Tremain Chris: General Debate 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Tremain Chris: General Debate 
[Sitting date: 27 February 2013. Volume:687;Page:8248. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon CHRIS TREMAIN (Minister of Internal Affairs) 
: 
 I move  
That the House take note of miscellaneous business 
. The National-led Government is on a mission to lift jobs and lift economic growth. Today we saw the Minister for Economic Development roll out a new initiative: the sixth tranche of our Business Growth Agenda—lifting capital markets in this country. Long ago we heard the Opposition stop calling out for a plan on this economy because there is a clear plan on this side of the House and the sixth tranche was delivered today: capital markets growth. 
That sixth tranche of the wider growth package is a great initiative. What we have seen as part of that is again today the $60 million initiative from the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund another initiative that is part of that capital markets growth agenda. That particular lift will really help to fund new initiatives in this country. Raising the level of venture capital investment in innovative companies is going to be a huge focus going forward. We have seen investment from that fund of $117 million into 126 companies including Orion Health SLI Systems PowerbyProxi and Booktrack amongst a number of other amazingly innovative companies. 
What do we see on the other side of the House as we drive out this plan to lift growth and to lift wages? We see a yawning gap moving us further and further apart from Labour and the Greens as they oppose every initiative we bring to the House to lift jobs and growth—every initiative. Today in question time we saw a great example of that with Russel Norman once again opposing the film industry in this country and its opportunity for green growth. You would think that with the film industry they would be behind it. But no they are against that industry and against the growth that it is bringing. 
They are against tax changes that drive incentives for companies to invest. They are against major roading projects—projects that would increase the efficiency of our economy. They are opposed to free-trade agreements including the US free-trade agreement which could bring up to another $2 billion per annum into our economy. They are against Resource Management Act changes they are against the 90-day employment trials they are against work expectations for beneficiaries—go figure; they do not expect that beneficiaries should have to get out there and work—and they are against oil and gas exploration. But to cap it off the most amazing thing that the Green Party was against in New Zealand was Callaghan Innovation. It is against a high-growth institute aimed at lifting high-end manufacturers in this country. 
But where I really want to focus today is a detailed example of where the Greens are opposed to just about everything in this country. They came into the House last week criticising the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council for its opportunity to lift growth in the province of Hawke’s Bay—to lift jobs and economic growth. Here was a project that is also good for the environment. It is helping to move water from the aquifers to the dam and therefore increase the flow in the Tukituki River. To me that is a win-win. That is a green growth project which is bringing growth to the economy. There are 26000 additional hectares of irrigated land $250 million to $300 million more in exports and wins for the environment yet they are against it. They are against it because they felt that the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s debt was going to go through the roof from $15 million to $90 million. Well they cannot even read a balance sheet because at the same time as the debt was increasing equity was going up and assets were going up. It was a massive win for the economy. 
So I want to talk about that because on one side of the coin they want jobs and growth and on the other side of the coin they are saying: “Oh it can only be green growth.” Well actually our economy is dependent on our primary industries. That is where the first dollars in our economy are created day in day out. You are going to be able to get green growth at the high-tech end only if you have got a good strong primary economy. 
Actually the primary economy is exhibiting great examples of green growth all the time—excellent examples. It has some wonderful examples of what it is doing there. Take for example the dairy industry which came out last week with another initiative to improve its environmental footprint. What do those guys do? Oppose it—oppose it. That industry is trying to lift its footprint and they are trying to oppose it. They are against that. They are against dairy farmers. Everything they go against—they are opposed.