Upston Louise: General Debate 
Upston Louise: General Debate 
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LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupo) 
: 
 Tena koe Mr Assistant Speaker. Actions speak louder than words and this Government led by our able Prime Minister John Key is getting things done. I want to touch on a couple of issues that the previous Government raised in terms of district health boards the Department of Corrections and the accident compensation scheme. This side of the House has able Ministers who have had to deal with poorly managed and badly performing departments. Those Ministers took decisive action to sort out the problems. They are more examples of a Government getting things done. 
Today I want to focus on one primary action one action that will have a significant impact on the Taupo electorate and that is the cycleway project. I want to talk about the Waikato River Trails. This was a project selected as one that had been earmarked as a quick start. Many members will not be aware of the Waikato River Trails project so I want to provide a bit of background on its success. The idea started back in 2002 with a job summit arranged by the South Waikato District Council. The council could see changes in its local economy. It was concerned about job losses and it decided to find an economic initiative that would create jobs and business opportunities and increase tourism to the district. The dream was to create walking and cycling tracks along the Waikato River. Once completed the trails would cover 100 kilometres winding along a path that encompasses the magic and beauty of our native bush exotic forest historic landmarks interesting rock formations geological delights open reserve and boardwalks through significant wetlands; not to mention of course our expansive lake and river views. 
The driving force behind this project is a keen group of volunteers—the Waikato River Trails Trust. Their passion and drive for the project have been inspiring. They have already completed 34 kilometres of the trails which are open to the public today. They are close to completing another 25 kilometres but the Government funding will make the critical difference to this project because it will mean that the project will be completed—the extra 41 kilometres—by the end of summer. The dream is becoming a reality. Public access to these natural assets has been made possible only by the construction of these trails. They are parts of New Zealand that people had not had access to before the river cycleway and walkway were constructed. Forty-five people have been employed in the project to date. 
I want to tell members about some of those people. I have met the group that has been constructing the walkway between Arapuni and Horahora. They were previously unemployed. They were a group of people on the unemployment benefit who got jobs constructing the trails. This has been a great success story because 80 percent of the people who have been working on the trails have gone on to further employment. That is the sort of success we want to see as part of the cycleway project. I repeat that 80 percent of the previously unemployed people who have been constructing the trail have gone on to further employment. When we look at the National Government’s funding of the next 41 kilometres of the cycleway we find that just in building the trail alone there are another 37 new jobs. That is before we talk about what businesses pop up in terms of bed and breakfasts transfer services shops that all of a sudden get business where they did not before and cafes that get business through hospitality coffee ice cream and all those sorts of things. 
In addition to the Waikato River Trails I am excited about the Hauraki Plains trail the central North Island rail trail and the Mount Ruapehu to Wanganui trail which have been identified as priority projects for a quick start. All three of these projects are within a few kilometres of the Waikato River Trails so very quickly we have a connected cycleway that goes for many kilometres stretching through this beautiful country. The tracks will provide a real boost for our local tourism industry stimulating the local economy and providing jobs and opportunities for communities that have experienced tough times. In addition in the north the plan is to construct the cycleway to Cambridge and on to Ngaruawahia. Going further south to Taupo is also on the table and another project is connecting the Maungatautari ecological reserve to the existing Waikato River Trails. This is an example of three councils working closely together in the Taupo electorate for economic good and for jobs.