Mark RonHon RON MARK (Minister of Defence): I rise on behalf of New Zealand First to take a call on this bill. I only want to make a couple observations. It's interesting hearing the Opposition party debating against these changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA); it's interesting because when I look at some of the key targets the key objectives or the key concerns they've been around freshwater quality. Of course every party in this House on the hustings during the last election—every party in this House—stated their concern. In fact I remember sitting on select committees and the Local Government and Environment Committee and noting the determination of the then Minister the Hon Nick Smith to really attack the freshwater problem. I'm wondering in some way what has changed in his thinking? Maybe it's time out on the Opposition benches I don't know. Maybe it's a change in goals targets objectives expectations but it's interesting to hear the comment. I don't think there was one party in the House that opposed the view that we need to do something about our waterways. I do take on board and so does New Zealand First—and I know the Rt Hon Winston Peters has been at pains to make it clear—that this current debate that's been inflamed pitching urban against rural is unhelpful. I as a rural person who lives in the Wairarapa—born and raised there—worked on many farms owned by other people; got up as a child went to work on my horse to milk Mr Knox's cows down Konini way rode my horse back home after that was over. I'm very aware of the old farming practices as opposed to the new which we see so well demonstrated and lauded at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards that we see every year. There's some outstanding farmers out there who have implemented environmental plans on their farms that just absolutely astonish me. And yes there's a new generation of farmers who fully understand that they cannot go on farming in the old way that they have responsibilities as kaitiaki that if they are intergenerational farmers—I'm thinking right now of a good friend of mine who's currently the mayor of Carterton John Booth. Eight generations on that land—the eighth generation is growing up there now. They fully understand as a farming family their intergenerational responsibilities. They have implemented an environmental plan that factors in that need to preserve and protect the land so that it might continue to sustain their families long into the future as long as those families wish to continue to farm. I look at the Young Māori Farmer of the Year the Ahuwhenua cup. Every winner of the Ahuwhenua cup has been judged and measured against their delivery in terms of how they are reacting how they are working as responsible kaitiaki of the land to preserve and protect their land. Many of them have retired off vast tracts of land fenced them off and no longer farm those lands allowing the natural vegetation to regenerate itself and thereby provide a buffer zone and protection to the rivers. Why? Because they want to improve the quality of the water which is drawn to feed their stock and which they know their children and wider whanaunga will actually wish at some time to bathe fish and swim in. I guess the debate will always be made political and New Zealander will be pitched against New Zealander if there's some political advantage in doing that. That's just going to happen isn't it? I do I have and I will continue as a rural resident to serve to remind urban people that rather than focusing on the odd farmer who may not be complying with the code of conduct the behaviour that Fonterra has signed up to—rather than focusing on that one in 100 they should as good New Zealanders also go and look at their own rivers and streams and lakes and tributaries around their own cities. What I see when I go to Auckland quite honestly disgusts me. I look at the wheelie bins overflowing. Me and my partner Christine we're the couple that has one rubbish bag every five months—one rubbish bag every five months. We don't own a wheelie bin; we never will. We recycle. We employ every method that we can to ensure that what we consume what we buy into the house is able to be recycled or we don't buy it. I still get really frustrated with cosmetic products and I get very frustrated with pharmaceutical products because they seem to be packaged to hell and back and they are full of rubbish that should never even come into the country. We fight our own little battle. We have one rubbish bag per month. We're lifestylers. We have a small block of land. We do everything we can to protect our waterways because we don't want to live in a polluted environment ourselves and we do not want to bequeath that to our grandchildren. I've got 14 grandchildren.To have some people inflaming the urban-rural battle for political gain I just find a little distasteful actually. There are some incredibly good farmers out there who are leading the way. It might be a good thing if Federated Farmers got a whole bunch of urban people to come and see some of that magnificent work and understand it better.This Government has a responsibility to do things with the RMA. We sat here in the last term and listened to I think 20 hours of debate on National's fix it all" for the RMA and we opposed it. I think so too did Labour. I'm not sure—I can't recall—but I think the Greens may have as well. Some bits we could've gone with but overall the bill as a whole was a dog. Denis O'Rourke fought that bill valiantly and no one listened. If the last Government had adopted Denis O'Rourke's Supplementary Order Papers on behalf of New Zealand First it might've had a different result. We might've had a more workable piece of legislation. But the fact is this Government wants to deal with freshwater quality. There's a discussion document out there and we do not have a tin ear. Let me assure the rural communities that New Zealand First does not have a tin ear. We are listening because we understand this.I grew up in Pahīatua and Mangamuru. This is the home of Keith Jacka Holyoake. We understand that what was said then by Keith Jacka Holyoake is true today. The rural community is the backbone of this country's economy. Make no doubts about it the prosperity and wellbeing of this nation lies in the hands of our farming community. People should respect that. But we have some very real obligations and some very big challenges going forward and I know that the overwhelming majority of the farming community agrees that we need to deal with these things. Climate change adaption is an issue. Meeting people's needs with affordable housing is an issue.I'd just like the Opposition to put their hand up once and accept some responsibility. For nine years they brought in over 50000 immigrants a year—nine years bringing in a city the size of what Blenheim every year and expecting this country just to absorb that not comprehending understanding or willing to have a debate around the infrastructural stress and strain and dare I say it the environmental pressures that would come by increasing the population in this country with 50000 each year—each year; just by the numbers that were coming through the gate. So it'd be nice to hear some people put their hands up.I want to highlight in the closing moments a point of significance. Page two of the bill the exemptions for the Minister of Education and Minister of Defence: "In order to avoid a risk that unreasonable delays and costs are imposed on the development of Crown assets (including new State schools and defence facilities) the Bill restricts the ability to recommend or impose financial contribution conditions on any notices of requirement lodged by the Minister of Education or the Minister of Defence"—myself—"as a requiring authority."It's worth mentioning the reason why that is and it's important that we have a $2.1 billion State regeneration plan. There was a first-principles footprint review—real estate review—of the defence asset which is under way now. Defence have a need to have greater certainty about long-term planning in the interests of national security and there are some wider issues that I expect to come out of that first-principles review when it's completed in around September next year which will also I anticipate potentially have RMA implications. This is a first step—a first step in a journey. It's a practical step and a pragmatic step. I look forward to hearing the opposing views at select committee and thoroughly recommend the passage of this bill through its first reading onward to select committee on behalf of New Zealand First."