Pillay Lynne: Budget Debate 
Pillay Lynne: Budget Debate 
[Volume:608;Page:5862] 
LYNNE PILLAY (NZ Labour—Waitakere) 
: 
 I am very proud of this Government’s achievements and I am very proud of this year’s Budget. This is a Budget that is forward-thinking. This is a Budget that builds on a series of initiatives in health education housing law and order and employment. This is a Budget that invests in our future and this is a Budget that delivers to New Zealanders. At 4.4 percent our growth rate is one of the highest in the OECD. However this year we as a nation have faced much turmoil and uncertainty such as the war in Iraq and the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic. The prediction is that growth will drop back to 2.2 percent next year then rebound to 3.2 percent the following year. It is still well above the OECD average. 
Let us look at this Budget and what it means for the people I represent—the people of Waitakere. In Waitakere there are waiting lists for State houses. Our Government’s restoration of income-related rents has made a State house an affordable place to live again. I ask members to compare that with the harsh market rents of the previous National Government. Sadly that Government’s agenda was about flogging off State houses at a shocking rate—13500 in the 1990s taking opportunities and housing away from those who most need it. 
 In this Budget the Government has committed to the purchase of another 318 State houses over and above the 2393 already planned. That is good for Waitakere and good for New Zealand. Waitakere is one of our country’s fastest-growing younger cities. It is innovative and vibrant. We are investing in our young people. We are boosting funding to great organisations like Youthline. We are investing big time in combating youth suicide and drug abuse. We are increasing funding for two specialist police teams to bust methamphetamine labs—$6.6 million to fight one of the biggest threats to the health well-being and safety of communities like Waitakere. I welcome in Waitakere the reinstatement of community constables in both Titirangi and Glen Eden. Cops in the street and on the beat! 
We are investing in families through the newly established Families Commission promoting positive parenting. Under this Budget parenting support family-violence programmes and improved community-based services will receive an additional $42.5 million. Young people need a good start in life. This is a Government that recognises that. The boost in early childhood funding will benefit our hard-working families both parents and children by a whopping extra $55 million over the next 4 years. Waitakere schools have been winners. Operational funding increases and boosts in teacher numbers will ease workload and staffing pressures. They will make our great Waitakere schools even greater. I commend this Government for its investment in the Gateway programme in schools. Waitakere has a number of schools already engaged in the Gateway programme. This is a real success story—a major success story—for our young people. By 2007 no less than nine secondary schools in Waitakere City will be part of that programme. 
It is great to be in Government. It is so fantastic to talk to our young people. We are MPs who get out and talk to the people in our electorates. That is why we win our seats. However it is fantastic to talk to our young people their parents and their teachers and to hear the results. Our kids are getting experience while at school. They are entering jobs that they know they like and know they want because they have been given the opportunity to learn about them and try them while they are at school. The same rate of success has been seen over and over in the Modern Apprenticeships scheme. There were so many botch-ups by the Opposition when it was in Government but scrapping the Apprenticeship Act had to be the worst. That ruthless silly silly action cost this country big time. We lost untold skills that we needed so much in our manufacturing industries and just as important so many of our young people lost their hopes and aspirations for their future. But we have fixed that. That hope has been restored. The Modern Apprenticeships scheme is growing and thriving. In Waitakere over a third of young people on that scheme are involved in the boat-building industry. I know that the $56 million package to get all 15 to 19-year-olds into education training and work and the $84 million over 4 years that is committed to the Industry Training Fund which our Government established will be celebrated by young people their parents teachers business and manufacturing in Waitakere. 
Our community is getting healthier. Waitakere is leading the charge with private health organisations. Two public health organisations serve most of our electorate. From 1 October they will be able to charge low fees to all patients under 18. That will be extended in the next year with the aim of 40 percent of the population receiving low-cost primary health care by the end of 2004. Beat that! This Government has spent more on health than ever before—20 percent of our funding. We are spending it wisely. We know that primary health care is an investment not a cost. Waitakere City is rich in its people and its myriad of cultures. To attend a citizenship ceremony in Waitakere City is a real buzz. It is always entertaining and always inclusive. We recognise the importance of all citizens having the ability to reach their full potential. 
I commend organisations in my electorate: tangata whenua Waitakere Multicultural Society the Waitakere Indian Association Pacific Forum  
Now 
 Waipareira Trust and many many more who work together to make sure that all our cultures feel welcomed and valued. I am pleased that we have committed over $20 million to assist migrants and refugees into settlement and employment. Those policies are paying off. I am heartened that Waitakere has played its part in beating unemployment. We are up there—down from 2792 in 2000 to 2226 in 2003. Those achievements do not happen by chance and they certainly do not trickle down. They happen because funding and policies were in place to make them happen. This is a Government with a good heart. This is a Budget that is smart responsible and forward thinking and so is this Government.