Allan KiritapuKIRITAPU ALLAN (Labour): Madam Speaker in times of strife leadership is that that can turn a steady hand and steer the ship and to that extent I want to acknowledge the leadership of the Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern and our finance Minister in particular the Hon Grant Robertson for doing what they had always said that they would do—they had planned for a rainy day. At a time when the Opposition were throwing darts when things were well because this side of the House weren't spending enough it was the Hon Grant Robertson that said Hey let's keep some change in our back pocket for when a rainy day comes."Now if we look at the Budget Policy Statement—yep the Budget Policy Statement was released in December 2019. That set forth our objectives—our vision—for how we would be and how we are approaching our economic growth but also how we weather storms. We held the hearings with the Hon Grant Robertson and we questioned him in February. Coronavirus at that time was already apparent and it was an opportunity for all of us from both sides of the House to ask poignant questions about how New Zealand would weather the storm as we went into a time of uncertainty.Now I call on the Opposition to cease fire with the absolute scaremongering tactics because our populace deserve better in a time of strife. We have just heard from the spokesperson for agriculture for the Opposition—somebody who I've had time for in the past—but my patience is wearing thin because I have seen that gentleman go into rural communities and stir nothing but fear. The facts are over the past two years this side of the House has held the keys to the Treasury benches the rural economy has experienced a surplus of $6.9 billion. That's not the scare and fear that the Opposition is touting up and down the country. So I implore those on the left the right the centre of the spectrum to find the calm and listen to fact.The facts are that New Zealand has positioned itself to survive whatever it is that would come our way and here comes that day. The facts are at a time when GDP was stagnating across the globe New Zealand survived that period well; our growth has been tracking comparatively to those of our comparable other countries higher than most others where we are sitting at around 2.8 percent. Our debt when we took over the Treasury benches we were sitting up at around 22.4 percent. Well under the steady management of this side of the House that has tracked downwards—we're sitting at around about 19.5 percent. Comparable to other nations other nations in the OECD we are well placed to survive today's storm. Now if we look at the position that we actually find ourselves in we are at a time of unprecedented—over the last decade—unemployment rates. They're sitting at 4 percent; not once could the Opposition ever claim that statistic.We are sitting at a time where New Zealanders are confident—and this is a thing that I think that the Opposition are also struggling with—all the polls are saying that there is a confidence in this side of the House.DEPUTY SPEAKER: Look I'm sorry that has nothing to do with the Budget statement. Let's not talk about polls.KIRITAPU ALLAN: Let me turn to the Budget Policy Statement because that is what is being said in the report that came back: that we are in a strong fiscal position. Now we are at a time when we are investing New Zealand and I want to turn to what that investment means at a practical measure not a hyperbolic one that the Opposition wants to cast aspersions across. But I want to turn to a real practical measure: investment in our communities. Rural and regional economies have not seen investment like they have experienced until this Government. I want to take Ōpōtiki as an example of that to talk about the five criteria that we have hit. Māori and Pacific we make up over 50 percent of the population in Ōpōtiki and $79.4 million has gone into the Ōpōtiki Harbour investment creating 1800 jobs. That there is a country that is invested in its rural and regional communities. Thank you Madam Speaker."