English Bill: Ministerial Statements — Earthquake—Christchurch 
English Bill: Ministerial Statements — Earthquake—Christchurch 
[Volume:670;Page:16943] 
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Deputy Prime Minister) 
 on behalf of the  
Prime Minister 
: I wish to make a ministerial statement. Today we would as a Parliament particularly want to mark the tragic loss of life and injury that has occurred as a result of the earthquake in Canterbury yesterday to express our deepest sympathy to the families friends and colleagues of those who have died and those who are still missing and to acknowledge the work of the rescue teams who are working so hard in very difficult circumstances. 
Yesterday was indeed one of New Zealand’s darkest days. It is hard to believe that this Parliament is again assembling to mark another tragedy although the scale and severity of this second Christchurch earthquake is so far beyond our experience that only the pictures can capture the horrendous scale and impact of the disaster. Our thoughts and our hearts turn to the people of Christchurch who know they have lost loved ones. To grieving mothers and fathers brothers and sisters sons and daughters partners and friends I say please accept our condolences our sympathy and our support on behalf of all New Zealanders. To those who wait anxiously to hear news of those who are missing I say we feel their anxiety and we know that as the hours pass their anxiety will grow and so will ours. We are a small close-knit country and many people stand with them while they wait. Let me repeat the assurance given by the Prime Minister earlier today: no one will be left to walk this journey alone; New Zealand will walk this journey with them. 
 The focus right now is on saving lives rescuing those who are trapped and treating those who are injured. Already we have witnessed some inspirational stories of rescue. Of course there are many stories yet untold of workers and passers-by helping their mates and strangers alike and saving lives. Those efforts and the efforts of many hundreds of courageous search and rescue workers emergency personnel medical professionals and others will continue for as long as it takes. 
Government agencies working with other groups have moved swiftly to get people and resources into Christchurch to lead and support the rescue effort. That includes about 100 New Zealand search and rescue specialists on the ground in Christchurch. They are being joined today by two Australian search and rescue teams of about 150 people in total. We have 600 military staff on the ground and the Defence Force has several ships and aircraft in the area. In addition to the Christchurch police force over 230 extra police staff are arriving from other districts. Some arrived last night and others are arriving throughout today. Medical staff have come into Christchurch from around New Zealand and Australia. Many thousands of volunteers are lending a hand in the best way that they know how. This Parliament should have the reassurance that every possible resource not just nationally but globally that is relevant to securing the lives of people affected by this earthquake is in Christchurch or is on the way there. 
I acknowledge the generous offers of sympathy and support we have received from around the world. The Queen has conveyed her deepest sympathy to the families and friends of those who have been killed. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has expressed her condolences and has made a number of concrete offers of assistance which we have accepted. President Obama British Prime Minister Cameron and Canadian Prime Minister Harper have joined other world leaders in expressing their personal sympathy at our nation’s loss. We have also received generous offers of help from many of our international friends. We have accepted offers from Australia the United States Singapore Japan the United Kingdom and Taiwan. We are continuing to assess the requirements of Christchurch and other offers of help that have come in which we will keep under review. 
We know many people around the world are anxious to contact family and friends who are visiting or living in Christchurch. We are in close contact with foreign missions in New Zealand and I want to assure those countries—those who have offered help and those who have nationals in New Zealand—that we are making every attempt we can to find and identify their people. 
It is a time for all of us to focus on saving lives and helping the people of Christchurch. Other questions have arisen as a result of the earthquake. We have been asked about the likely economic impact of what has happened. It is really too soon to look at these questions in detail but we want to reassure New Zealanders that the Earthquake Commission the Government Crown agencies and private insurers have all assured us that they have the resources to meet these challenges and the will to overcome them. I am absolutely confident that our community and our economy have the resilience to come through this. It will be a priority for this Government to recover from the Christchurch earthquake. 
Our immediate and pressing priority right now though is the people of Christchurch who desperately need our help. In the previous 6 months they have endured more pain more anxiety and more heartache than most of us would have to endure over a lifetime and they are being called on again for more endurance. As a fellow South Islander I know that the people of Christchurch will have the spirit to come through this. The traditional South Island grittiness will stand them in good stead. But of course they need our support and we want to absolutely reassure them that they have our support. We will see lives today that are shattered brittle and anxious but those lives will be rebuilt tomorrow. In the last 2 days we have seen a city destroyed but it will be rebuilt for tomorrow. The Government and all of New Zealand will do everything possible to make that happen.