Shaw JamesHon JAMES SHAW (Co-Leader—Green): E Te Māngai o te Whare tēnā koe. Ki a koutou ōku hoa pāremata huri noa i te Whare ngā mihi o te tau hou ki a koutou katoa. [Thank you Mr Speaker. To my parliamentary colleagues all around the House greetings for the new financial year to you all.]It makes me immensely proud and it makes my Green colleagues immensely proud to be a part of this Government and to have had a hand in the development of this Budget—the Greens' first Budget in Government—and to be laying the foundations for a truly sustainable economy a healthy environment and a fair society. This is a Budget for every Kiwi—and every takahē and every kākā and every kereru—because this Budget recognises that our natural heritage our natural capital is the source of our prosperity and we will only continue to prosper if we continue to protect it. This is a Budget that says that 100% Pure New Zealand" is not just some empty marketing slogan. It is what we stand for—it's who we are.This is a Budget that has New Zealanders' well-being at its heart that has fairness and equity at its heart. This is a Budget that has a heart and it lays the foundation for the country that we aspire to be.The Green Party's confidence and supply agreement with the Labour Party outlines a policy programme organised under the headings of a "Sustainable Economy" a "Fair Society" and a "Healthy Environment" and today's Budget delivers on that vision for Aotearoa New Zealand. It lays the foundation for a sustainable economy with $11 million put aside over the next four years to establish an independent climate change commission. That commission and the zero carbon Act will guide the country on the path to a net zero emissions economy over the coming three decades.But the biggest step that we are taking today on that path towards a sustainable low-carbon economy is an investment of $100 million of new capital into a green investment fund. I want to acknowledge the vision of my predecessor Dr Russel Norman who campaigned in 2011 and in 2014 for that green investment fund—a State-owned but fully commercial operation. With that fund we are laying the foundation not just for a clean green economy but a more productive a more innovative economy full of new high-tech high-income jobs. This fund will drive private capital into that economy over the coming decades.And much of that value in the new economy will come as it always has in New Zealand from our farmers. We all know that climate change represents a huge challenge for our agricultural sector. We know that. But it also represents an enormous opportunity if we work out how to become the world's first net-zero producer of food and sell not just the food but the intellectual property behind it to the rest of the world. That's why our confidence and supply agreement recognises that farmers and rural communities must be supported in that transition that New Zealand must make.This has long been a theme for the Green Party—a strong economy based on environmentally sound food production was a deep passion of Green Party founding co-leader Rod Donald. So I am delighted that in today's Budget there is $15 million over the next four years for the Sustainable Farming Fund. And I want to thank the Hon Damien O'Connor for working with us to deliver that.A lot of farmers are already taking some great strides forward by reducing their environmental impact and at the same time increasing their profitability and our Government will support farmers to do more of that good work. That is how we are investing in the sustainable economy. That is how we are investing in our future.But we're also investing in a healthy environment and credit I have to say must go to our incredibly committed conservation Minister the Hon Eugenie Sage who rumour has it was actually born in a Department of Conservation hut. She deserves credit because she has secured the largest increase in operational funding for conservation in a generation—more than $180 million to safeguard our natural heritage and to fight the predators that threaten our native species with extinction. More than $81 million of that alone over the next four years will go to vital predator control work.It is said that in every Budget there are winners and losers and the winners in this Budget are kiwi and kākā and kererū and the losers are rats and stoats and possums. This Budget lays the foundation for the Department of Conservation to lead the charge—to lead the charge—against our country's biodiversity crisis. And all three Government parties are ambitious for New Zealand to invest in nature because of its importance to our economy to our well-being and to who we are.We are also investing together in a fair society. And I have to say the most telling indicator of a fair society is the way that we treat those less fortunate than ourselves. Our confidence and supply agreement calls for an overhaul of a welfare system that punishes people at the bottom of the heap and treats them like second-class citizens for the crime of being poor. This Budget starts the ball rolling with $1.5 million to establish a root-and-branch review of a system that is not working.But the biggest move that our Government is making against poverty actually took place before this Budget got rolling—the $5.5 billion Families Package that our Government passed at the end of last year was the greatest investment in tackling poverty since Ruth Richardson's "mother of all Budgets" helped to turn New Zealand into the most unequal society in the OECD. And our former colleague Metiria Turei—she coined her welfare overhaul proposal last year as the "Budget for all mothers". Well last year's Families Package doesn't completely reverse the damage that Ruth Richardson did but it is a good start.Another fundamentally important part of being a fair society is the mental health and well-being of its citizens and I want to thank the Hon Dr David Clark for working with us to commit over $10 million over the next three years to piloting youth mental health services for 18-25 year olds.But the biggest contribution to a fair society in today's Budget is the revival of the scheme to end energy poverty and ensure that every New Zealander has a warm dry home. And again this isn't new to the Green Party. Home insulation was a cause that former Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons first fought for and won back in 2009. And yes that was won under a National Government but then the same National Government wound down the scheme before the job was done and they did that even though they knew at the time that for every dollar spent warming a child's home you save $6 in health bills and power bills and economic productivity. It was a ridiculous decision—not to mention all of the value that you get out of just having a better quality of life. So today I want to thank the Minister of Energy and Resources Dr Megan Woods for her work in securing $142.5 million to finish the job that we started 10 years ago.I also want to thank Gareth Hughes for his leadership in our caucus on this work as well because as of this winter—as of this winter—more New Zealanders will be able to better insulate and better heat their homes. And for people on benefits and people on New Zealand superannuation this Budget delivers a much-needed winter warm-up payment to help them pay their power bills in the winter or buy a load of firewood. Well Jeanette if you're watching that one's for you.The Greens are making a contribution to this Government above and beyond the terms of our confidence and supply agreement as well and particularly in the domain of women and children. In her capacity as the Minister for Women the Hon Julie Anne Genter has secured funding in this Budget to ensure that we can all celebrate the 125 years that New Zealand has had women's suffrage. But by far her greatest contribution in this Budget is actually in her role as the Associate Minister of Health where she is overseeing the package for midwives worth $103 million.Jan Logie is the first member of the executive in our country's history with specific responsibility for addressing domestic and sexual violence issues. She's won $2 million to get the ball rolling on an all-of-Government approach to finally tackle the horrendous blight that that is on our nation's character. We are proud to be members of a Government that is putting $76 million into restoring front-line services for victims of family violence with $7.5 million for sexual abuse assessment and treatment services. It was appalling that that funding was cut in the first place—astounding.Let me also acknowledge the $12.5 million budgeted over the next four years to support teachers to develop Te Reo Māori skills and offer our tamariki the change to embrace this taonga. That commitment speaks to the Greens' kaupapa of honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We will always keep the hope alive that one day we all grow up fluent in at least our two spoken languages.As the Minister of Statistics I am delighted to be playing a role in the Prime Minister's programme to reduce child poverty in New Zealand as well. Statistics New Zealand will receive $20 million in Budget 2018 to increase the size of the household economic survey. This will help us to understand the problem much better than we do at the moment and it will help us direct resources much more effectively to solving it.Hon Andrew Little: It'll really count.Hon JAMES SHAW: It will count. It will count. This Government is committed to basing our decisions on good information. That is why in today's Budget we've announced our intention to establish an independent fiscal institution. This will provide the public with non-partisan non-political assessments of Government economic forecasts and cost political parties' campaign promises. We want New Zealanders and politicians debating the merit of ideas not just who can use a calculator better.Budget 2018 represents over half a billion dollars of investment in the priorities outlined in the Green Party's confidence and supply agreement—over half a billion dollars of operational and capital expenditure. This is the single largest investment in a sustainable economy a fair society and a healthy environment that the Greens have been able to achieve in a Budget in the nearly 20 years that we have been in Parliament.This investment actually pales in comparison to an investment decision in an announcement that was made a couple of weeks back. I am talking about the transformational changes that the Hon Julie Anne Genter and the Hon Phil Twyford are making in the domain of transport. The Green Party has campaigned for fast and efficient transport to free up congestion and reduce pollution in our main cities since we were founded nearly 30 years ago.I remember my first campaign was for the Wellington City Council in 1992. I ran with Sue Kedgley and Celia Wade-Brown and we stood on a platform and campaigned for light rail from the Wellington Railway Station out to the airport. Now through our confidence and supply agreement in this Budget we have got nearly $14 billion going to green transport. There is a billion-dollar fund for bikes and walking; $5 billion for rapid transit; $7 billion for public transport. It has taken nearly 30 years to get started but as the old guy in the Mainland cheese ads used to say: "Good things take time."Finally—finally—our main cities can look forward to less congested streets greater productivity and a better quality of life for the people who live there. And we are just getting started.I look at this Budget with a great deal of satisfaction but also with the knowledge that we are only at the beginning. There is a great deal more work to do. This Budget lays strong foundations for the next three years for the next 10 years and for the next 30 years. Let me tell you I'm looking forward to building on those foundations next year and for years to come.Today's Budget delivers on seven of the 20 priorities in our confidence and supply agreement. It delivers on conservation on the green investment fund on support for sustainable farming on home insulation on access to mental health services on reform of our welfare system and on establishing an independent climate change commission. I and my Green Party colleagues support this Budget. We commend it to the House. We stand ready to provide the ideas and the vision and the energy to build on it for the future. The investments that are being made here today are investments in a better a more resilient a more sustainable future for all New Zealanders and for this beautiful land that we call home.Nō reira kia kaha e tū kia mau.[Therefore let us be strong upstanding and ready.]"