McClay ToddHon TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua): I rise with the National Party supporting this legislation and we do so knowing its importance but also the significant impact it will have on all New Zealanders for so very many years to come. The finance Minister in his intervention earlier said that this is about jobs—saving jobs—and about saving homes and National agrees with him. Indeed it's about giving certainty and surety to every single New Zealander and for them to know that this House stands beside them.I have some particular comments in a moment about the level of expenditure unprecedented for this House to take a decision on like this—the right decision. But before I do I want to recognise the thousands of New Zealanders who are working today and will work tomorrow and in the days to come during the shutdown to help others and to keep people safe and to keep them alive. I also want to recognise the parents and children of families who are scared and worried today who are challenged by uncertainty these days and weeks that they will see before us. To those who will work this House recognises them and thanks them and thanks them in advance for their many deeds of heroism that we will see and hear about in the weeks and months to come. And to those at home who are uncertain and distressed do know that we are with you. Collectively we can pull through this. Today Parliament has decided to also work quickly to agree the Government can spend up to $52 billion at least up to June of this year to keep the country going to keep people safe and to ensure that households are provided for. In a small part that's lifting the burden on so many New Zealanders who have questioned over the previous days exactly how they will provide for themselves. This is an unprecedented amount of money and it will have an effect upon every New Zealander—every New Zealander for decades to come. And I say to the finance Minister and I know he recognises this but it must be spent expeditiously but also responsibly to help New Zealanders knowing that it is they in future generations that will work hard to pay it back. The support will go to workers and to businesses large and small and when we talk about businesses we are talking about the people that work in those businesses that go home to their families every night to provide for them. It will provide for those who don't work and those who are no longer going to be able to work because their jobs won't be there. It will be spent to help our health system our police and security the supply chain and many other functions that we have had the luxury of taking for granted but in the coming period of time we'll have to work so hard to support.In health the focus must be on the health service but remember also mental health—those who are vulnerable and isolated. There will be so many New Zealanders who today are not sure how they will be able to function with so many changes. In law and order our police will be dealing with the everyday duties but an unprecedented amount of additional work and workload. These funds that we're spending on behalf of future generations must also be used for them. I'm particularly pleased that the support that has been announced previously has been expanded very quickly to help sole traders and the self-employed. It is important that we now see business and bank guarantees but I ask the finance Minister as we move forward to also consider the work that he's doing around rents and for landlords so we can lift that burden and there can be less uncertainty. I think all landlords will work with the Government and will look to look after their renters but it will be important that they too are given some certainty. We need to make sure that the funds to households are delivered quickly—so very very quickly—and people who will need the support must know that the emails the phone calls will be dealt with as fast as they can be. I receive reports from my community in Rotorua that this is happening but the workload I think will increase. The unemployment rate that we hear about which often feels like just a number on our televisions will no longer be that; it will be of our friends and our families and our neighbours who are no longer able to work—I fear that that rate will go to levels that few alive have ever known—and they need to know that this House will stand with them and work very hard to make sure that as we come through this as strongly as we can there will be a future.In tourism as my colleague Paul Goldsmith mentioned in Queenstown and Rotorua but all parts of New Zealand particularly my hometown electorate of Rotorua there are significant challenges. They will be with us for not months but years and years to come. We'll need to look at how we can rebuild industries like that and give people certainty: how to make sure that they have the work that they will require to provide for their families as quickly as they can. Mr Goldsmith has mentioned we need to as we move forward through this find projects in the wider community that can get under way very quickly. We no longer have the luxury—if it was a luxury—of waiting for years of planning and consents and so on to rebuild the country. The Opposition remains and stands ready to work with the Government to do these things. I ask the finance Minister to continue to engage widely with our banks and with our business community. They have the ability to help us get through this in a much stronger shape than we might need otherwise. He will have all of the wealth of officials available to him as we had when we were in Government and I thank them for their work. But those who actually are representing the businesses on the ground will have as much input and as much to offer as our officials do—in many cases actually probably much more than some of our officials. Can I finish by recognising as the finance Minister did the hard work of previous members of Parliament here: Michael Cullen Bill English and Steven Joyce collectively almost a decade in charge of the Government books and often through very very challenging—[Interruption] Two decades sorry almost two decades—I almost forgot one decade—of stewarding the Government books so that we are in a position to weather the storm better than we might have otherwise. The country as does this House owes all three of those men a debt of gratitude. I also want to recognise those who were responsible who worked every single day—Steven Joyce—for the leadership around the ultra-fast broadband programme that was rolled out in New Zealand. It means that actually we have a world-class communications infrastructure in New Zealand that will help people during the lockdown and the many months there afterwards. It's not actually just about the ability for our families our children to watch tonight Lightbox or Netflix; it actually means that in times when the cell phones have not worked as well as we need them to as we saw just earlier in the week data actually allows people to keep in touch and to continue to communicate. These are unprecedented times. This is an unprecedented amount of resource that the Opposition is joining with the Government to commit on behalf of New Zealanders. It is important that we support them—that they know that we are standing with them in these trying times that will be ahead. In the coming days and weeks and months it will be important as a House that we find ways to continue to work together to help rebuild the country. Thank you.