Little AndrewANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition): I want to acknowledge the Minister who has just spoken the Hon Simon Bridges and Stuart Smith. His stories of the marae—it has been one hell of a morning for him. Events like this—the earthquakes that we have seen in the last couple of days across New Zealand—are a test of our national character. As is always the case it is a bit about whether we as a nation will rise to the challenge of helping those who are suffering as a result of circumstances that are beyond their control. What we have seen in Kaikōura and further north in the South Island around Wellington and in other parts of New Zealand is a real test of the Kiwi spirit.The things that New Zealanders have done to reach out to each other to reach out to friends and neighbours and to reach out to tourists and travellers who are here as our guests have been absolutely amazing. I saw it myself on Monday morning during our brief evacuation—how Wellingtonians responded and offered a helping hand to all who were there. I think particularly of BizDojo here in Wellington a commercial premises. The staff did not have to open their doors. They happened to be around and about at 2 o'clock in the morning and they made their premises available to anybody in central Wellington who just needed a place to be with others and feel safe. They put on coffee and they put on snacks and it was a very nice thing to do.It shows that when New Zealanders are up against it we have a sense of determination and of resourcefulness but also we never lose our sense of kindness and compassion. We have seen that during that night and on Monday morning and throughout the day and yesterday as well. What New Zealanders have done for each other and to each other over the last couple of days has been absolutely fantastic and when New Zealanders are just looking for safety and security in a time of need this experience tells us they do not have to go very far. Even Parliament itself here Mr Speaker—no doubt under your mandate—opened its doors early on Monday morning to offer refuge and solace to those living nearby when they needed it most. We are a country and a people who look after each other and look out for each other and we should be very proud of that. It is one thing to rise to the challenge of the circumstances of the day—when the adrenaline is pumping and the circumstances are novel we are motivated by the height of our compassion to make sure our neighbours and friends are all OK—but there is a longer-term challenge that we have to rise to and Simon Bridges the Minister who spoke just now spelt out some of them. They are: what does the future look like? How are we going to rise to that challenge? What are we going to do to make sure that our road and rail linkages are safe and secure for the future? What are we going to do for the community of Kaikōura? There are people there who when they get over the adrenaline rush of the last few days and the travellers have gone—when they have been evacuated—are going to be faced with decisions about what they do their business' futures and their families' and homes' futures.That is when the support of the community of all New Zealand is going to be needed most and when the support of the Government is going to be needed most as well. Let us make sure in the days and weeks and months that follow that we learn from the lessons of the past and there are no lessons stronger than those that have come out of the Canterbury earthquakes. Let us make sure that the Earthquake Commission and the insurance companies are working with each other hand in glove not against each other at the expense of those who just want to get their insurance claims settled. Let us make sure that those who are charged with doing the rebuilding and doing the repairs do a quality job. Let us work to the principle of Do it once and do it right". That will ease a lot of people's anxiety.We cannot get over the fact that we are a country prone to earthquakes. Sir Geoffrey Palmer put it like this once upon a time. He said: "Sometimes it does us a power of good to remind ourselves that we live on two volcanic rocks where two tectonic plates meet in a somewhat lonely stretch of windswept ocean just above the Roaring Forties." Add to that his description of New Zealand as a "pluvial nation" and we get an idea of the nature of the environmental and natural hazards and risks that we face. We are that nation. That is who we are and earthquakes are a reality for this great country of ours.The challenge for us—actually as somebody put it to me the other day in Kaikōura when I visited and I asked him about it: "These earthquakes are the price that we pay for being in the most beautiful country in the world." Let us make sure that we are a safe and beautiful country that we look after each other and that we look after the buildings and those things that are there to make us work and keep us safe."