Doocey MattMATT DOOCEY (National—Waimakariri): Could I just say that last speech by David Shearer was an example of an Opposition that is arrogant tired lazy out of touch and out of ideas. Can I say as the member of Parliament for Waimakariri what an exciting place the Waimakariri is to live work and play. We are the third-fastest growing electorate in New Zealand. We are the third most populated district in the South Island. We have just recently taken over from Invercargill so now it goes Christchurch Dunedin Waimak" and Invercargill. Our annual house price inflation is only 2 percent. Not that long ago we lost a lot of houses after the earthquakes and it is a good example when you free up land of an increase in supply and it equals demand. That is a real lesson for the rest of New Zealand from the "Waimak" and from Canterbury. We have an unemployment rate of 2.8 percent. When I am out and about in my local electorate business after business is saying to me: "How can we get more staff into Canterbury and into 'Waimak'?". We have a buoyant local economy fuelled by residential and commercial construction and a very high-achieving retail sector. It was great to see the opening of the new Farmers building in Rangiora recently. That is very much the last of the anchor projects for our regeneration. It is great to see that district moving forward. I get to meet a range of people through my work and people tell me that "Waimak" and Canterbury are on track and we are heading in the right direction. We see that nationally when you see the GDP growth rate that we have which is the envy of all OECD countries and an unemployment rate around 5 percent which is one of the highest rates of workforce participation we have ever had in the history of New Zealand—it is great to see a vibrant economy. And let us not forget—because on this side of the House we know that a developed competitive economy supports and protects its people and especially its vulnerable people. We discuss a lot about Kiwis coming home but let us never forget the tens of thousands of Kiwis who are leaving every year on that great Kiwi tradition the OE. Those Kiwis get out there and they travel the rest of the world and they quickly realise that in a globalised world a country that has a competitive and a developed economy is a country that increases the living standards of its people and increases the sustainability of its environment. Countries that do not have a competitive and developed economy do not. It is as stark as that; it is a choice. It is great to see that this Government is supporting a competitive economy because what we know is that a developed economy will protect our vulnerable people. Look at the Salvation Army's state of the nation reports which clearly demonstrate when you look at them that the hundreds of thousands of jobs that this Government has provided in the last few years and the hundreds of thousands of jobs that we will go on and provide have a direct correlation with reducing child hardship. Child hardship is reduced by job creation. When you look at our ambitious target of removing tens of thousands of young children out of beneficiary-dependent families—that is in fact what we have done and that is in fact what we are doing. We can be proud of that. On this side of the House we can be proud of a competitive developed economy that is providing support and protection for our vulnerable. As a first-term MP I am proud to be part of a Government that gave beneficiaries their first-ever benefit increase in 44 years—since 1972. I know that because I was born in 1972. So I know it was 44 years ago. We gave $25 per family and then a $12.50 increase for Working for Families and we increased expenditure in the allowance for childcare. When you look at increasing access to GPs for under 13s—the statistics came out: increased enrolment by 16 percent; prescriptions have gone up for children by 25 percent showing that we are increasing access to medicines; Māori participation with GPs is up 17 percent; Pacific Island participation is up 14 percent; and the best benefit of all is that serious presentations to A & E for under 13s is down 5 percent. Thank you."