Motions — America’s Cup 2013—Emirates Team New ZealandText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeMotions — America’s Cup 2013—Emirates Team New Zealand[Sitting date: 26 September 2013. Volume:693;Page:13769. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Thursday 26 September 2013Mr Speaker took the Chair at 2 p.m.Prayers.MotionsAmerica’s Cup 2013—Emirates Team New ZealandHon BILL ENGLISH (Acting Prime Minister): I seek leave to move without notice a motion in recognition of Team New Zealand’s efforts in the America’s Cup.Mr SPEAKER: Is there any objection to that course of action being followed? There is none.Hon BILL ENGLISH: I moveThat this House congratulate Emirates Team New Zealand on its hard-fought campaign in the 2013 America’s Cup in San Francisco. Although the result was not what we were hoping for we send congratulations to Oracle Team USA and admire their fighting spirit and the ongoing improvements made to stay in the match and eventually take the cup. To Emirates Team New Zealand you have made us proud and we have loved every moment of watching your boatAotearoa literally fly around San Francisco Bay. You caught the interest and attention of so many New Zealanders who did not expect to admire and become involved in the America’s Cup contest. You have competed hard on the water and have conducted yourselves with dignity and professionalism off the water. On behalf of 4.5 million Kiwis congratulations on a great campaign.Hon DAVID PARKER (Deputy Leader—Labour): I rise on behalf of the New Zealand Labour Party to support the motion. We congratulate Oracle Team USA on a successful defence of the America’s Cup. It was a truly remarkable comeback. We send our commiserations to Grant Dalton to Dean Barker and to the crew that made New Zealanders so proud. The sporting hopes of the nation were with Emirates Team New Zealand on every tack everygybe and every foil. The crew did their very best and it was a fantastic effort. We congratulate them. We record our admiration for the Kiwi ingenuity and innovation that saw New Zealand boating and computer technology displayed to the world as the best in the world. That expertise together with New Zealand’s extraordinary sailing excellence was just not quite enough on the day and we again commiserate with Emirates Team New Zealand for getting so close but not quite winning.Can I pass on our admiration for how dignified they have been in defeat. We should also be proud that in Oracle’s time of need they reached out to New Zealanders in order to get the extra boat speed that they needed. This is truly an event that has brought New Zealanders together. As Grant Robertson said to me earlier he understood that somewhere in a bar in San Francisco it has even brought Steven Joyce and Trevor Mallard together singing Dave Dobbyn songs like “Loyal”.METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green): What a bugger eh? What a race! We got this close; they got this close. New Zealanders all over the world have been cheering Dean Barker his team and all of the people who have worked so hard to support this race. My message is do not worry because New Zealanders are still behind you Dean Barker and all your team for all the amazing work you have done no matter what the result. The catamarans are so closely matched that there was some tantalising racing with those flying catamarans travelling faster than the speed of wind and with lead changes yachts on the edge of tipping over—what I heard one wit describe as “the cock of a dog’s leg”—and teams finishing within just seconds of each other. Race 10 of the final will no doubt be one of the greatest yacht races of all time but it was also aturning-point race. Well done to Oracle Team USA. It really truly was some comeback. To Team New Zealand—you did your country proud. Our hearts go out to you at this time of great agony over the result having come so close.I suspect that technology was the winner on the day for this cup—technology largely built by New Zealanders. We can be doubly proud that both boats were built mostly by New Zealanders here in New Zealand and that Auckland is now home to some of the most advanced boatbuilding techniques in the world. This America’s Cup will be good not only for our high-tech marine manufacturing industry but also for the thousands of bright New Zealanders whom it employs. Team New Zealand you have provided us with a vision of a smart and green economy and a legacy that will not be lost and there is of course always next time.Plus it is not all bad news on the sports front today. Let us congratulate the New Zealand Football Ferns which won theValais Cup in Switzerland this morning—a historic win for our women’s football team—and congratulations to New Zealand’s Amber Hearn who was named player of the tournament. Thank you.RICHARD PROSSER (NZ First): New Zealand First joins other parties in the House in congratulating Team New Zealand. The final result of the America’s Cup even though a disappointment when we came so close to winning is a time to reflect on what New Zealanders are capable of achieving. Team New Zealand performed superbly against the scale and wealth of the United States team a team that had the resources and the money to be able to bring in whomever and whatever it wanted at the last minute a team for whom money was no object. Olympic champions and advanced technology were available to the United States team—just a phone call away at the snap of the fingers never mind the cost. And there is the irony that the winning boat was actually built in New Zealand. In that sense New Zealand is a winner.Our boat builders have shown that they have excellence in the world just as our sailors have shown through regattas the world over in every winning international team that they are also the best in the world. New Zealand First congratulates Team New Zealand on their performance in the America’s Cup in San Francisco. We applaud Dean Barker the crew and all who contributed to this outstanding effort. We applaud the families and the friends of the crew and the legion of fine patriotic supporters who outlaid such time and effort who stuck by their team—our team—through thick and thin through the good times and the bad right to the bitter end and who are still there for our boys.We applaud Team New Zealand for their sportsmanship. We applaud them for their grit and determination. We applaud their conduct as exemplary ambassadors for New Zealand. In their gracious and commendable second placing—a silver medal for the silver fern team—they have enhanced New Zealand’s reputation. The world sees us and them in the light of old-fashioned good sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct and that will serve us well going into the future and into the next 4 years because like everyone else I am sure that Team New Zealand will be back for another crack the next time the auld mug is up for grabs.Whatever happens next time New Zealand and New Zealanders will be at the forefront of the competition foryachting’s greatest prize—the prize that is rightfully ours and will be again. New Zealanders will build the next generation of America’s Cup boats and New Zealanders will crew them. One day we will bring the cup home again. This is not a time for mourning. It is not a time for disappointment. It is a time for all New Zealanders to say to our team “Well done. Good on you. New Zealand is proud of you.” Thank you.TE URUROA FLAVELL (Co-Leader—Māori Party):Tēnā koe Mr Speaker kia oratātou katoa. Heiwhaiwhai haerei teāhuatanga o tekōrero angākaikōreroimuai aau kotāku he tautokoingākōrero katoa. Me mihirā ki arātou ki a Dean Barker metanakāhui ki a Grant Daltonrātou katoaiangituimāia ki tetūi temura o te ahi eai kingākōrero. Ko te pai otērāhungai te ataneikāreituohu temāhungakāreipiko tetuarākārei taka tengutu o tewahakārei nohowhakamuriēngariimāiaiangitui aro nui ki te kaupapaiwhāia erātoui te atanei kamutuingāwiki e 3kuahipaake. Me mihi ki arātou katikamō teāhuatanga o tetū hetū tangata hetūtika hetūmō te motu e noho maineii tewākāingaotirākāore e kore kongāmea o Aotearoawhānuitonui te ao.[Thank you Mr Speaker and greetings to us all. To follow on with the tenor of the sentiments by speakers before me I endorse all the tributes accorded. We must indeed express a tribute to them Dean Barker his crew Grant Dalton all of them who fought on and according to accounts were tenacious at the battle-front. What was wonderful about that group this morning was that the head did not cower the back did not bend and the lip did not drop. They did not hold back but were relentless courageous and remained focused on what they were trying to achieve this morning and of course over the past 3 weeks. We must pay them a tribute indeed for the stance they took for humanity for the righteous and for the ones of the nation that remained here at home and without a doubt for the ones from New Zealand worldwide.]I join the words of congratulations to our team. They did us proud and as I said they did not step back they did not drop their heads or their lips they focused on the task right through to the end and we can be proud of them. I think you can learn a lot from studying some names. I had a quick Google of the word “oracle” and apparently it means a person or thing regarded as an infallible authority. But if we look at Team New Zealand—and I suppose that is the catch for all of us—every one of us finds a space in Team New Zealand. Ka mihi ki arātou katika.[We must indeed pay a tribute to them.]The great thing about our nation I suppose is the connections that we have. At home we can be proud of people like Ben Malcolm and Warren Houston whose art adorns the hull ofAotearoa of Team New Zealand. Also I think we can admire the graphics ofNgāti Kahungunu andNgāpuhi designer Ian Taylor who I think captured the world with those graphics but most important I think is the tie-in.Pēneii a au aMāorinei ka kite atui tehononga o te waka hourua metēnei waka—mekī eai kingākōrero oakutūpunaiwhakawhiti maii Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwai te waka hourua. Ingārātatakuahipaakearā kotaua waka kotauaāhuaanōrā he waka hourua ā mekīkoina tekotahitanga o tewhakaaro aoMāori aoPākehā. Koētahi kakīkāre hewāhanga o te aoMāori ki rotoitēnei ongā kaupapa. Kotāku ko tekī atu ē kai rotoitaku DNAtērāāhuatanga maiiōkutūpunaiōkumātua.Nō reirakoinei au ewhaiwāhii rotoitēnei ongā kaupapaahakoa ko te waka-ama ko te waka houruarānei he wakatonu ākoinei teāhuatanga oōkutūpuna.[Like me as aMāori I can see the connection of the double-hulled canoe with this vessel—that is to say according to my ancestors they traversed the Pacific Ocean in a double-hulled canoe. In days just past we have that similar vessel type doing the same thing. Let us suggest that it is the merging ofMāori and non-Māori minds together as one. Some might say thatMāoridom has no part to play in this of the ventures. But I would respond by saying steady on that aspect from my ancestors and parents is in my DNA. It is for this reason therefore that I am able to participate in this of the ventures be it an outrigger vessel or a double-hulled one it is still a canoe. As far as my ancestors are concerned this situation is still there.]I think we can be proud to focus not just on the yacht race but on the presentation of ourselves as a nation. I want to acknowledge the efforts ofNgātiWhātuaŌrākei and TePuniKōkiri. I acknowledge the Minister ofMāori Affairs Pita Sharples for putting uson the map alongside many others I am sure with the WakaMāori which has showcased the many tourism aspects and business links to the USA and indeed to the world. It is said that over 300000 people a day went across the Oakland Bridge just to that location. So there will be benefits despite the sadness of the day I am sure. Heiwhakakōpaniitakukōrero mekīkua kiteneitātouitēneitaukuahipaake emāiaana a Aotearoa ki rotoitēneiāhuatanga. Ko wai kamōhiomēnā ka hoki atuanōrā ki tepakangai tepakanga pai. I terānei ā metūtikatātoui temeaahakoakārei eke ko tengākau kataea tekī āi eke ā-ngākaui eke ā-wairua.Tēnā koutou kia oratātou katoa.[To close my address let us say we have witnessed just how resilient New Zealand has been in the year just past in regards to this situation. Who is to know whether we will ever go back again to engage in the good fight. In respect to this day we must be upright because even though we did not make it we can still say within us that we made it heart and spirit-wise. Congratulations to you collectively and to us all.]Hon JOHN BANKS (Leader—ACT): On behalf of the ACT Party and the people of the Epsom electorate I want to congratulate Emirates Team New Zealand on their competitive performance in the America’s Cup. I was privileged to be Minister of Sport Fitness and Leisure when the cup arrived from San Diego and later I handed it over as part of a delegation while I was Mayor of Auckland.Team New Zealand did not get the result we wanted but they should be very proud of the way they fought right to the end. Dean Barker Grant Dalton and the rest of the team worked hard to first win the LouisVuitton Cup and then push Oracle Team USA right to the end in a competition that many commentators thought would be all one-way traffic. Their graciousness in defeat shows what great sportsmen and ambassadors New Zealanders are. Ultimate congratulations must also go to Oracle Team USA on its stunning win of the 34th America’s Cup. Its win will be remembered as one of the great sporting comebacks and it contributed to one of the most exciting America’s Cup races in history.It is important today that we record and place on the record the huge contribution and loyalty of the corporate sponsors. New Zealand is a nation of sailors and we can appreciate a great competition which the America’s Cup has proved to be. We did not win. However the innovation and skills of New Zealanders contributed significantly to both teams and that is something we can all be very proud of.Hon PETER DUNNE (Leader—United Future): I rise on behalf of United Future to associate myself with the sentiments that others have expressed during this debate. I happen to be one of those curmudgeonly yachting enthusiasts who did not think that the advent of these giant catamarans was appropriate for the America’s Cup tradition and who wondered whether the public would actually be seized by the event or would just see it as big boys with big toys. The activities of Team New Zealand over the last several weeks and particularly over the last 19 days have proven to me how wrong my fears were. This event has captured the public imagination. It was interesting staring out my window in a forlorn moment during the race this morning to see virtually no traffic in the streets of Wellington. People were actually glued to television sets or radios or streaming video etc. because the nation had taken this event to its heart.We wondered a lot over the last week I guess how it could be that on Saturday morning we were poised for victory but for some fickle wind and running out of time when we were just a few seconds away from crossing the line to the situation on Thursday when Team New Zealand with everyone’s hopes on its back was fighting for grim survival. That is the magic of match racing of this particular calibre. Every tack and turn every twist everygybe every foil every sail change and every tacticians’ discussion that we have all been witness to over the last few days has I think brought home the sheer rush of adrenalin that everyone gets watching this degree of sport.It is true that this has been described in some quarters as being more a victory for technology than for sport. Certainly technological advancement and the vast amount of dollars invested by both teams to bring the latest degree of technology and skill to their operation was relevant but at the end of the day you cannot take the event away from the individual sailors who competed both for Emirates Team New Zealand and for Oracle Team USA. It was their skill their determination their raw strength and their courage that achieved the results that they did.We can take solace in the performance of our team the dignity with which they embraced their defeat and the goodwill that they have created between New Zealand and San Francisco. I notice that the Mayor of San Francisco said today that two great things about this cup were one that the United States won and two that firm bonds were formed with New Zealand by the city of San Francisco. Although we can take all of those as positives we must congratulate Oracle Team USA on a simply stunning performance. And we can note with some satisfaction that of the crew members of that boat there were I think some eight New Zealanders the boat was built in New Zealand and there is a long New Zealand tradition so if we want to stretch it we can claim that we all won today. I think there were two Americans on the boat I say to my colleague.What is important now though is that we do not wallow in self-pity and gloom because of defeat in this contest. We take from it the positives. We congratulate our team—Grant Dalton Dean Barker and all of them—on a job well done and we move forward. If anyone says that the money that was invested by the Government to achieve this result was not money well spent I completely defy that criticism because this has been a very positive outcome for New Zealand. The challenge now is to make sure that we learn the lessons that we regroup that we get a better team together—even better next time—and that next time when we are on match point we nail the event.Motion agreed to.