Simpson ScottHon SCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel): Thank you Mr Chair. It's sort of a pleasure to take a call on this discussion of annual reviews in the environment space but before I get into the material that I want to talk about I just want to acknowledge the chair of the Environment Committee who I think chairs that committee in a diligent and professional manner and I'm sorry that she will not be chair of that committee for much longer. It seems inevitable that she will after the Budget Cabinet reshuffle be promoted to the inner Cabinet and we're going to miss working with her—we're going to miss working with her. She's one of the few new MPs that have come into this Parliament that will I think rise to the challenge of an otherwise lacklustre Cabinet and as I say we on the committee are going to miss working with her.As we went through the various reviews of the organisations and the agencies in the environment sector it became immediately apparent as we had chief executive after chief executive coming before the committee and essentially apologising for a lack of performance or lack of progress or lack of speed or lack of haste in this area. If there's one area where the Government has failed utterly to achieve its high expectations it's been in the environment space. We have a Minister for the Environment who is largely focused on things not environmental we have an Associate Minister who is ideologically driven and who is biased to the point of concern in terms of her ministerial responsibilities across her portfolio areas and that's deeply challenging for those of us who want to see a better environmental outcome for New Zealand and our natural resources and species.So we've seen no progress on the Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary. We've seen no progress on waste minimisation apart from airy-fairy fluffy talk which is helpful to a degree but doesn't actually do anything tangible about a circular economy. Actually apart from an expensive discussion in Rotorua a few weeks ago there hasn't really been any action in that space. We've seen no cameras on commercial fishing vessels put in place. We've seen perversely a reduction in the number of electric vehicles that are being registered in the country. We've seen a very good member's bill that would have increased the fines for litter that councils could impose voted down—voted down—by this Government. It's bizarre.We've seen in the water space water quality which is a hugely important area no positive action at all other than the creation of a few more working groups and working groups that iwi are not participating with. We've seen noises about punishing farmers and we've seen our urban waterways degrade even further—no progress on marine reserves a ruling out of a discussion on the introduction of biotechnology to assist in things such as Predator Free 2050 and a ruling out of a very good suggestion to introduce a container deposit scheme. Now one would have thought that these were matters that a Green Party Minister and a Labour - New Zealand First Government would want to advance.But the frustration in the sector is probably no better summed up than it was by one Kevin Hague who happens to be a former member of this Parliament. He was on the television only a couple of weeks ago and he said New Zealand is far from transformative in their approach to the environment says Forest & Bird chief executive Kevin Hague. Hague said he thinks Kiwis will be a bit surprised by how poorly this Government is doing." He went on to say and I quote "I would say we're a one or a two and that's probably shocking for New Zealand." He said the Government's response to the current environmental crisis is far from adequate or what was promised.He went on to say "In freshwater in climate change we've heard good rhetoric from the Government so far but actually in this year of delivery" he said "we need to see [transformation] action from them." He said marine areas were actually doing worse under this Government and he pointed to stalled plans to put cameras on fishing boats and reduce irresponsible fishing. Then he said that the environment was going to be a major focus but he said we haven't seen much evidence of this from this Government.That's an appalling indictment on a Government that came into power that is halfway through its term in office and has done so little—so little—in the environmental space that now their supporters are their greatest critics. It's the Green environmental supporters who are most frustrated most concerned and most disappointed with the lack of action the lack of delivery in the environmental space."