Wood MichaelHon MICHAEL WOOD (Minister of Transport): I wish to start my comments today with a tribute to the late Brian Corban the chairperson of KiwiRail and a great New Zealander who passed away suddenly and very sadly over the weekend. Mr Corban will be known to many members around the House. He is the kind of person who I think of as a genuine nation-builder a man who had an incredibly successful commercial career but who then devoted much of his life to public service. At the time that he passed away he was the chairperson of KiwiRail but he held many other roles in recent times with Radio New Zealand TVNZ Genesis Energy the Melanesian Mission and many many more which I won't take the time to mention here. I wish on behalf of the Government to pass on my condolences to his family and those who loved him very much. Brian Corban I note in particular was the chair of KiwiRail who has really overseen the transformation of that organisation from a dried-out husk that had been run down over many years asset-stripped and run off the smell of an oily rag to a burgeoning organisation that is revitalising parts of New Zealand from the North to the South. It was his leadership skills alongside some real political determination that have helped to turn that organisation around. I do want to speak to some of the achievements and the delivery of this Government in respect of New Zealand's rail network an organisation which was in a state of managed decline under the previous Government and which is now moving ahead to build a reliable and resilient network for the people and the regions of New Zealand. This is a Government that believes in investing across transport modes and not being myopically focused on roads as the other side of the House is. Yes roads are important for many of our communities but it is about building a transport network that is mode-neutral in which people have real transport choices in which we focus on bringing down our emissions in which rail serves that nation-building focus that it always has for the regions of New Zealand going back to the 1880s but that side of the House has just never ever seen it. This Government's investment in rail has also been an important part of our COVID-19 recovery giving investment and direction to our regions and employing thousands of New Zealanders. I want to speak briefly to some of the work that is under way as we speak or recent deliveries to build that resilient and reliable network. Recently I visited the work on the Third Main line a critical rail project being delivered under the New Zealand Upgrade Programme between Wiri and Westfield in New Zealand. Absolutely essential to make sure that the flows of freight get through our biggest city and that we have an efficient commuter network for the people of Tāmaki-makau-rau as well—$300 million funded through the New Zealand Upgrade Programme and that work is under way employing 200 women and men on that project to deliver a critical piece of work for our rail network in Auckland. Very soon the work on electrifying the Papakura to Pukekohe line in Auckland will be getting under way as well bringing the people of Pukekohe into the electrified commuter network and giving them real transport choices. There is $196 million under the New Zealand Upgrade Programme going into as we speak improving the Wellington commuter rail network. Again lacking in investment for many many years and it has been this Government which has come forward to make sure that Wellington commuters have access to a reliable efficient network to move them around our cities and to bust congestion. I'm very proud that only about six weeks ago with Kīngi Tūheitia and the Prime Minister I was able to join them to launch the new Te Huia service between Hamilton and Auckland restoring commuter rail between Auckland and Hamilton one of New Zealand's fastest-growing economic and housing zones. As we know from the hoots on the other side of the House that side has never backed that region in terms of its aspirations for a decent rail service and perhaps that's one of the reasons that they lost the two Hamilton seats to Jamie Strange and Gaurav Sharma at the last election because the people of Hamilton and Waikato are backing that service and they want to see it continue. This is a Government that is proud of its investments in rail. We will shortly be announcing the New Zealand Rail Plan a 10-year strategic plan to continue investing in rail to move people around our cities and regions to move the freight efficiently and to decarbonise our transport network. This Government believes in rail and believes in an integrated transport network for all of our people. It will continue to make the investments will continue to deliver and it's an important part of our recovery from COVID-19. Thank you Mr Speaker.