SpeechFLETCHER TABUTEAU (Deputy Leader—NZ First): Tēnā koe Mr Speaker. Ko Ngongotahā tōku maunga ko Rotorua tōku moana ko Waeteti tōku awa ko Ngāraranui ko Rangiwewehi ko Ngāti Whakaue ōku hapū. Ko Te Arawa tōku iwi. Kia ora whānau. Kia ora. [Ngongotahā is my ancestral mountain Rotorua is my ancestral lake Waeteti is my ancestral river. Ngāraranui Rangiwewehi and Ngāti Whakaue are my subtribes. Te Arawa is my tribe. Hello family. Hello.]I think that's the first time I've ever said that in this House and I'm proud to do so with my whānau and my friends above in the gallery here tonight. I want to firstly as appropriate acknowledge the passing of our elders those who cannot be with us here this afternoon and in doing so I acknowledge the 93-year journey that Te Puia the Māori Arts and Crafts Institute has taken to get to this moment ināianei. Actually as I've said before both to acknowledge Sir Apirana Ngata and to describe the mahi that we have undertaken to get to this point I quote our venerable elder: Tēnā ka hāere tonu. Ā te wā ka taea ka mau." [That will go on. In time it is possible hold strong.]That simply speaks about perseverance and the journey that we undertake to be here today: persevere and you will get to your destination. Keep at it keep at it because I think it was Sir Robert Muldoon who first aired the thought—I think Minister you spoke about this in your address. He first aired the thought that "Actually wouldn't it be a good idea to put this institution back in the hands of the whenua in Te Arawa our people?" Today it is my pleasure to stand here as a member of Parliament a humble humble Rotorua boy to speak in this House—[Interruption]—they know it; they know it and they can't deny it—to acknowledge the mahi that those in the gallery have undertaken but also to acknowledge the Minister and to acknowledge my cousin Tāmati Coffey. I said that last time bro and we still haven't figured out what the connections are but I know—I know. I just want to give this a bit of context because it's not all about joy. It wasn't that long ago that I was in Te Puia talking about the struggle facing our whānau the staff the management and the board of Te Puia in response to COVID-19. So we have to acknowledge the timing of this announcement today in our House in this Parliament. Could we call it an irony? I would say to this House that it is the best time—it is the best time—for this Parliament to be handing back this institution this taonga to the people of Te Arawa because the people in the gallery and the members below know that the future is bright. The future is bright not only for the people of Te Arawa but for those who have undertaken the mahi in Te Puia. I don't want to name names but when I was there on that day it was actually heartbreaking because there were people in tears because hard decisions had to be made about our people and "What does this institution do now?" It was heartbreaking to talk to the leadership and to the hapū who were present on that day about "What does the future look like?" but actually I'm also proud to say this Government understood what the challenges were and that this taonga of Aotearoa could not be left to fall by the wayside. The Government of this day talks about a taonga that is more than the sum of its parts. It talks about spillover benefits. If there was an icon in New Zealand that we could all agree on and that we all do agree on in our kōrero today it is Te Puia. It is more than the sum of its parts. It is about our Māori culture. It is about our heritage. It is about our learnings. It is about the future of the Reo and our people. But for Rotorua and for New Zealand it is a taonga and a treasure and that icon that we must celebrate and tautoko which we have done so that we can move forward as a nation not just as a people. I have taken foreign Ministers dignitaries into the heart of Rotorua and actually into the institution which I only just found out recently was designed as a thought in terms of replacing the destroyed Pink and White Terraces. I didn't know that that was the genesis of the Māori arts and crafts kōrero. So can I say to the people of Rotorua and the people of Aotearoa that it has achieved its mandate. It is an attraction that brings actually—I don't think it's an exaggeration to say—millions of people to New Zealand. We know millions of international tourists go through Rotorua and I know the majority of them go through our Māori Arts and Crafts Institute—through Te Puia. So to be able to stand up here today to acknowledge these difficult times but also to acknowledge the celebration of this hand-over and to acknowledge the tangata whenua to acknowledge Te Arawa and to acknowledge the people who have worked so hard to make sure that we can all be here today on this historic day in this Parliament is a testimony to everyone in this room and to those who have come before us who couldn't be with us today. This is a celebration—I say selfishly—for me but it is a celebration for this Parliament and for Te Arawa. For that it is a privilege to be able to stand in this House and support this iconic and important piece of legislation to the House and tautoko what we have achieved here today. Kia ora tātou. Kia ora whānau."