Willis NicolaNICOLA WILLIS (National): This week an unusual thing happened in this Parliament. I together with National Party leader Judith Collins stood on a stage with the Minister of Housing Megan Woods and the Minister for the Environment David Parker zooming in. The question has to be asked: why did that unusual thing happen? It happened because Judith Collins and our caucus are motivated by strong values and we exist in the National Party to defend those values. We believe in a property-owning democracy; in ambition success individual freedom and choice; personal responsibility; competitive enterprise; rewards for achievement; strong families; caring communities; and limited Government. It is those values that led us this week to support bold action on housing because we cannot stand by while a generation gives up on the aspiration of home ownership. We cannot stand by while Government red tape and regulation constrains much-needed development. We cannot stand by while New Zealand families are robbed of the freedom and personal security that only affordable homes can provide. We have watched in despair while Labour has attempted all sorts of things to address the housing emergency—banning foreign buyers promising KiwiBuild homes imposing new taxes. None of it has worked. The problems have only got worse and through all of this National has consistently argued that to address our housing problems we must reform the Resource Management Act we must get the red tape out of the way we must allow land to be used for housing. That is why Judith Collins wrote to the Government in January and said We are here to help." I believe that it was the desire to receive that help that motivated Ministers Woods and Parker to write back in June and say "Please help us with these proposals."And that is what we did. I want to thank the Government for the work we did together to come up with a set of proposals that create a genuine right to build that strengthen the property rights of existing property owners that both enable large development on the edge of growing cities and enable but not require denser development in our major cities. The proposals we announced this week take power away from town planners and give it back to the people they serve. Yes it is not a silver bullet—it will not wipe every tear from every eye—but it is a step forward. And to those who say "I just want a home and garden. I don't want a townhouse." I say to you: no one will take your home and garden away; we're going to keep building those. And to those who say "But there is special heritage that must be protected." I say there are still provisions to allow that heritage to be protected. And to those who say "Development needs to be sensible." I say there are still going to be limits for how much of the site can be covered and how high the buildings can be and how far they must be set back. But finally to those thousands of New Zealanders who say to the members of this Parliament every week "I need the choice to be able to buy an affordable home." I say to them: the proposals we have put forward this week will give you far more choices in the future.I started this speech quoting Keith Holyoake who spoke of our party's aspiration for a property-owning democracy. Let me finish with the words of our party's first leader Adam Hamilton who said "Every encouragement should be given to those who give their best to provide for the needs of their own household. And it is by the development of the private citizen exercising his or her fullest freedom and responsibility that any State becomes great." The policies put forward this week encourage those who work hard save hard and who want to have a stake in our economy through homeownership and that is why we stood on stage with the Government this week.The debate having concluded the motion lapsed."