Robertson Grant; Williams PotoHon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): It is a great privilege to stand here today at the end of this Budget debate and reflect not only on the contributions that we've heard in here but indeed on the reaction in the wider community. And I do want to thank all members of the House for their contributions to the Budget debate. It's an important occasion for members of this House to be able to express their values and how those values turn into action. Mr Muller and I have indeed known each other for the best part of 25 years and I'll give Mr Muller this: he's always been a soft Tory". He's always been someone who's actually got a kind enough heart but he just can't quite bring himself to believe that the privilege of being in Government offers the opportunity for the Government to be a partner in the economy and a partner in society.As I go around the country and I've done about 14 public meetings about this Budget the message that I'm getting back from communities as diverse as the Pasifika community local government representatives and business representatives is that they are welcoming a Government that actually wants to listen—a Government that sits down and engages with them about what is possible for our communities today. After nine long years of being told what to do by the previous Government but not being given the support to do it there is now finally a Government in place that will listen and that will partner with our communities and I am very proud and privileged to have delivered the Budget that begins that work.Can I say at the outset that I want to acknowledge as I did in the Budget speech the support of our coalition and confidence and supply partners. I want to acknowledge that in a Government like this we are not always going to always agree on every single detail of what comes in front of us. But the three parties that make up this Government believe in one thing for sure: we can do so much better than what we have seen for the last nine years. We are a better country than one that leaves so many people out and so many people behind be those the people who have found themselves homeless or be those the regions of New Zealand who have found themselves neglected by the previous Government. We know we can be better and this Budget is the foundation for a better fairer and more prosperous New Zealand and one where that prosperity is enjoyed and shared by all New Zealanders.It's easy when reflecting on the Budget to talk about the big numbers and there are some big numbers in this Budget: a billion-dollar Provincial Growth Fund a billion-tree programme. There's $590 million going into early childhood education (ECE). But what I want to spend some time doing right now is talk about a different kind of number and it's a number that relates to people. I'll give you a few examples. Next year a thousand extra young people are getting access to the ongoing resourcing scheme (ORS) that we use for learning support. I was on an aeroplane going to do a Budget speech recently and there was a mother of a five-year-old autistic boy there. She didn't have the confidence to talk to me on the plane but she sent me a message on Facebook straight afterwards and she said "I haven't voted for your Government before but I did at this election because I know that my boy needs more support and all the people like him need more support." And I am incredibly proud that in this Budget we have over $270 million more going into learning support that we have 2900 deaf students and 1500 low-vision students getting more support out of this programme that we have an extra 1900 ECE students getting more learning support and that we have 1000 more students getting ORS support. That means those people and their families can truly participate in school life and that's the kind of number that means something to me when I look at this Budget. It's the same with the 200000 children in our early childhood education system who for the first time in a decade every single one of them will benefit because there is an across-the-board funding increase for ECE—the first time in a decade. And what we know on this side of the House in the Government is that those first 1000 days of a child's life are so so critical and we will be continuing to invest in that throughout the three terms in Government.Some other numbers that are about people: 1500 new teachers—1500 new teachers funded in this Budget to make sure that we continue to ensure that every child is getting a world-class education. We need to do this. When we look to the health sector 56000 young people are now getting free doctors visits as a result of the extension to the age of 14 for free doctors visits and 540000 people are paying $20 to $30 a week less to go to the doctor. The very half a million New Zealanders who put off going to the doctor because it cost too much last year now know that it will be cheaper because we as a Government have invested in it. That is what a good Government does. There are the 150 front-line providers of family violence services who get their first increase in a decade as well. When I was in Christchurch I toured a community centre along with the Hon Megan Woods and we met the people from Shakti. This is the refuge service that provides services to people from ethnic backgrounds Middle Eastern backgrounds Asian backgrounds. They have struggled year upon year to get support and this Budget delivers that support for the first time in a decade. That's what Budgets are about—making a difference in the lives of New Zealanders—and we are very proud to have done that.In the housing area: the 34000 extra families that will benefit from actually getting existing transitional housing; the 1400 people who will be part of the Housing First programme extending out that programme that actually says "We'll house you first and that'll enable us to sort out the other issues that are in your life." And we're very pleased to do that in Auckland Christchurch Tauranga Hamilton Wellington and Lower Hutt—all of those places where too many people are seen on the streets. That is what a Budget can do when a Budget focuses on people—when we recognise that it's not the end of the road just to generate economic prosperity but that as a society we use that prosperity to invest in our future to make sure that our focus is on future generations. It's why when we look at this Budget when we put together the 100-day plan and the Families Package and when we put that alongside the foundational investments in health and housing and education we can say for sure: this Budget marks the beginning of a transformation in the way that we understand what success is in this country. And I am very proud of that.What I have heard as I've travelled around the country since the Budget is that New Zealanders understand that this is a Budget that is also about the foundations of a new economy—an economy that is more sustainable more productive and more inclusive. In order to do that we invest heavily in research and development. We invest heavily in our regions. We invest heavily in the Green Investment Fund promoted by the Green Party to leverage those new opportunities in technology. And we make sure that we continue to support our small businesses and we make sure that we continue to support all of our communities to thrive.That is the foundation of the economy of the 21st century. The alternative is to look backwards. The alternative is to say "Everything in New Zealand was perfect on the 22 September. Everything in New Zealand was perfect." On this side of the House we know that we can do better. We know that we need to look to the future economy where we train all of our New Zealanders to be able to adapt to a changing world of work and where we support our industries and our communities to evolve in a just transition to a lower-carbon economy. That's what we are focused on. And we've got the balance about right I think because we've been careful and we've been cautious. We have made sure that we have ticked off each of our Budget responsibility rules. That means that there is a surplus. We can put money aside for a rainy day and that rainy day in the case of Mycoplasma bovis came pretty quickly for us. But by making sure we have the surplus and by keeping our debt levels low we can respond when there is a community that is in need. And I can say this to the rural community of New Zealand: we are here for you as you go through Mycoplasma bovis. We are a partner in making sure we'll give it our best shot to eradicate this disease. That's what we can do when we get the balance right.This is the first Budget of three in this term. My staff wouldn't let me call it "Part One of a Trilogy: A New Hope" but what it is is a Budget that sets foundations for the future and the next two Budgets will build on that. They will build on improving those critical public services on which New Zealanders rely and they will build on making sure that we have an economy that is fit for purpose for the middle part of the 21st century. That's what a progressive Government does. That's what this Government is doing. I am proud to have presented this Budget to the House. ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Poto Williams): The question is that the amendment in the name of the Leader of the Opposition be agreed to."