Hereora Dave: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Hereora Dave: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
[Volume:606;Page:3410] 
DAVE HEREORA (NZ Labour) 
: 
 E tu ahau ki te mihi ki a tatou no reira tena koutou. 
[ 
I rise to extend a greeting to you all: greetings. 
] 
It is with pleasure that I contribute to this debate and support the comments delivered yesterday by the Minister of Maori Affairs in support of the Prime Minister’s statement. The Maori economy is frequently presented as being a drag on the New Zealand economy but that is just a myth. The Maori economy paints a very different picture from that. The Maori economy is robust enjoys strong growth and is poised for continued expansion. Obviously it faces its share of structural challenges. No economy can shrug off the burdens of history without considerable effort and hard work. However it is exciting in itself that we can now meaningfully speak of financial accounts that contribute 1.4 percent to New Zealand’s economy. Further positive development of the Maori economy will continue to boost our country’s overall growth rate. More importantly the future of both economies critically depends on an ongoing improvement in Maori capital.  
Culturally self-determined development has the potential to widen the horizons and lift the aspirations of many Maori. The Government is contributing to that potential. This Government is committed on a path beyond our expectation with supportive legislation as the hallmark to foster and manifest that self-determined development in the Maori economy. Ultimately it is good to know that the Maori economy is alive active robust and contributing to the growth of our nation. That is why consultation with Maori the new Maori Television Service and the development of legislation to implement the fisheries allocations are all important. That is why we have completed more treaty settlements and the passage of legislation that effects them.  
Maori are shrugging off historic negativities and are moving on. Was it not a wonderful opportunity that our nation could enjoy the excitement of Waitangi Day—an opportunity that we could enjoy collectively as one nation? I recall an article labelled “Bill English flags Maori seat U-turn” which suggested that National might be ready to withdraw its support for the Maori seats in Parliament. Why is that? The article stated it is “… to better fit with its theme of one standard of citizenship for all New Zealanders.”  That is obviously a U-turn on National’s previous stance that the Maori seats in Parliament should stay until Maori no longer want them.  
The Leader of the National Party just travels from one disaster to another. After all he has already endorsed this Labour Government as a three-term Government beyond 2005. I say to that member that we have a campaign manager and he did not get axed at the following election. We on the Government side of the House are very clear that when the Leader of the Opposition rears to his feet—it is obvious that it happens every time—his entire caucus drops their heads. Why is that? It is because they have lost confidence. There is no direction and only archaic rhetoric. In the absence of real policy and direction it is a case of picking on the Maoris again.  
I have some advice for the Nats. We all know that this will happen; it is just a matter of time. The hammer is about to fall. But before it does National should consider this: it has a Maori member from Tuwharetoa who comes from an iwi well respected for its authority and future thinking. Georgina te Heuheu should be elevated in seniority within the party not demoted. She has done the hard yards and possesses leadership qualities. National members should nominate her as their next leader instead of the ghost from the past Dr Brash. This Government is committed to ensuring Maori representation in Parliament and it has further enhanced that representation with the passing of the Local Government Act. This is a committed Government.  
I turn to the crisis over Iraq and particularly to resolution 1441. Our Government along with the people of New Zealand is peace loving. We are a peace-loving nation. Wherever possible we practise and exercise the values of peace especially in the international arena. We are committed to being proactive on disarmament issues internationally. We hold a strong view in favour of a diplomatic solution and we hope for that outcome.  
We will continue to provide a stable Government with strong leadership. There is no reason for complacency or self-satisfaction. We have set ourselves top goals to achieve over the next 3 years and into the longer-term future. Our aim is to build and sustain solid levels of economic growth and to fund good public services and infrastructure sustainably. We are implementing smart active policies to encourage and facilitate growth and development. New Zealand over the past year has been one of the OECD’s star performers with average annual growth for the year to September coming in as we have heard all day at 3.9 percent. The unemployment rate has fallen to 4.9 percent down from 5.4 percent for the September 2002 quarter. Employment levels have been growing for the past 10 quarters.  
Many initiatives have been taken in line with the growth and innovation framework to strengthen the economy’s capacity to grow and we will continue to build on them this year. We have rejected the discredited direction of the 1990s and we will work to offer more opportunity security and a better quality of life for all New Zealanders. Work is under way on policy to improve the support for low-income families and to provide further assistance for families to move into employment and to build better futures for themselves and their children. This year’s Budget will see us take the first steps in the change process with further major changes being planned for the 2004 Budget.  
Last week our OECD report covering the situation of young people made for grim reading. Some of it was out of date and in respect of youth offending the report was inaccurate as we have heard today. The Agenda for Children and the Youth Development Strategy Aotearoa both released last year provide clear direction on the way forward. The challenge now is to get a coordinated approach across the Government agencies and to work efficiently with non-governmental organisations. Our children and young people deserve to grow up in supportive families with adequate incomes to have secure homes to have their health and education needs met to live lives free from violence and crime and to be able to fulfil their potential as human beings.