Jones ShaneHon SHANE JONES (Minister of Forestry): Kia ora anō tātou. E Maika tōku mārohirohi. E Maika tōku tautōhito. E Maika tōku taitoa. Kua pau te wā i whakaritea ai mōu hāereere ai i waenga tonu i runga tonu i te motu. E hoki koe ki te iwi kua oti noa atu i a rātou te takahi atu i te ara whakamutunga. Nā reira e kara e moe moe oti atu e. [Greetings again to all. Mike my strong one. Mike my wise one. Mike my courageous one. Expired is the time that was allowed for you to travel amongst us and on this land. Return to the people those who have completed their traverse of the final path. Therefore my friend rest rest rest in eternity.]It was 1988 when for a mercifully short period of time I was employed by Geoffrey Palmer. I was sent to represent Geoffrey Palmer because of blistering attacks coming from the National Party against the Lange Labour Government's Treaty policy. In that meeting was Koro Wētere Roger Douglas Mr Prebble and Mike Moore and there was fear that attacks from the Opposition Māori affairs spokesman were starting to lacerate the ranks of the front bench of the Labour Party. Mike Moore said This guy Peters is making traction." Richard Prebble said "He must be stopped. How do we slow these things down?" Douglas said "How much will it cost?" Koro Wētere said "It's time to eat." That was an introduction for a 28-year-old working at the highest levels—along with Hekia Parata—of what passes for the Cabinet-style Government dealing with in the 1980s Treaty of Waitangi issues. Mike also wrote a book. He was a great believer in encouraging people to self-educate to persevere with expanding the frontiers of knowledge. He got this book published and brought it to Matauri Bay. It was about a thousand pages long. The name of the book was A World Without Walls. It was his gospel of free trade freedom development and global governance. He gave me a copy. He did something quite staggering given his belief in education—a thousand pages long dense UN speak. He gave a copy for self-edification and education to Dover Samuels. I can assure you if there's ever a book that was never opened in the hands of a senior Māori it is that particular missive or tome. There's a famous saying and if I'm not mistaken it's from Julius Caesar that "A coward dies many times before their death". This man was no political coward. He has died only once. Sure he suffered setbacks but he stood up and kept going whether it's as a cancer survivor as a very young man whether it's as a failed unfulfilled young political candidate or whether it's as a short but enjoyable period of time that he enjoyed as the leader. So we salute him today a fine New Zealander very popular amongst the earthy side of our electorate and very capable—as Mr Brownlee has pointed out—of enjoying the company of his great friend Neville Wran or Mr Beazley or a host of other luminaries that he introduced us to when we made various trips as MPs to America when he was the ambassador. He truly was a people's champion. To his wife Yvonne: ngā mihi nui ki a koe. Without a doubt on Friday it will be a difficult day. But for those of us who will be present to support you in that particular searching period we offer you our prayers we offer you our support and we know that friends and others will gather around you after the crowds have disappeared and returned to their own families and their lives. The final saying is that good men must die—me mate te tangata—but death cannot kill their names—e kore ō rātou ingoa e mūreia. A good man has died but his name will live on in this House and amongst those of us who practise the arts of democracy and politics. Kia ora tātou."