Salesa JennyHon JENNY SALESA (Labour—Panmure-Ōtāhuhu): Kia ora koutou e te Māngai o te Whare. Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me this opportunity to contribute to the third reading of the European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill. I would like to begin by congratulating the Minister for Trade the Hon Todd McClay for all of your work and with your officials on ensuring that this trade agreement is ratified earlier than originally scheduled. In June of 2018 New Zealand and the EU formally launched negotiations and I would like to also acknowledge and thank the former Minister for Trade and Export Growth the Hon Damien O'Connor as well as Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials for everything that you did over the years to ensure that this agreement was actually finalised. We know—just by looking across the Ditch for instance—just how challenging and hard these negotiations can be. There are not that many things that we can actually be really proud of that we can say we were first across the line before our neighbours—this is one of them.The EU is a close and like-minded partner for New Zealand. We have long historical cultural political and economic ties with Europe and this actually provides a good foundation for the relationship that we have with the EU and for its 27 partner States. The EU is our fourth-largest trading partner and with a combined population as covered by former trade Ministers of 450 million. It is really amazing that such a huge block—450 million—have actually decided to have an agreement with us. Not only are there just over 5 million people here but we're on the other side of the world. It is really fantastic to see that this actually happens.Can I also just say to the Minister for Trade as well as the chair of the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee and all members—well actually most members of the House. It is really good that on this issue—trade—we usually agree. When we sit in the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee—the current Minister and I were members of that committee last term—most things that come across our committee we actually agree on. Long may it last—the fact that we always agree that trade is so important for our country.Now one of the submissions that came through to the select committee was from Zespri—which is as many of you know especially those of you from rural New Zealand 100 percent owned by New Zealand kiwifruit growers—strongly supporting this bill. Zespri exports to more than 50 countries across the world. They have over 2800 growers and the EU is one of their largest markets with $1.2 billion sales in 2022-23. Zespri has incurred $47 million in tariffs on sales to the EU in the season before last so when this agreement goes into effect and 8.8 percent of the tariffs are removed that would deliver significant benefits and values to those growers as well as to Aotearoa New Zealand.Now in my last minute and a half I'd like to highlight two provisions in this agreement. The first is the trade and labour provision which states that New Zealand and the EU have both committed to respect to promote and to realise the International Labour Organization's (ILO) fundamental principles and rights at work as well as to making continued and sustained efforts to ratify the fundamental ILO conventions that they have yet to ratify. Now both New Zealand and the EU have also agreed to promote the strategic objectives of the ILO's Decent Work agenda. The last provision I'd like to highlight is the trade and gender equality chapter which includes binding commitment to implement the relevant UN conventions that address gender equality and women's rights. Both the EU and New Zealand have also agreed to strengthen their cooperation on trade-related aspects of gender equality and this includes CEDAW—which is the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.We know that the economic modelling suggests that by 2035 this agreement will generate up to $1.4 billion to New Zealand. I strongly commend this bill to the House.