Robertson GrantHon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): Today's unemployment numbers are something for New Zealand to be proud of. We have the lowest rate of unemployment since the household labour force survey series began in 1986 at 3.2 percent—fewer than 100000 people out of work; more people in work—2.826 million people in work; and wages have continued to rise—4.8 percent in the year to March. And while it is undoubtedly tough going for many New Zealanders with the cost of living rising we have rising wages and that is a sign of strength in our economy. This economic recovery did not happen by accident. This happened because of the hard work of New Zealanders and a Government that had a plan. We always knew that the best health response would be the best economic response. We backed Kiwis to stay in jobs through the wage subsidy scheme. We supported businesses and households to stay afloat and at the same time we made sure there were opportunities to get skills. More than 170000 New Zealanders have benefited from free apprenticeships and targeted trade training. In each of these statistics there is a story. I recently met a woman who had been out of work for many years for a variety of reasons. She had lost confidence that she would ever get a job. When she applied for an office management accountancy role the employer knew they might be taking a risk but they liked her. And together they developed a plan to get on the job training to be able to get her up to speed. Together they've made it work and she is thriving. That is what we can do in New Zealand. Of course we need an immigration system that works to fill skill gaps and we have and we will provide opportunities for people to come to New Zealand to do that. But we have also shown over these last two years that if we invest in people if we help them realise their potential then we have a workforce here at home with the capability and capacity to lift our productivity and prosperity and that is what we've seen. New Zealand is well placed to move forward and face the challenges of 2022. Not only do we have low unemployment we've had 5 percent annual average growth rate. We've got debt that will peak at around half of Australia's a third of the UK's and a fifth of the US and will return to surplus within five years a year earlier than National did after the global financial crisis.Meanwhile on the other side of the House we've got a National Party that's out of touch—reheated policies of the National Party of old tax cuts that give thousands of dollars to those on the highest incomes while offering $2 a week to those on low and middle incomes. But wait—but wait! There is a seismic shift coming to the National Party. If they manage to win the seat of Tauranga then true diversity is about to arrive according to Christopher Luxon. He has told us that his National candidate has something unique and different and it is not a subtly lighter blue suit. To quote Mr Luxon [Sam Uffindell will] bring something really different to our caucus and some diversity to it in that he is really well educated". Finally finally we know what's been missing all along in the National Party: someone who is really well educated. Now here was me thinking the problem with the National caucus was that it has just two Māori members or that it only has 11 women MPs or no Pacific MPs or no Rainbow MPs. But no according to Mr Luxon it's just they're all a bit thick. That's all it is. No doubt Christopher Luxon will slam himself into reverse gear about that statement just as he's done about many other statements. National's "Mr Gaffe man" is an Olympic-level back peddler. Do National support Matariki? Will they cancel Labour Day or any other holiday? Or was he as he told us just being facetious? Now at least with Judith Collins we knew that if we could look at her eyebrows we could tell if she was joking. With Mr Luxon I presume we have to look at the luminescence of his head to tell whether or not he is joking. From wanting to stop subsidising public transport to calling those on income support "bottom feeders" to scrapping the Māori Health Authority how do New Zealanders actually know what Christopher Luxon and the National Party stand for when every day there is the screeching tyres of the black Mercedes in reverse gear? The contrast could not be clearer: a National Party promoting ideas from last century out of touch pale and stale up against a Labour Party focused on providing economic security tackling the big challenges of climate infrastructure and health and with a diverse wildly talented team that I am proud to be part of."