economy in the world—over a billion people. He employed, he empowered, and he disembarked the wonderful Minister Todd McClay, who, within 18 months, essentially turned around an incredible trade deal with India. We’re just waiting for when Labour’s to sign it. We’re just wondering when Labour’s going to say, “Yep, we support New Zealand, we support diversification, we support resilience.” But do you know why they’re not signing it? Do you know why they’re politicking in the midst of a campaign year? Because they’re jealous. Because they didn’t do it. They had six years. Did they even go to India? Did they establish any relationships? No, nothing at all.

We’ve got a first-class agreement ready to sign with one of the most populous countries on Earth, and Labour won’t do it because they’re jealous because their foreign Minister hardly hopped on a plane. She hardly picked up a phone. She was so worried about co-governance and three waters that the relationships across the globe were stranded. Our Prime Minister and our Minister for Trade, Todd McClay, have had to rebuild those relationships. And it’s good news.

In the midst of challenging times in New Zealand, I’m pleased to report that the adults are in the room, and this Government will steer New Zealand through these rocky waters. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

We’re at the 11th call for this general debate, and I find it absolutely outrageous that the Government backbenchers, with their speaking lines over there, haven’t even bothered to talk about the people that are actually doing it tough in our communities.

I want to speak to the people who feel like they have been an afterthought in this House and that’s our rural communities. Right now, they’re doing it tough and this Government is nowhere to be seen. Fuel prices are soaring. In rural New Zealand, it’s not an inconvenience; that is a lifeline being cut to our people in the rural areas. You can’t shop around when you live an hour from town, you can’t take public transport when there isn’t any, and you can’t just absorb rising costs where every litre of fuel underpins your livelihood, whether that’s farming, forestry, tourism, or simply trying to get your kids to school.

This crisis was always going to hit rural communities the hardest. Kieran McAnulty knows that in the Wairarapa. Tangi Utikere, he knows that out in Ashhurst. However, the Government has no plan. Reassurance is not a plan, talking points are not a plan, and rural New Zealand knows it. While fuel prices spike, this Government is still pretending that everything is under control, when families, farmers, and small businesses know that it’s not. Let’s be clear: this crisis didn’t arrive in a vacuum. People were already struggling before fuel prices surged. The cost of food, power, and healthcare are all rising, and wages are not keeping up—and that pressure is building. The Government made choices that made things worse, and our rural communities are paying that price.

Today, I met with two remarkable members of the communities, Sandra Kirby and Anna-Grace Somerfield from Rural Women New Zealand. I want to acknowledge the extraordinary work that they are doing across our rural communities. It’s organisations like Rural Women New Zealand who are stepping up. They are advocating for something as basic and as critical as school bus access, because for many in rural areas, getting their children to school is not guaranteed; it’s a daily logistical challenge, and families are carrying that burden alone. They are delivering programmes like the Activator programme. This programme is about improving rural pathways for rural women to develop their business start-up ideas and build capability and confidence so they can take those ideas to the next level.

They are running the ConnectHER programme, a vital initiative to tackle isolation, support wellbeing, and build networks for rural women who might otherwise be completely cut off. Here’s the key point: the need for these services is not decreasing. It’s increasing, demand is growing, and pressure is rising, and these programmes are now up for funding renewal. The question for this Government is simple: will you listen? Will you back the organisations that are doing this important work? Because if the ConnectHER programme loses funding, it is rural women already under strain who will pay the price.

Earlier this week, I also met with Aviva, in North Canterbury, who do fantastic work right across Waimakariri and North Canterbury. They delivered a message that should concern every member of this House: when financial stress increases, so does family violence. That’s not theory; that is a reality. When households are under pressure, when bills stack up, when fuel costs surge and income doesn’t, that stress compounds, and, in too many cases, that stress turns into harm. It’s not just an economic issue we are facing; it’s a social issue and it is a community safety issue. It creates a clear responsibility for the Government to ensure that support services are funded, accessible, and ready to respond—especially in rural areas, where services are already stretched thin.

When the Government fails to manage that cost of living, and when it fails to respond to crises like the fuel shock, it doesn’t just show up in bank accounts; it actually shows up in people’s homes. Rural New Zealand is resilient; it always has been. But resilient is not an excuse for neglect, and right now, rural communities are being asked to carry too much with too little support. They’re paying more for fuel, they’re paying more for food, and they’re paying more for the basics. Instead of trying to help these rural communities, this Government is making it worse.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): It’s the first time in three years the member has done a general debate speech; I know in future, he’ll have a lot less reliance on the script in front of him.

Laura McClure: That’s why we didn’t heckle.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. First of all, congratulations to the Lynfield College robotics team for winning—

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): Sorry, am I hearing a comment from my right, criticising my ruling?

Laura McClure: No, not at all.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): Oh, good. I’m pleased about that.

Dr CARLOS CHEUNG: Can I start my time again?

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): We’ll restart the time.

Dr CARLOS CHEUNG: First of all, congratulations to the Lynfield College robotics team for winning the national robotics competition for the third time in a row. Well done to them.

Today, my contribution is focused on three things: support, opportunity, and the people. Hard-working families in Mt Roskill are having a tough time. The rising cost of living combined with increasing petrol prices is putting real pressure on household budgets. We understand that, and we are here to support them. From today, around 143,000 low to middle income working families will receive an extra $50 per week to help with the cost of living. This is targeted, practical support, delivered where it’s needed most. Superannuation is also increasing. A married couple will now receive $1,708 a fortnight—an increase of more than $180 since the 2023 election. This is about ensuring our seniors can live with dignity and security.

It doesn’t stop here. Family tax credits, benefits, and student allowances are all rising from today. Now, we are honest about this: we know this support may seem modest; we know it does not solve everything overnight, but we know that every single dollar counts. For families in Mt Roskill, that extra support means a bit more breathing room and a little less stress at the checkout, at the petrol station, or at the kitchen table. This is what it’s about: backing our people through the tough times.

Second, I think this is why the National Government is focusing on building our economy, making it easier to attract investment, support businesses, and create opportunities here at home. The Investment Boost: our recent survey has shown that 40 percent of businesses have reported increased spending on capital assets over the last 12 months, due to the policy. Guess what! When business grows, jobs are created; when jobs are created, incomes rise; and when incomes rise, families in Mt Roskill are better able to get ahead.

A key part of this is strengthening our international connections. A high-quality free-trade agreement with India has the potential to significantly boost our exports, opening up new markets for New Zealand businesses, from agriculture to technology and services. For a diverse community like Mt Roskill with a strong connection to India, this creates real opportunity, more trade, more business activities, and more local jobs.

We are here to unlock the potential of Eden Park as well: Robbie Williams; Tottenham Hotspur coming for a football game; State of Origin. This is not just entertainment; they are job creators. They generate employment across hospitality, event management, transport, retail, and security. Importantly, they provide flexible and entry-level opportunities, especially for our young people in Mt Roskill who are looking to get experience and enter the workforce. For many, this is the first step, a first job, a first pay cheque, and a pathway into long-term employment. When we talk about economic growth, we are talking about real outcomes for real people, more jobs, higher incomes, and better opportunities for families in Mt Roskill.

Finally, I want to talk about the people in Mt Roskill. Mt Roskill is one of the most diverse communities in New Zealand. It is home to migrants and ethnic communities who bring skill, education, and incredible work ethics. Many arrive with a strong qualification and professional experience. They work hard, contribute to our economy, and support a family, but too often, they work harder and receive less in return. Their qualifications are not always fully recognised, opportunities do not always match their abilities, and their contribution can sometimes be overlooked. This is something we must address. Also, we must make something very clear: ethnic communities must never be used as a political football. Politicians have a responsibility to speak carefully and respectfully to address the issues without targeting and singling out any groups, because when we divide communities, we weaken them. One thing I know is that diversity is our strength, and when we are united, we are stronger—stronger as a community, stronger as an economy, and stronger as a country. Thank you.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): Just for consistency, I did note that the member didn’t stray far off his written notes there. I just repeat that this is general debate. It’s a time that we should—it’s a very broad range of issues; we should be able to debate them and bring those ideas here without necessarily sticking to a script. So just for consistency, for all those I’ve advised during this debate.

The debate having concluded, the motion lapsed.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): I declare the House in committee for consideration of the Carter Trust Amendment Bill.