Wagner Nicky: Address in ReplyText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWagner Nicky: Address in Reply[Sitting date: 29 October 2014. Volume:701;Page:414. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon NICKY WAGNER (Minister of Customs):I am delighted to be standing here in the 51st Parliament as part of the National-led Government and particularly as part of a Government that has received such a strong mandate from the people of New Zealand. For the last 6 years our Government has worked hard to focus on the things that matter to all New Zealanders and we will continue to do so. Our job is to build on our carefully managed economic results and our world-leading economic growth and to build it into something that is sustained for long-term prosperity and well-being; to encourage investment and enterprise; to create new jobs; and to increase incomes. We are working hard to build a better future for our country and everyone who lives here.As the MP for Christchurch Central my heart belongs to that city and I am really inspired by the people of Christchurch and what they are doing in their homes their neighbourhoods their businesses and their organisations as our city recreates and rebuilds itself. Right across Canterbury the pace of the rebuild is picking up. Yes there is an enormous amount of work still to do but Cantabrians can see very real results. Every day people are moving into new or repaired homes more than half our horizontal infrastructure is complete and roads are repaired. Construction is now more common than demolition in our city and the clearing of the residential red zone is almost done. Christchurch is the city of cranes and the city of many many building sites. Businesses and events are coming back into our city and every week new buildings open up and new offices shops and restaurants beckon.Our plan for Christchurch is to build a very people-friendly city with wonderful public spaces especially along the Avon River Ōtākaro riverside. The anchor projects like the justice and emergency precinct the bus exchange and the convention centre will bring people into the city and those numbers will be boosted by 2800 Government staff moving into the central city offices. Around them around the people small businesses will pop up. Christchurch people are already very keen to get out and about and enjoy our city. Just last weekend thousands of them thronged to two wonderful festivals of light: the traditional Indian festival of Diwali; and FESTA the high-tech innovative festival of transitional architecture a first for the world and the third in Christchurch. FESTA livened up the centre city with 13 installations by architectural students from across the country. It brought youthful excitement creativity and energy into High Street and into the innovation precinct of the central city. It is the diversity of these community events that epitomises the new spirit of Christchurch that we want to foster and encourage as we build a new 21st century city.Christchurch people are excited about the opportunities of the rebuild in so many different ways. We especially value the new opportunities for education and health. The $1.1 billion Government investment into future education opens doors to all sorts of possibilities—in teaching philosophy and practice and in co-location of services as well as the school buildings themselves. Similarly we are looking forward to the improved health services underpinned by the two new hospitals being built in Christchurch. Yes there is a lot more work to do and yes there are plenty of challenges along the way but the system is working and we are beginning to see how special our new city could be.