Simpson ScottHon SCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel): Thank you very much Madam Speaker. Look I've been listening with close attention to the speeches in this debate because there are some things in politics and the body politic of our Parliament and indeed our society that are in many respects above the mere day-to-day cut and thrust of the rough and tumble of political debate in the Parliament and in society. The way that we care for and look after and protect and enhance for future generations the Hauraki Gulf I think is one of those areas where there should be more unanimity and commonality of thought and spirit than often there is.I've got the pleasure and honour of being the member of Parliament for Coromandel. It is I think the electorate that has the longest coastal boundary around the Hauraki Gulf. It goes from the Auckland side of the Firth of Thames Miranda Kaiaua around the base of the firth up the Thames coast around the top at Colville and Port Jackson Port Charles down the eastern seaboard of the Coromandel Peninsula past Whangamatā down to Waihī. Now many people have a mental picture of Hauraki Gulf as somehow finishing at the top of the Coromandel Peninsula. It's a common misconception; it actually moves around the eastern seaboard of the peninsula and that is an important part of the gulf area.All the environmental indicators relating to the gulf deteriorating are not in dispute. That is not contested in any way shape or form. The science is undeniable the data is undeniable: the gulf is in a rapidly degrading position. And that's simply not acceptable to us as current New Zealanders and our current generation; it's not acceptable for the future that we would want to have for generations that will follow us both in this place and as users and recreators and people who want to enjoy the beauty of the gulf.Now that said this piece of legislation as my colleagues in the National Party have already indicated we're going to support it. We supported it at first reading. We do so primarily to encourage submitters to let us hear what they have to say. We want to know what the NGOs have to say and we want to know what the recreational the cultural and the commercial fishers have to say about the proposals that are established in this bill because it's not perfect: there are some enormous challenges yet to confront and there are some challenges that are going to mean that there will be angst and conflict and heartache for some people who are used to having done things in the gulf on the gulf and under the gulf for generations. But change is required and that is going to require some give and some take from pretty much everybody that engages and interacts with the gulf in whatever way shape or form that they currently do. But change is required.So as the member of Parliament for Coromandel I want to hear for instance from recreational fishers particularly those who are feeling very concerned about the potential for highly protected areas to be established around the Aldermen Islands for instance for the extension of marine reserves and the impacts that might have on what they see as their recreational rights privileges and traditional opportunities to fish recreationally on that side of the peninsula. And I know that many of them are very exercised but I want them to channel that energy into making submissions to the select committee.Now this piece of legislation won't pass in this Parliament. We have only one more day of sitting before the Parliament is dissolved and this Parliament ceases to be and the new Parliament will be formed after the general election in October and it will be up to the new Environment Committee and the new Parliament and the new Government to decide what actions are taken in regard to this piece of legislation—whether it's going to be modified amended changed or whatever. So that is a challenge for the next Parliament and the next Environment Committee to grapple with.But these are meaty weighty heavy gnarly issues that require considered opinion that require the use of science and data and information rather than just emotional gut instinctive responses that may not necessarily be well founded in science or data. So this piece of legislation we are supporting—but we want to hear from and engagement from as wide a range of people organisations stakeholders and people who are interested in the gulf.Now the gulf is acknowledged widely as being the most intensely recreated piece of marine space in our entire marine area in our exclusive economic zone for that matter—our entire territorial marine space. It is an emotional piece of water that is held dear to so many New Zealanders but we want to make sure that this piece of legislation combined with the announcement that the Government in its dying gasping last few days has made earlier this week in relation to bottom trawling and the various options that are proposed for it—we want to make sure that actually they're not just moving an issue from one part of the gulf to another part of the gulf. And I want to explain a little bit about that. Because of the options that the Government has presented for consultation in terms of bottom trawling it seems to me on first glance that actually all that does potentially is remove bottom trawling from the inner parts of the gulf and then potentially push out that practice to other areas of the gulf and that would mean by definition particularly around the eastern seaboard of the Coromandel Peninsula. Now if that's the case then that simply is not acceptable. That simply is not acceptable to people from the Coromandel or people who want to visit and take the opportunity to fish around the Coromandel. That is just moving one problem to another part of the gulf because the law of unintended consequences kicks in and that will be something that I think will actually have a detrimental effect and a negative perverse outcome rather than solving anything that is going to be long-term beneficial.And then when combined with the potential for more commercial activity in the outer part of the gulf—because the inner part of the gulf has been closed off so to speak to bottom trawling under the options that the Government is proposing—that then adds further interest and weight to issues relating to the marine protected areas; the highly protected areas the marine reserves that are going to be extended and so forth. It's a double whammy for those people who have a particular focus on the eastern seaboard of the Coromandel Peninsula and I don't think this Government has really given any due consideration to those aspects and I don't think that they have given thought or consideration beyond what happens at the top of the Coromandel Peninsula and what happens on the eastern seaboard. I would urge them to take those views into account carefully because those people do have opinions strong opinions and I'm very happy to represent those opinions in this House and will continue to do so.So this is a subject that is complicated and has a myriad of issues to address and confront many of which actually are related to what happens on the land as much as what happens in the marine space: issues of sedimentation biodiversity degradation the diminishing of seabird numbers whale and dolphin numbers around the gulf. These are matters that are highly important and valuable to so many New Zealanders and so many people who use and recreate and enjoy the gulf. And to simply push out from the inner gulf to an outer gulf situation—I don't think solves the problem. I think it requires a far more detailed thought process and after six years for this Government to be finally in its dying gasping days of administration just throwing this piece of legislation out I think is frankly a massive cop out. But there you go.We're going to support it to select committee we want to engage with people we want to hear what they have to say and my invitation to people not only on the eastern seaboard of the Coromandel Peninsula but other parts of my beautiful electorate—and indeed other people who have an interest from wherever they may be in relation to the Hauraki Gulf—is that I want to hear from them and the National Party wants to hear from them. So we endorse this piece of legislation with reservations.