Wood MichaelHon MICHAEL WOOD (Minister of Transport): Talofa lava Mr Speaker. I'm very pleased to be able to speak on Budget 2021 a Budget that is focused on securing our recovery. Along with members on this side of the House I am enormously proud of the progress that New Zealand has made over the last year as we have faced the unprecedented challenge of COVID-19. Budget 2021 which as I say is about securing our recovery is about building on the hard work of New Zealanders it's about building a strong economy and it's about making sure that we bring all New Zealanders along with us. I want to talk about each of those things in turn in my contribution.Contrary to the enormous and extraordinary catastrophising of the previous speaker New Zealand is incredibly well positioned and there would be few people around the world who would not wish that their country was performing as well as New Zealand has performed over the last year. Budget 2021 continues to make the investments to make sure that we build on that hard work and sacrifice and to ensure that we keep New Zealanders safe. That is our number one priority. So while it is all very well for members of the Opposition to stand up and proclaim as we have just heard that the borders should be thrown open because we need some kiwifruit picked and apparently it's too hard to train New Zealanders this is a Government that says that we will put the health and the wellbeing of New Zealanders first. And that has not only served New Zealand so well in terms of making sure that we are topping the global league charts in terms of our resilience against COVID-19; the number one thing—the number one thing—that is supporting our economic recovery and that is supporting small businesses across New Zealand is this Government's work and our country's work our team of 5 million's work to keep COVID out and this Government will continue to stand by those policies and continue to keep Kiwis safe. But in Budget 2021 we have continued to put the investments in—$1.5 billion in Budget 2021 to make sure that all Kiwis have the opportunity to receive a free and safe COVID vaccine and that programme is rolling out now. It is an incredibly important part of securing our recovery.Building a strong economy is an important focus of Budget 2021. Again I note the previous member's catastrophising and negativity. It's simply extraordinary that as we stand here 18 months into a global pandemic—a global pandemic—New Zealand has an unemployment rate of 4.7 percent amongst the lowest in the OECD and lower than the point it got to under the so-called rock star economy of the previous Government. Growth projected to be 3.5 percent over the next three years—higher than virtually any of our trading partners. A path towards managing down our debt to sustainable levels. I want to acknowledge the Minister of Finance Grant Robertson who's done an extraordinary job of bringing these things together to offer a stable economic platform to secure our recovery. But there are important investments in here because unlike that other side of the House who all see it in the negative this is a Government that believes that by investing in New Zealand and New Zealanders we build the platform for future growth prosperity and fairness for all Kiwis.That's why in Budget 2021 there is a record $57 billion of investment in infrastructure over the next four years. This is the infrastructure Government that is investing in infrastructure right across our country. As Minister Radhakrishnan said so eloquently quoting Joseph Stiglitz Doing double duty." Investing in our schools so we have people put to work in upgrading important infrastructure in our education system to deal with growth but at the same time giving our kids the high-quality modern classrooms that will support their learning. Huge investment in the health system. The rebuild of Dunedin Hospital and many others around our country that were underdone under-invested in for so many years under that previous Government. And in this Government through that investment we are creating jobs and we will deliver the First World health services that all Kiwis deserve.I would be remiss not to mention the investment in free trades training for over 100000 young Kiwis to get into apprenticeships. If we want to talk about investing in the future if we want to talk about investing in a more productive economy that's where the investment needs to go. That was let go by that previous Government who said "Leave it to the market. They'll take care of it." This is a Government which does believe that Government has an important part to play in partnering with the public sector in making sure that we invest in the training and skills of young Kiwis to make sure that they get into good sustainable jobs and support our growth in the future. I'll repeat that figure: 100000 young New Zealanders who have now got hope who've got skills who've got training who are able to contribute—100000 since July last year into apprenticeships and that will continue to be supported through Budget 2021.I said before that as well as building on our hard work and as well as building a strong economic platform Budget 2021 is about bringing all New Zealanders along with us. We are determined that this will not be a Government that—in our response to a global economic crisis in getting ourselves out of that—will leave the vulnerable of our country behind. We have seen that happen before. That is what happened in 1991 when the other side of this House had the Treasury benches and we saw hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders plunged into poverty and despair because of their instinctive response to cut the support that the most vulnerable in our country needs.Contrary to that our Government sees that investing in our people is the way to take our country forward economically and socially because it is the right thing to do. That's why I was so very proud of the work of my good friend the Hon Carmel Sepuloni the Minister for Social Development in having the courage and doing the mahi to make sure that we got to the point of being able to reverse those disastrous cuts that were put into place on our most vulnerable in 1991. That is lifting the living standards and just giving a little bit of hope and light into the lowest income New Zealanders.There was one other policy that the Minister for Social Development announced through Budget 2021 that really speaks to the difference between the vision and the humanity between the two sides of the House and that was the restoration of the training incentive allowance. Sometimes in this House the word "ideology" is thrown around like it's a bad thing. I don't actually hold to that I actually support people who have a coherent ideological vision whatever that is. If you can put some ideas together have a vision that's linked together and works well together then I respect you for that even if I disagree with it. But there are few policies that were more spiteful and more stupid than the destruction of the training incentive allowance under the National Party and their previous leader Paula Bennett. A policy that gave people on benefits the ability to get into higher education supposedly to do all of the things that members on that side of the House consistently lectures them that they're supposed to be doing and here is a policy that actually gives practical support to make that happen—lifts people out of poverty lifts their life prospects gets them into work and contribution and that side of the House took away the rungs of the ladder. On this side of the House we were proud to put that ladder back together for people by restoring the training incentive allowance.I really should say a few words about transport in respect of Budget 2021 as well because there was so much in there. This was a Budget which made further progress in terms of restoring a resilient and reliable rail network—and on that side of the House there are few things that they hate more than investment in New Zealand's rail system. The other thing in the Budget that I'm so proud of is investment in fair and decent conditions for New Zealand workers through fair pay agreements and I'm very proud of the Budget for making investments in both of those things. Rail under the previous Government was left to rack and ruin in a state of managed decline assets stripped by the vultures that were let in in the era of privatisation in the 1990s. This Government which has a nation-building vision for rail in New Zealand is very proud of the $1.3 billion of investment that we have put in. It is so important in terms of reaching our climate change obligations. Last year 119 out of 120 members of this House stood up and declared a climate emergency and I take my hat off to every member across the House who did. This is a Government which is now actually doing something about it and the investment in our rail system is an important part of that. Every year KiwiRail takes the equivalent of 27000 trucks off New Zealand's roads by moving freight efficiently around our country. We stand for an integrated freight network in which we bring road rail and coastal shipping together to get freight around our country efficiently and in which we reduce carbon emissions. That investment alongside the $85 million in the Hillside Workshops is one of which we are very proud. That investment will create jobs it will create skills it will really help to take the Otago and Dunedin economies ahead and create much greater resilience in our rail system. As I said this is a Budget which is about securing New Zealand's recovery it's about building on the hard work and the sacrifices of New Zealanders over the last 10 years it's about making sure we have a strong economic platform and it's about making sure that we bring people along with us. This is a Budget in the proudest of Labour traditions and it ensures that we all move forward as a country together. While that side of the House is focused in its desperate and divided state on pitting New Zealanders against each other this Budget is one that takes us forward together. I commend it to the House."