O'Connor GregGREG O'CONNOR (Labour—Ōhāriu): It's terrible to be locked into a time warp; terrible to be locked having to defend the status quo. Actually I'm pleased to see that not all of the National Party are locked into that status quo. Just before this debate began we actually saw some progress that actually takes into account new technology. We have agreed as a House that we can actually conduct a virtual Parliament. Now that's something as we heard in that debate that was unforeseen something that would've been incomprehensible some time ago. But things move on and as the chairman of the Transport and Infrastructure Committee that has had the privilege of taking this bill through the House and listening to some arguments for and against I'm actually convinced that this is another bill whose time has come.I hear those opposite fearful speaking on behalf of those poor old farmers who won't have utes anymore. Well that's not true as we all know. In fact having grown up on farms having grown up in the agricultural community myself I've seen the changes in my own time. It shows that the agricultural community are probably more adaptable than anyone else in New Zealand and will very quickly get into their stride with this change. In fact some of the fears I've heard is that these things don't go very fast. What I'll challenge anyone to do is to get into one of these fully electric vehicles. In the words of someone very close to me they said they go like cut cats.Dr Duncan Webb: I said that.GREG O'CONNOR: In fact the performance of those—no it wasn't the current acting whip who is not very dear to me; it was actually someone much dearer I might say.So this is as I said before an idea whose time has actually come. During the select committee process we did hear from car importers—not manufacturers directly of course—who were concerned that the supply of vehicles necessary would be impeded; in fact wouldn't be able to keep up. But when they were actually pushed on it what they did say—and the Minister previously mentioned this—is that by having these requirements it strengthened their leverage with their parent companies in Japan or in Europe that they were dealing with because it actually meant that when they were actually putting their hand up for a greater supply of these vehicles they were actually given the supply.So while I'll say that many of our submitters were a little concerned that the relatively comfortable world that they are in now would be upset I think when they were actually pushed on questions they all understood that yes there was a lot of innovation happening in all their industries. Unfortunately many of them weren't in a position to actually talk about it if they knew because as we all know with the commercial imperatives none of these companies are going to talk about where they're at until they actually get to launch these vehicles. No one is going to give away that commercial imperative that commercial advantage they have until their products are actually ready to come to New Zealand.So as I said before this is a piece of legislation that those who are standing opposite who are so passionately speaking against—I know in Opposition your job is to oppose but be very careful because often these are the sort of speeches that are thrown back at you if and when you ever do become Government. And I rather suspect that particularly the previous speaker that's the sort of negative speech that he will probably regret in time to come because we are entering an era—just in the last month look at the flooding that's happened. You can't separate the clear climate change evidence that is happening before our very eyes. For some reason there's those who would say that yes there's been a whole lot more heavy rain events heavy wind events and there is clear evidence of the climate change than there are those—I won't say that those opposite are deniers but regretters" would be a better way to describe it. Because the reality of it is that in their own electorates they all know that we have to make these changes and these are the sort of changes in transport that we can make here we can make today. Because if we don't make these changes then we will be letting down those that come after us.So those with this legislation who are now tasked with the I suppose implementation I would say who are the importers those who are going to continue to be able to import high-emitting vehicles—and if you'd listened to the previous speaker you would've thought that all of a sudden the supply of utes into New Zealand was going to be curtailed on day one. No those vehicles will still be able to be imported into New Zealand. You still will be able to get the utility of your choice. Yes your car or your partner at home who drives the electric vehicle the rebate they get will cancel out pretty much the extra fee that will be placed upon the ute and that will be generally a cost-neutral exercise. And I know the next speaker will probably leap up because I said that last time and he saw that as some sort of concession.No it's not because what it does is—as I was speaking to an individual at Fieldays last time we were able to have Fieldays who in the midst of abuse I asked him what sort of vehicle his wife drove and he actually talked about the fact that she had just bought an electric vehicle. When it was pointed out to him that it would be a cost-neutral exercise for his household he actually looked into the air and said "Oh I hadn't realised that." So perhaps some more honesty opposite in the way that some of the constituents are being spoken to might just make things a little less traumatic for some of those who somehow believe that they are going to be forced to be driving electric everything on day one. That's not the case.This legislation is so that the transition we'll be making is now given the necessary legislative design and it will in fact improve the whole of the situation we're trying to do environmentally that we simply must do not only to keep to our international obligations but actually obligations to the next generation. I commend this to the House Mr Speaker."