Smith StuartSTUART SMITH (National—Kaikōura): Thank you Mr Speaker. Well I'd like to start by actually acknowledging the great work—that Labour have finally come to the realisation that vaccinations are important. It may be nine months too late—certainly hope it's not too late. It's certainly nine months later than it should have been. They were slow to order the vaccines slow to get it approved and then they delayed the roll-out of the vaccine.Kieran McAnulty: Not true!STUART SMITH: It is absolutely true and it's a shame—it's a shame. But look they've come to it now and good on Peeni Henare and Kiritapu Allan for encouraging whānau to get out there and get vaccinated. I think that's a very good message and one that we have been promoting for nine months at least. But I want to go into another matter which I know you'll be very concerned about.Four weeks ago—just when we came back to Parliament—the Hon James Shaw said that he wouldn't come to Parliament because It would literally put lives at risk." Then a week later he said he was going to the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow. Now COP26 is a very important meeting—mind you all those COPs are important—but he's taking nine officials with him offshore.David Seymour: How many?STUART SMITH: Nine. That's from here. He's also taking five from overseas but there will be 10 people going over there. Isn't that going to put lives at risk as well?For your information Mr Speaker—I know you'll be interested in this—yesterday Scotland had 2870 cases of COVID. That's a hundred times more cases than we had four weeks ago when James Shaw made that statement. So these two things don't match up. That's about the same size population—they've got about 400000 or 500000 more people than we do in their population. You would think that's a hundred times more dangerous. James Shaw doesn't think that's important; I think it is. Now maybe he knows something I don't. But he hasn't old us that. All in this interim time was he actually advocating for a Zoom component of that COP meeting? It's a really important meeting. Maybe the lives weren't at risk. If they were then his first statement was shall we say not fulsome with the truth.SPEAKER: Order!STUART SMITH: Yes I heard you Mr Speaker.SPEAKER: No I think the member will withdraw.STUART SMITH: I withdraw and apologise. He told Newshub yesterday morning that he was 15000 on the list for a managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) space—15000 right? And we know that when it was opened up there were 25000 people in the queue for 3000 spaces. So does Mr Shaw seriously expect us to believe that he's planning a huge trip to COP in Glasgow and he's relying on the lottery to get spaces in MIQ for him and for the other nine officials that are going over with them? I don't think so. That is ridiculous. And then of course in the gallery presser before question time yesterday the Prime Minister dropped him completely in it because she was asked about this and she said "Well no the delegation will get priority through the national interest criteria." Did James Shaw not know about this? Did the other nine officials not know about this? I don't think so.And then when you look—not you Mr Speaker as I'm sure you will later on go and have a look on the website the MIQ website—that national special interest criteria is very strict. It's a minimum group of 20 people. So is James Shaw again not being fulsome? Are there actually going to be 20 people going to COP from here? Or is he just going to have 20 rooms? I don't know. But I know every other electorate MP in this House and I'm sure list MPs as well are getting emails from people desperate to get back to New Zealand desperate to get back to New Zealand for family reasons for compassionate reasons—deaths in families serious illnesses. People whose visas have run out are stuck overseas and they can't get back in; they can't get MIQ spaces. There are no spaces for them and yet James Shaw and nine officials and perhaps another 10 are going to take up valuable MIQ spaces that those people could have.I don't think that's good enough. I don't think he's thought about this. I think it's disrespectful to the people of New Zealand particularly those overseas with really heartrending stories—and I know; I have people sobbing on the other end of the phone trying to get an MIQ space. I think it's just disgraceful and he has to rethink his position—SPEAKER: Order! The member's time has expired.The debate having concluded the motion lapsed."