McKelvie IanESTIMATES DEBATEIn CommitteeDebate resumed from 6 July on the Appropriation (2016/17 Estimates) Bill.Primary Sector (continued)IAN McKELVIE (Chairperson of the Primary Production Committee): Tēnā koe Mr Chair. As I said in the few seconds I had last night when I was interrupted while talking about the travelling levy imposed on the taxpayer the levy saved a significant amount of money for our taxpayers and significantly boosted the opportunity for border security and our biosecurity challenge at the border. We of course have quite a number of challenges around biosecurity and particularly in the last year or so we have had challenges around velvet grass fruit fly and others and it is very important that the Budget for this is maintained. Biosecurity is absolutely our priority along with food security in maintaining our export industries in New Zealand.I want to talk about one or two other topics that I think are hugely important. One is the Crown investment irrigation fund which amounts to some $102 million. When you look at the irrigation progress in New Zealand and you think about how any business in New Zealand or any council in New Zealand started its water schemes and you look at the manner in which these irrigation schemes are being I guess commenced it is hugely important that there is some seed funding in place to make sure—Denis O'Rourke: That's not how they got started.IAN McKELVIE: —that these schemes—the knowledgable man. It is hugely important that there is the opportunity for seed funding to fund the piece that we need to commence these funds. I congratulate the Minister for Primary Industries and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) on the initiative to get this under way. It is hugely important for New Zealand's future and it is important for those schemes but it also contributes significantly to our environmental challenges and the ability to improve the environmental outcome for those regions where these irrigation schemes take place. I also want to talk briefly about food safety which along with biosecurity is the other very important leg that props up and supports our food industry in New Zealand. Of course our food industry completely relies on agriculture and the product of agriculture to ensure it keeps going. It is a very important part of the business of MPI and the primary industry sector. I want to talk briefly also about the Primary Growth Partnership (PGP). We have got a significant fund in this area—some $720 million worth of Government funding and private investment contributing to some very good outcomes in this area particularly around the Afforestation Grants Scheme where we have another $22.5 million. Back to the PGP there is some very exciting work being undertaken here. We have got Precision Seafood Harvesting which has produced a great result for New Zealand. We have also got the Steepland Harvesting PGP Programme and some pretty amazing technologies being used in this area now which is saving lives encouraging efficiency and certainly making a great difference to the way our forestry industry works. Of course right at this moment in New Zealand the forestry industry is seeing some of its best prices probably ever for export logs and is certainly giving encouragement to that sector in encouraging it to plant more trees as we go along. The PGP of course as I have said has had some $720 million worth of Government and private investment to date and I think we are going to see a great result from that in due course. Just on the issue of TB funding which has had some changes this year—some $69.8 million worth of Government funding has been added to the TB challenge along with the $30 million that we already had in this area which has made quite a difference to this. But the point I really want to make is that the farmers' contribution to this on top of that is another $150 million over the 4 years. So that is pretty much satisfactory. Thank you.