Goodhew Jo: Debate on Prime Minister’s StatementText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeGoodhew Jo: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement[Sitting date: 12 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1554. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon JO GOODHEW (Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector):As I rise and stand in the House and address it for the first time in this year I am going to do something that might cause alarm for those who are listening. I am going to tell a story from our 1-day caucus. I want to assure the members of this House that at our 1-day caucus about 10 days ago the mood of the members present was relaxed refreshed excited and ready to get on with the job of being in Government. Far be it from anyone listening in the House this afternoon to believe the rhetoric that we have just heard from the member opposite that there were any dull eyes at all because that was so far from the truth.As the Government prepares itself for the year ahead—a year after an overwhelming mandate on election day from the public of New Zealand a year in which we will need to get a lot of work done which is the nature of the year after an election—we will continue with the very four main priorities that we have set. They are the things that the public of New Zealand tell us are important to them. The people of Rangitata tell me that they want our economy to be stronger and more prosperous. They want the Government to responsibly manage the money we take off them in taxes. They want us to look at every single way we spend their taxpayer funding and make sure we are getting the best bang for every single buck because they could use it well themselves if we left it in their pocket.They want to know that we are using new ways to build a more competitive and productive economy. They know that the signs are good because we have told them that 80000 new jobs have been created in the last year. They know that the desire for employment reflects the confidence the people of New Zealand have in getting a job. They are seeking a job in ever-increasing numbers so we have engagement in the workforce that has never been seen before. That is a very good sign of confidence in New Zealand. We are delivering better public services and we have so many examples of that. We have examples where we have actually changed the goalposts because we have achieved them sooner than we thought we would.So far be it from there being any dull eyes on this side of the House—in fact there is an air of excitement. It is a tough job to get on and deliver to the public of New Zealand. I want to go through some things. Members may have heard these before but that is one thing about this side of the House: we have all got the same message for the public of New Zealand. We do not shy from that. If the public or the members of this House have heard it all before—that is just because we agree with each other. We like each other. And that is what makes this a strong National Government.The last of our four priorities I want to touch on is rebuilding Christchurch—a tough job. And still for many Christchurch residents there is a long way to go. But the National Government is not shirking from that. Tonight the people of Christchurch will celebrate with up to 1 billion viewers around the world the opening of the Cricket World Cup. What an honour to have that happening on the Mainland in Christchurch. After the House rises tonight I hope to make my way to Christchurch and enjoy that free event along with many other New Zealanders.I want to touch now on our economic plan and the way that that is actually influencing the lives of New Zealanders or Kiwis. The economy has grown by 3.2 percent in the year to September last year. That is one of the highest growth rates in the developed world. We do see headlines in papers around the world that tell us that others are envious of that and are asking how we are managing to achieve that. Average wages have increased by 15 percent over the past 5 years and they are forecast to continue to increase. Employment is growing. I have already touched on the 80000 new jobs over the last year and 217000 more people are employed than 5 years ago. It would be fair to say we had a real low as a nation with the global financial crisis the earthquakes and other disasters befalling the people of New Zealand but there are 217000 more jobs than 5 years ago.Brett Hudson: Strong recovery.Hon JO GOODHEW: That is a strong recovery. The cost of living increases are very low right now. Inflation is at just 0.8 percent for the 2014 calendar year. That is alongside the average weekly wage growth of 2.5 percent.Brett Hudson: So wages are growing faster than inflation.Hon JO GOODHEW: I know! It is funny—that does not seem to get discussed by the Opposition. Unemployment still remains lower than most other countries and we seem to be heading in the right direction in terms of the growth in jobs. The balance of payments deficit—well the difference between what New Zealand earns and spends around the world has narrowed to 2.6 percent of GDP. That is about a third of the deficit of 6 years ago—on track again. We are on track and working towards achieving a Budget surplus this year.Net Crown debt is going to fall to 20 percent of GDP by 2020 but we need to stick to the plan. That plan is to make sure we are careful with the public purse careful with the money the taxpayers of New Zealand pay into the Crown accounts and careful like a previous Government would not know how to be clearly from the way we have had to change things. Mortgage interest rates are now expected to stay lower for longer and more Kiwis than way way back are flocking back to New Zealand from Australia. Certainly what we saw under the previous Government was a flood of New Zealanders leaving. The seats of the whole of the Cake Tin would have been filled by the people who were going to Australia. New Zealand is in good shape and getting to be in better shape.I want to touch now on an announcement that my colleague the Hon Nathan Guy made today because there are still challenges here in New Zealand. Yes the milk payout is quite low and that has challenged dairy farmers to think about their budgets and to think about their inputs. Then we have today the declaration of a medium-scale adverse event due to the drought conditions on the East Coast of the South Island. Some people will say we have declared drought. We have not. I live there and the drought has been there for a while. In fact if we were going to declare drought we would have done it last year. To some in the Opposition apparently that is all you had to do to make it rain. Some people say all you have to do is have a cricket match locally and that will make it rain.The reality is that there has been already the rural support trust actively involved in supporting the farmers in the Rangitata and in the whole of the area affected by the dry. There has also always been the ability for people whose financial circumstances and income change to go to Work and Income and to apply for grants if need be. There has always been the ability for them to discuss with their accountant the change in circumstances and to negotiate changes to their Inland Revenue taxation. So what we have done now in declaring this is to give more money to the rural support trusts to assist the people who require it and also so that the people who are in really straitened circumstances have in their back pocket the ability to approach the Government for more help. So it is really a bit psychological in terms of its support of farmers. They will appreciate it. They do not have their hands out to the taxpayers of New Zealand saying “Help us out.” willy-nilly. We are having a rough year. It is a very hard thing for farming families to ask for help—a very hard thing indeed—but the Minister for Primary Industries has made the right call today.I want to finish on an issue that is close to my heart. My colleague the Hon Jonathan Coleman is taking obesity very very seriously. In my role as the Minister for Food Safety I can say that we are doing our bit as well. Back in July last year New Zealand adopted voluntary labelling by food companies with the Health Star Rating system. That allows the public of New Zealand when they see one of these Health Star Rating labels to identify the nutritional value of packaged foods.David Shearer: How many companies do it?Hon JO GOODHEW: Eight companies have already—Iain Lees-Galloway: Eight—eight! Oh my goodness!Hon JO GOODHEW: It may shock those opposite that Foodstuffs and Progressive Enterprises are pretty big. The members opposite were complaining about it not too long ago. Those companies have said that 500 products of theirs will be on the shelf with their new labels having finished with their old labels by the end of this year. So members opposite may be very surprised to know that this is a good news story. This is good news. This is actually this Government addressing obesity.Iain Lees-Galloway: Do you get a manual? You need a manual just to read the flaming label you’ve made it so complicated.Hon JO GOODHEW: It is not complex at all but it may be for the members opposite. I am happy to give the members opposite a briefing about how simple it is if they need some help. But the industry uptake has been excellent. This is something with Australia and New Zealand working together and it is an exciting way of addressing obesity. Thank you.