Duynhoven Harry: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
Duynhoven Harry: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
[Volume:627;Page:22139] 
Hon HARRY DUYNHOVEN (Minister for Transport Safety) 
: 
 It is a pleasure to be here today to talk on the Appropriation (2005/06 Estimates) Bill and particularly to talk about the primary production sector with regard to the agriculture and forestry estimates we are doing. I am a member of the Primary Production Committee and it has been a vastly more interesting committee to be on I have to say than I had ever imagined it would be. Coming from Taranaki an area where agriculture is a very important part of the region’s make-up—some would say it is the backbone of the province’s income—it is certainly pleasing to me to see that record prices have been enjoyed for primary products for some time. New Zealand is doing well but I do know that those things are dependent on the value of the New Zealand dollar and on what the markets do. 
I think that it is very worthwhile to consider the work we have had before the Primary Production Committee for some time because it shows the legislative change that the Government has been involved in. I think that by any measure the select committee has been busy. It has had some very good members working very hard on issues and when we look at the major reforms that have occurred in the dairy industry the pipfruit industry the kiwifruit industry the wine wool and meat industries and even in hops we see that we have done a lot of work on that committee in responding to the needs of the agricultural and rural constituents of New Zealand. They have made their needs and views very clear.The committee has also done of course a lot of work in the aquacultural area on fisheries and has looked into some very interesting issues. The Sustainable Farming Fund has I think been a really good Government initiative. I am sure other speakers will talk in detail about that but I want to say that that fund is aimed at helping to tackle obstacles to economic social and environmental sustainability in rural communities. I think we would all agree that the fund has been of great benefit to the rural sector. 
It seems to me that a lot of issues come into this portfolio area. So far in this debate we have heard about communication apprenticeships prices the value of the New Zealand dollar land access issues Kyoto Protocol credits and transport—all sorts of things come into this area. Let us just start on a few of those issues. Let us look at apprenticeships. They are something I as a member of Parliament have been on about to the point of being like a needle in a cracked record for many many years. I am delighted to see that the rural sector particularly has picked up on apprenticeships. 
Just this week in Parliament the 4000th Modern Apprentice in the motor trades was presented by the Hon Trevor Mallard with a plaque to celebrate being the 4000th young person to get a Modern Apprenticeship in the automotive trades. He is from a small rural business. As an automotive electrician from the town of Matamata he is not a city dweller but a rural person whose company has been in business for many years and absolutely depends on a successful rural policy to remain in business—a successful agricultural policy that actually delivers for rural communities. Without the farming sector doing well small rural businesses close—it is as simple as that. That particular case was a very good sign. The young man concerned was able to talk about the others he knew of in rural businesses and he looks forward no doubt to owning a rural business one day himself. His employer had bought the business from the gentleman who had owned it when he had worked there as an apprentice himself. So that sort of generational change is going on in rural districts. 
How does access to broadband fit into that? We need to have good communications in an increasingly technological world. In the select committee we have often talked about the need for good communications and access to broadband. 
Just recently we have seen the very successful work done by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in the containment exercise in relation to the foot-and-mouth scare on Waiheke Island. We saw a report in Parliament earlier on the very good exercise that occurred prior to that in the Wairarapa looking at how we can prepare for any major disastrous incursion of a disease like foot-and-mouth or perhaps an outbreak of tuberculosis amongst cattle etc. Those preparations can only be made when there is funding to do so. Funding depends on taxation and National has not told us where its tax reduction would come from.