Andersen Ginny; Dean JacquiGINNY ANDERSEN (Labour—Hutt South): That was an excellent contribution. I'd like to commend that member Tim van de Molen. It's a pleasure to speak on the Climate Change Response (Extension of Penalty Transition for Forestry Activities with Low Volume Emissions Liabilities) Amendment Bill.When we think about the last year—and lots of things have happened—but when we think about the Wellington region in New Zealand we've seen the wettest warmest winter in our history. We only have to look around our roads our coastal areas our hills to see the kind of impacts that climate change is having on our communities and on our natural environment. And at the same time when we have COP27 meeting with accounts of a third of Pakistan being flooded US Hurricane Ian—yes there is a hurricane called Ian—devastating having an impact over the United States. There's been significant weather events going on.So this bill will operate to extend the transition period provided for New Zealand's emissions trading scheme (ETS) participants with those low-volume emissions liabilities related to forestry activity within which they must comply with the penalties and compliance regime that's been introduced by the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Reform) Amendment Act. This extension until 1 January 2025 will mitigate the risk of serious hardship to small forestry participants who would fail to surrender or repay units by the previous due date of 2023. So again this is providing an ability for a just transition. So while it's important that we move and make those changes that we need to do it's important that we do that in a way that's sustained also by those that are in the smaller forestry areas.In a nutshell it operates a simple premise: businesses that are responsible for greenhouse gases that cause climate change face a price for those emissions and those that reduce emissions or plant trees to take carbon out of the atmosphere do get the benefit of that financial reward. For the decade that it's been in place prior to our reforms it's not been allowed to do the job it was designed to do—to cut climate pollution—and so this is another step in that direction to make sure we make that change and make sure it's able to be complied with.The emissions trading reforms were not just about reducing pollution that businesses emit to the atmosphere but it was also about removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere both by discouraging deforestation and incentivising the planting of trees in the right places. The legislation added a permanent forest option for post-1989 forest to the ETS. This has provided more incentives for landowners to integrate permanent trees into their landscape better use of their less-productive agricultural land and also the ability to diversify their income should they wish to.As a Government we are listening to the concerns of those communities and those sectors involved. We are also considering the independent expert advice provided to us by the Climate Change Commission. It's important that we make these changes as part of our wider work in this space. As part of our work to implement a just transition we must support those in the forestry and the agricultural sectors that we are working with on a wide range of other initiatives. Earlier this year we consulted on a code of ethics for registered forestry advisers. The code was made in September and came into force on 17 October. And we are also in addition to this working on managing exotic forestation incentives and consulting on a national direction for forests in the Resource Management Act (RMA).These proposals give the opportunity for local councils to have more control over where forests are planted and how they operate within the area. They also aim to manage the effects of exotic carbon forestry on nature improve wildfire management for all forests—which is critical in some of our rural areas—and address the key findings of the one-year review of the National Environmental Standards for Plantation Forestry (NES-PF).I'd like to conclude by saying we need to continue making changes in this space if we are serious about towing our weight internationally and driving the climate change that our planet so desperately needs and I commend it to the House.Motion agreed to.Bill read a second time.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jacqui Dean): I declare the House in committee for the consideration of the Oranga Tamariki Amendment Bill.