SpeechHon MEKA WHAITIRI (Minister of Customs): E te Māngai o te Whare tēna koe otirā ngā Mema katoa tēnā tātou katoa. E ngā mate huhua kua wehe atu ki te pō haere haere moe mai rā.[Madam Speaker greetings to you and greetings to all the honourable members. To the many deceased who have recently passed may you rest in peace.]It's customary to farewell those who have recently passed amongst our members so I wanted to acknowledge that.I am proud to take a call on the Prime Minister's statement. I'm proud and stand in solidarity because not only did the plan that the Prime Minister deliver in this House talk about what we have delivered with a backdrop of a pandemic but also a plan forward to take this great nation forward. This Government has been around delivering for all while managing and keeping people safe and that's what I want to touch on in the short time I have in contributing to this debate: keeping people safe taking a health-lens approach that ensures not only the safety of all New Zealanders but to enable our economy to thrive. The COVID-19 Protection Framework not only kept us safe but it has proven to be safe—having one of the lowest not only hospitalisation rates but mortality rates in the developed world and that's something we shouldn't lose sight of.The vaccination roll-out plan—something very dear to my heart particularly when it came to the people I represent of Ikaroa-Rāwhiti and our Māori and Pacific communities. I want to acknowledge the many hauora providers around the motu: our iwi organisations that stepped in to that bridge our social services providers who worked in tandem with our DHB leadership. It was a complete nationwide effort and I want to acknowledge everybody that ensured our vaccination rates went up. I am pleased to announce that the Hawke's Bay yesterday for all eligible Māori first-time vaccination finally hit the 90 percent mark. So I'm very very proud about that: securing our economy and our future.We heard—and I was hoping that the member that just resumed his seat Simeon Brown and many others on the Opposition benches would talk about their plan but I haven't heard anything. So this is supposed to be a debate you put up your plan and you counter that plan but I didn't hear one thing from that member that resumed his seat. So he talked about non-delivery. Let's just put this on the pages of Hansard. Let's talk about the $8.8 billion that we invested in health through the COVID period. Let's talk about the $22.9 billion invested in saving jobs like wage subsidies to support businesses whānau workers. I'm proud that we have responded to the urgent needs of our communities of our businesses and of our workers in securing our economic future. But for now I want to acknowledge the role of the primary sector. Record export earnings over the last 12 months. I want to acknowledge what they have contributed to this nation while many of us were being locked down—the delivery the returns. That has been fantastic for the country.The Prime Minister talked about reconnecting to the world and I want to acknowledge the United Kingdom Fair Trade Agreement and the pending one with the European Union because those offer huge opportunities for not only our primary sectors but our emerging industries whether it's in the creative whether it's in the IT. We've got some creative minds in this country and having new trading partners opens those opportunities. So that's why I'm proud that this side has not only secured an FTA with the UK but is working very very hard on one with the European Union.When we talk about modernising New Zealand's infrastructure you cannot go past the $53.3 billion that we have invested in infrastructure. This is where our new schools our hospitals—the major infrastructure that we require around the nation to keep us a thriving and growing nation that I'm really proud that we have announced. Higher wages and growing skills all add to the possibility of rangatahi that are out there thinking where is their hope for the future. That's why an investment this significant in the work that we're doing around Mana in Mahi and the opportunities around apprenticeships bode well for our rangatahi who want to see their future in this nation.This was a great delivery from the Prime Minister. It is an inclusive plan that takes all New Zealanders all Aotearoa along with us as we still continue to deal with COVID-19. I endorse this plan and I present it to the House.