Mitchell Mark: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Mitchell Mark: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
[Sitting date: 29 January 2013. Volume:687;Page:7587. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
MARK MITCHELL (National—Rodney) 
: 
 Mr Speaker it is a pleasure to take a call today on the Prime Minister’s statement. I would just like to wish you and the House a happy New Year. I listened carefully to all the party leaders today and the two who were standouts were the Prime Minister and the Hon Peter Dunne for the simple reason that they actually had detail in their speeches not like the Opposition’s speeches which were padded out with clichés airy-fairy emotive statements or pie-in-the-sky dreams that it hopes will be seen as serious policy. 
It was also sad to listen to the Green Party spend a lot of its time and energy trying to convince New Zealand and the rest of the world how bad we are at looking after our own country and environment. I cannot help but find this offensive as I feel that as Kiwis most of us are very proud of our beautiful country and make a contribution whether it be a small daily act of recycling or spending a weekend planting trees with the local community. The Green Party should be very careful about looking down its nose at the rest of us. 
I was disappointed with the comments Hone Harawira made about the mistrust and dislike that his constituents have towards the police. We have the most professional well-trained and corruption-free police service in the world. I have seen other police services around the world that would give Mr Harawira a real excuse to moan if he were ever to come in contact with them. If there is tension that exists for his constituents then perhaps it would be a good idea to reflect on what they could do differently to improve the relationship rather than point the finger in one direction. 
The Prime Minister clearly signalled today that the economy will continue to be a strong focus for the Government this year. The Deputy Prime Minister has been clear and consistent in managing the Government’s finances to return us to surplus and continue to reduce debt. We have already made a huge turn-round in the Government’s books by implementing the biggest changes to the tax system in a generation reforming our welfare system to strengthen work obligations and to bring productivity into sharp focus. Where many of the Western economies are struggling to generate growth our own economy has grown 2.5 percent. We are doing well when you consider we will have stronger growth than Canada Japan or the United Kingdom. 
I was disappointed to hear the Green Party and the Labour Party attack and ridicule the proposed investment this Government has made in commitment to infrastructure. As a country it is critically important that we continue to invest in improve and develop our infrastructure whether it is transport energy water or telecommunications. For our businesses to invest in plant facilities and jobs they need to be confident that they have access to the infrastructure they need. 
The Government has already invested billions of dollars in infrastructure over the past 4 years which in turn is supporting thousands of jobs. If the Opposition parties had travelled north of Orewa over the summer they would have experienced firsthand why investment in roading and motorway infrastructure is so important. The people of Rodney Northland and Whangarei deserve a road that will be a gateway for regional economic growth and will support what is one of the fastest-growing residential areas in the country. Other benefits include reduced congestion improved safety and more reliable journey times. I will once again invite any of the Opposition members to come and see what this road means to the people of Rodney. 
Tracey Martin 
: I’ll come. 
MARK MITCHELL 
: Yeah you know. I offered this last year and I will not be surprised if yet again none of them want to come and hear what the people of Rodney have to say. The north has never had a proper roading infrastructure to connect it with the rest of the country. The time has come for them to have this critical link. 
Finally I would like to remind the House of the Opposition’s contribution to New Zealand’s growth health and well-being over the last 4 years. It has been opposed to tax changes opposed to work expectations for beneficiaries opposed to major roading and infrastructure projects opposed to the free-trade agreement with the US opposed to cutting red tape and compliance costs and opposed to the 90-day trial period. It has been opposed to oil and gas exploration. Every piece of legislation or policy this Government has developed to encourage growth and jobs those members have opposed. Thank you.