Simpson Scott: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSimpson Scott: Supplementary Estimates — Imprest Supply Debate[Sitting date: 26 June 2013. Volume:691;Page:11333. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Supplementary EstimatesSCOTT SIMPSON (National—Coromandel):It is interesting to be following that member Clayton Cosgrove in this debate. Earlier in the afternoon we were given a very good and fulsome history lesson by the Hon Chris Finlayson—a history of that once-proud Labour Party and its various leaders and their leadership problems. It is interesting that one aspect the Attorney-General did not allude to during his very very good history lesson was the history relating to one Mike Moore a former leader whowas at one stage the member for Eden. He was the youngest MP in the House at that stage. In 1975 he was soundly thrashed by Aussie Malcolm and then he spent 3 years in the wilderness. Mike Moore came out of his 3 years in the wilderness as a carpetbagger in Christchurch.Why is all this relevant? It is because it is very well known that Clayton Cosgrove who is not actually famous for very much treats Mike Moore as a trusted and learned mentor. So now we are told that “mini-Mike” is likely to become the carpetbagger—Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Lindsay Tisch): Look I have said this on a couple of occasions tonight. One must refer to people by their correct names.SCOTT SIMPSON: I understand that Mr Cosgrove will become the Clayton’s carpetbagger candidate for Christchurch East and that is I guess following the history and the pattern of his mentor and long-time friend the Rt Hon Mike Moore.But we are here this evening to discuss and debate the Appropriation (2012/13 Supplementary Estimates) Bill and of course the Imprest Supply (First for 2013/14) Bill as well. These bills continue the Government’s very good economic record and its fiscal strategy of careful prudent studied stewardship of our finances and the country’s books. These bills are about responsible management and a return to surplus being back in surplus in 2014-15. So these are good bills. They are about building a competitive economy. They are about delivering Better Public Services and more important they are also—for Mr Cosgrove’s edification—about rebuilding Christchurch.New Zealand households have had a very tough time over the last few years as have New Zealand businesses. We have faced as a nation some very challenging times during very challenging global economic circumstances and of course the Christchurch earthquake has been devastating. But although those challenges remain economic recovery is beginning to occur and all the indicators now are heading in the absolute right direction—economic growth at 2.4 percent almost the same as in Australia and higher than in almost every other developed nation. Wages are growing the cost of living increases have been modest and interest rates are at a 50-year low. Household income has risen 20 percent in the past 4 years and is expected to rise by almost 20 percent in the next 4 years.So these are good indicators. They are good indicators for the country and they are good indicators for the people of Coromandel because the next decade will be one of enormous great opportunity for New Zealand as we see strong growth out of Asia. The real challenge for us as New Zealanders is to make sure that our economy is both financially sound and very competitive. The good people of Coromandel this evening will be listening in and they will be conscious that as they sit down tonight and listen to this debate in the most beautiful electorate in the country—what is commonly known as the Queenstown of the North Island—they are happy. They are happy with the direction that this John Key - led National Government is taking New Zealand. Coromandel people know that the careful steady prudent fiscal management by Bill English and John Key is taking New Zealand in the right direction and that we are on the right track. The fiscal outlook has improved markedly as a result of our sound management and we are on track for surplus in 2014-15 when of course the Government will be able to start reducing debt.Remember that when John Key and National came into office we inherited a set of Government books that had debts running to more than 60 percent of GDP by 2020 and absolutely no prospect of returning to surpluses again in the foreseeable future. But now forecasts show a surplus of $75 million in the 2014-15 year and we are achieving this while still spending $5.1 billion on new initiatives in Budget 2013. So that is an outstanding result. In fact it is a remarkable turn-round for the Government’s booksand I am very proud to be part of the National Party team bringing about this turn-round for New Zealand.Last week I had the privilege of hosting a visit to the Coromandel electorate by the Hon Nathan Guy Minister for Primary Industries and on the Thursday of last week we visited the Ngātea school which is the Hauraki Plains College. There they have an agricultural farm the Hayward Farm where the school pupils at Hauraki Plains College can learn practical agricultural skills and the Minister was delighted to see them doing fencing chainsaw repairs quad bike riding and all the sorts of good things that young aspirant agricultural farmers want to do. So this new generation of young farmers were learning the skills they need—hard-working farming families helping to produce the very high-value protein products for a hungry world which we will be exporting and will be continuing to export over the next foreseeable future.All the indicators are looking good and over the next decade or so New Zealanders will be presented with what could possibly be the most beneficial superb and favourable trading conditions that we have had in several generations. These young students on the Hauraki Plains understand the bright future that is ahead of them. They are keen to get into farming they are keen to get into agriculture because they understand how important agriculture has been in our history and will be going forward into the future.But it is not just farming that will be confronted with a bright future. It is also good to understand that our aquacultural sector will be booming as well. I also took the opportunity to take Minister Guy up to the Coromandel Harbour and as I said we went out on the worst day of the week in terms of the challenging weather. We went out to see Greenshell New Zealand’s mussel farms at Wilson Bay where the Government has doubled the size of water space available for the growth of Coromandel mussels. I was very pleased to be with Peter Vitasovich and his team from Greenshell New Zealand. Interestingly enough that company won the New Zealand Food and Beverage Exporter of the Year award just the other night and that was a great-news story for it.In Katikati which is part of the Coromandel electorate there is a company called Puma Darts where they are exporting their high-quality game darts the sorts of darts that you throw at a board in a pub or a club somewhere around the world and they are—[Interruption ] Yes indeed they could do that for a leadership dart. They could throw a dart in there in Katikati and the Puma Darts people could probably find a target for the Leader of the Opposition. But there they are export-led they are doing great things on behalf of the New Zealand economy and doing very well. Also in Katikati is a terrific business called Triodent where they are exporting over $50 million a year of their specialised dental products to the world—$50 million a year in export dollars coming out of Katikati.Budget 2013 continues the message of building momentum. The Budget confirms that New Zealand is on the right track that the Government is on the right track that the party that is in power is on the right track and that people are liking that. Opinion polls in theNew Zealand Heraldproduced this morning show that New Zealanders are liking that and they are not liking the prospect of the alternatives that they are confronted with. They do not like that at all.Maggie Barry: Who could blame them?SCOTT SIMPSON: Who could blame them indeed? So responsible management of the Government’s books and careful prudent stewardship of the finances is what this Government is all about—nothing weird nothing wacky nothing strange nothing unusual no printing of money no borrowing unnecessarily nothing weird or unusual at all. It is just steady as she goes good stable Government from a good stable set of hands on the Treasury benches and that is something that the New Zealand public areenjoying and are warming to. They like it. They like the bright future that is available to us. These are good measures. I commend them to the House.