Nash Stuart: Maiden Statements 
Nash Stuart: Maiden Statements 
[Volume:651;Page:887] 
STUART NASH (Labour) 
: 
 First and foremost I offer my congratulations to you Mr Assistant Speaker on your election to a most esteemed position in this House. 
I decided very early on not to raise the ghost of a past Nash who is long buried in time and memory but whose footsteps still haunt this place for even though he wandered these halls for 40 years that was after all 40 years ago. However as I make my way around the corridors of this wonderful old building I cannot help but notice that the giants of past eras have never been laid to rest as their photos are there to inspire us encourage us and to remind us of the proud legacy that we carry as a Labour Party team dedicated to always asking as Harry Holland the first leader of the Labour Party did “Is it right?”. Harry Holland realised that if it was right for the people of New Zealand it would be right for the New Zealand Labour Party. This underlying principle of whether it is right for the people of New Zealand has guided all our Prime Ministers from Joe Savage to Helen Clark and I hope in fewer than 3 years’ time Phil Goff. 
It is with a sense of honour and pride—but also I must admit a degree of nervousness and trepidation—that I start my parliamentary career. I hope I can live up to the memory and expectations of past members for the privilege of being a Labour Party MP is one that has a very proud history. 
Numerous paths lead to this Chamber but none of us would be here without the patronage and support of those who encourage and mentor us to this position. First and foremost I must convey my thanks to the Hon Dr Michael Cullen for without his support I would not be here. I acknowledge this and I hope he knows that it is greatly appreciated. But behind every successful man there is a surprised woman and I am sure Michael’s partner Anne Collins would agree with that statement. To Anne Raewyn Barry Tom Wilson Geoff Braybrooke Bill Sutton Guy Wellwood and all those who have supported and encouraged me I salute you and thank you with all my heart especially as my rival in Napier reminded me around 18 months ago of a Winston Churchill quote. When the great man was asked: “Doesn’t it thrill you to know that every time you give a political speech the hall is packed to overflowing?” he replied: “It’s quite flattering. But whenever I feel that way I always remember that if instead of making a political speech I was being hanged the crowd would be twice as big.” 
Napier is also where my story begins a little longer than a little while ago so it is nice to come here and be called a young fresh face—and who said the media is all bad? My family history in Hawke’s Bay begins in around 1865. My daughter is actually the fifth generation of our family to attend Napier Central School; our family’s attendance goes right back to its founding over 130 years ago. Napier is without a doubt one of the best if not the best city in New Zealand. It has the climate the fruit the wine the beaches the art deco architecture and a rugby team that has beaten Waikato the last four times the two teams have played against each other. The only thing it does not have is a Labour constituent MP—but we are working on that. 
My father Hal Nash is a wonderful man who practised the principles of social democracy during a long legal career better than anyone I know and my mother Jenny Nash had four children under 5 at one stage. It is a testament to her strength of character and fortitude that she is still completely sound of mind. I had a wonderful upbringing when the summers were long hot and sunny and schooldays at Napier Central School Napier Intermediate School and Napier Boys’ High School were fun. 
They say that politics is in the blood but I do not believe that. Politics is in the heart and in the soul and in our family it was around the dinner table. But perhaps the one person who first shaped my political leanings was that great social democrat Elvis Presley. It was not to do with his unique solutions to prison reform or his yearning for social justice and equity in the ghetto or even for animal rights for bad dogs. No unfortunately for me he died on the very same day that the Rt Hon Sir Robert Muldoon delivered a Budget and the day before I had to present a news item in front of my classmates. Five 9-year-olds spoke about Elvis Presley; one poor chap spoke about the Government’s fiscal plans—thanks Mum! I have bad memories of Mr Muldoon for a lot more reasons than most in my party. 
The advice my father gave me when I showed a real interest in politics was to get educated and get some experience to take into the House. So a few universities later and some experience in a couple of industries I am here living my passion and my dream. However when my father was asked just recently whether he was proud of me he said it was a dreadful job that I had chosen. I did not come here looking for a job but because of a calling. I liked the line of my fellow newbie Phil Twyford who said “some of us will be remembered but most of us will not.” To be remembered is not what motivates us. If I can leave this House for the final time in the knowledge that my party’s legacy has made a positive difference to the lives of all New Zealanders who call New Zealand home I have accomplished my goals and ambitions. That is why Helen Clark Michael Cullen and all of you who have served in the fifth Labour Government will be talked about fondly by future scholars historians and New Zealanders alike around the dinner tables and barbecues. My beautiful daughter Sophia and my wonderful son Charles are growing up in a better world due to the tireless work energy and legacy of this wonderful party I am proud to be a member of. 
This place is not called a House for nothing. We spend an inordinate amount of time here. There is a bed in my office there is a kitchen outside my door and the father of the House is in the room adjacent. I wonder whether the senior whip Darren Hughes was trying to tell me something when he allocated me my office but I then realised the message was not actually very subtle at all because within the first 2 weeks we have been obliged to be here until midnight on most nights. But the Labour caucus is a family not just because we live work and eat in the same house and under one roof but because our differences unite us in a common belief and philosophy that forces us to always ask: “Is it right?” and then to do what is right. 
In a previous life I travelled overseas for business. Although I enjoyed the job I found that international travel was a real tonic for the soul and I say that because whenever I flew into Auckland Airport I realised just how lucky I was to be living in this wonderful country. Our beaches are pristine our skyline is visible our fields are green our different-coloured children play together in our many parks and our families interact side by side regardless of socio-economic status and enjoy a champagne lifestyle regardless of what is in the chilly bin or on the barbie. 
I see myself first and foremost as a public servant employed by the people of New Zealand to represent this country and its citizens. I am available to help all those who either request or desire my help regardless of sex race age or political affiliation. I am also a proud social democrat who will work hard to develop a regulatory environment that encourages sustainable economic development and growth through increasing our international competitiveness. This will be done by developing trade partnerships and models that not only promote our companies but also encourage them to seek further offshore opportunities. That will allow New Zealand’s competitive advantage to be clearly articulated and understood by all of those whom we seek trade alliances with. That is nice politics-speak but what it actually means in plain English is that the No. 8 fencing wire mentality and the “she’ll be right” attitude that we have prided ourselves on to date are no longer good enough in the 21st century. To reach the top these days we need to be very smart exceptionally well prepared intensely focused and willing to stand up and fight for what we believe in with all our energy. Handing out replica All Black jerseys is no longer good enough to clinch the deal. 
I also know that unrestrained and unregulated economic growth can have a negative effect on a country’s well-being. For example this can occur when those in the workforce have diminished or oppressed rights—and we have seen this in the very first week of this Government—when investors and markets are being deliberately or negligently misled or manipulated and when scarce resources are exploited. It is the philosophical mandate and governance role of any social democratic party to ensure that the negative social and moral effects of economic growth are mitigated through information communication sound policy justifiable regulation and wise legislation. But Pat McGill a community hero who spends his days advocating for prison reform and helping and supporting those outside Napier Prison who need his help and support just wants to know that we are still asking ourselves Harry’s question: “Is it right?”. 
A friend of mine said to me recently that the time has now come to adopt a new economic model. However the time is not right for simple adoption but for the invention and development of a new economic paradigm that takes into account the expectations of 21st century New Zealanders. Friedman is dead. The economic philosophies of the laissez-faire practitioners have finally been laid to rest and cremated in the ashes of the current economic crisis. That is why I was so disappointed with the Speech from the Throne. It talked about aspiration yet there was nothing substantive to deliver it. It mentioned productivity yet there was nothing concrete to drive it. It was not visionary at a time when we are beginning to develop our own global identity and struggling to a certain extent to understand our place on this earth. 
History has proven that the only party to really deliver significant gains for the people of New Zealand is the New Zealand Labour Party. We are and always have been a party of social evolution if not revolution. We work to build to empower to create and to practise fiscal accountability as well as social responsibility. We work as a collective and are more powerful as one than we can ever be as individuals quite simply because we always ask: “Is it right?”. 
I am very optimistic about the long-term future of our party because when I look around our caucus room I see an awesome array of experience mixing helping and mentoring the new. But quite simply we are just 43 New Zealanders full of energy competence and a belief in the principles and philosophies of social democracy and with a willingness to work hard and create a better New Zealand. It is the most aspirational team I have ever had the humble pleasure to be part of. 
I finish by quoting what John F Kennedy wrote shortly before his assassination because I think it sums up this Labour caucus and its leadership under Phil Goff and Annette King: “If we are strong our strength will speak for itself. If we are weak our words will be of no help.” And believe me this caucus and its leaders are strong. Thank you.