McAnulty KieranKIERAN McANULTY (Labour): Thank you Mr Speaker. It is my absolute delight to stand here today in the general debate to take the opportunity to thank those who have helped us through the lockdown—the necessary lockdown that has put us now in a position where we are the envy of many many countries. Those that worked through alert level 4 our essential workers: those that worked at the supermarket and on the front line of our medical services.I speak here today as a resident of Wairarapa the region that has had no active COVID cases for the longest period of anywhere else in the country. We as a region are proud of that because of the work that the front-line health workers have put in but also the effort that every one resident in Wairarapa has put into ensuring that they stuck to what needed to be done. It is that effort the effort of everybody that has put us as a nation in the position that we are in now. I want to take the opportunity to acknowledge them and acknowledge their efforts not only for doing what needed to be done but for ignoring the nonsense that we are hearing from the other side of the House.What a shame when we had a prime opportunity to come together politically and work constructively that the Opposition—the National Party—have chosen to take the positions that they have in the last week or so. We heard the previous speaker Chris Bishop justify the position that the National Party have taken on the Epidemic Response Committee to—for the first time ever in our democracy—look to breach a fundamental cornerstone of our legal system. I for one agree with this statement from a current member of the House: In terms of making legally privileged documents public … know the Crown never does that." and I want to congratulate the Hon Simon Bridges for standing on policy and principle when he was a Minister but when he is Leader of the Opposition it's a completely different story. But we are used to the National Party changing tack and swapping positions all over the show. We heard today from the Hon Judith Collins that in her view this Government has not acted swiftly has not gone hard and has not gone early. I interjected and I asked her to prove it. Could she? Could she my foot—no proof whatsoever. I have proof: no press releases and no statements whatsoever from the National Party on shutting the borders until 18 March—the day we shut the borders. How can they stand there today and accuse the Government of not acting swiftly when they themselves did not call for anything of the ilk until the day on which it happened? Lockdown in place 27 days after the first case; self-isolation of all returning travellers 16 days after the first case—Australia was 51; Canada was 59. We were 21 days after our first case when we closed the border to foreigners; Australia was 56; Canada was 51; the USA was 60; France 54; Germany 51; Italy 52. It is an absolute joke and a demonstration of sheer arrogance that the Hon Judith Collins can just stand there and say things that she herself doesn't back up with facts. There are the facts and it speaks for itself.This Government acted fast. We went hard and we went early and that is now why we're in a position as Professor Sir David Skegg said to the Epidemic Response Committee that New Zealand is the only Western country in the world with an opportunity to eliminate COVID-19. That is the testimony of the expert the hand-picked expert of the National Party who provided independent advice to the Epidemic Response Committee until that is that they decided they actually didn't like what Professor Sir David Skegg said because he was so complimentary of the Government—"Goodbye Skegg." Professor Skegg has not come back to the Epidemic Response Committee since making statements praising the Government's effort and standing us above those anywhere else in the world in our response to this virus.I for one am proud to be a part of a Government that has put New Zealanders first that has recognised the impact that the lockdown has had on them as individuals them as businesses and them as organisations and that has responded in kind. I congratulate the people of New Zealand for ignoring the nit-picking the pettiness and the absolutely irresponsible approach from the National Party and for getting behind this team effort."