Simpson Scott: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSimpson Scott: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — Third Reading[Sitting date: 31 March 2016. Volume:712;Page:10107. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]SCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel): As chairman of the Local Government and Environment Committee that shepherded this bill through the select committee process to its third reading it gives me great pleasure to rise and speak in this debate this afternoon. I am very conscious that I am the first non-Cantabrian to be speaking in this third reading debate. As a non-Cantabrian and one who has over the years not had an awful lot to do with Christchurch other than the occasional business visit or holiday trip I have had an opportunity to get a real understanding of the destruction of the tragedy of the loss and of the heartache that was Christchurch and Canterbury 5 years ago.Five years ago that region was still in emergency mode. It was a region that was coming to terms with the physical impact not to mention the emotional and traumatic impacts of the earthquakes that took place 5 years ago. Then of course the region moved into a period of recovery. The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority transitional legislation was put in place. It was important legislation that was designed to ensure that the big decisions that needed to be made quickly and competently were done. Those decisions by and large I think have been decisions that have stood Canterbury and Christchurch in good stead. But we have now got to a point where regeneration is the focus and regeneration is what this bill is all about.It has been an interesting learning curve. It has been an interesting part of the transition and knowledge-gaining for me as a non-Cantabrian and I suspect for some of the members of the committee who were not physically close to Canterbury over that 5 years but were there emotionally in heart and supporting what was going on there. The select committee got to a point where we were not able to resolve all the issues that were before us and that confronted us as a committee.I want to acknowledge the very good work that took place subsequent to the committee’s report back to the House. I want particularly to acknowledge the Hon Gerry Brownlee for his work in bringing together Opposition parties and leads from Opposition parties to further work with the Mayor of Christchurch with Environment Canterbury and with other organisations to ensure that we were able to collectively get to a point today where it looks like we have unanimity across the House for what is a very important piece of legislation for Christchurch and indeed for all New Zealand and New Zealanders. Without a strong vibrant growing Canterbury the rest of the country cannot succeed in the way that we all want to.I want to acknowledge the presence of Her Worship the Mayor of Christchurch in the gallery this afternoon and thank her for not only her work and commitment to this process but also her generous hospitality when the Local Government and Environment Committee met for 3 days sitting in her council chamber and hearing passionate pleas and great submissions from a large number of people who wanted to express their points of view to the committee. It was a pleasure indeed to be able to do that and I want to thank her for that.This piece of legislation sets up a new governance structure—an important governance structure that will I hope lead to a bright vigorous optimistic future for Canterbury and for Christchurch. I get a real sense that in a way this is going to be a significant piece of history that will be completed here in this Parliament this afternoon because it is a piece of legislation that will provide a decision-making process that will ensure that in years to come Christchurch and Canterbury have a real sense of optimism of hope and of positivity about the city and the region in a way that 5 years ago most of them could not have even begun to think about. I think it is a credit to everyone who has been involved in this process that we have come as far as we have.It is one of the most ambitious enterprises that we as New Zealanders have ever embarked on—the rebuild of Christchurch and Canterbury. I think it is something that we can all take some pride in. It has not been without its hiccups its speed humps and testing moments and I am sure that in the future there will be more yet to come. But I think that what this piece of legislation does is it puts in place a genuinely community-based collaborative local decision-making process that will ensure that those important decisions for the Greater Christchurch region will in fact be made with the best interests of all concerned at front and centre of that decision-making process.It is a very great privilege to have been part in a small way of this legislative process. I am looking forward in years ahead to visiting Christchurch again regularly to see the progress that continues to be made and I look forward to in many years to come maybe being able to take grandchildren and even great-grandchildren to Christchurch and Canterbury to see the work that has been done as a result of this piece of legislation being passed by the House. I commend it with great pleasure to the House.