Guy Nathan: Address in Reply 
Guy Nathan: Address in Reply 
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NATHAN GUY (National) 
: 
 Congratulations Madam Speaker on your election. I welcome members of caucus friends colleagues National Party leader Don Brash National Party president Judy Kirk and Geoff Thompson the former member for Horowhenua. 
I wish to acknowledge the late John Falloon. He had an influence on my entering the House and he may never have known that. He judged me in a young farmers’ competition many many years ago. That evening we were having a drink and he said to me: “Young man you’ve got political bones in your body.” I said: “Have I?” and he said: “You have. Don’t ever forget that.” I have treasured those couple of words that he said to me. My condolences go out to Philippa and the family. 
I am delighted to be in the House representing the National Party and the people of Kapiti and Horowhenua. I wish to thank my parents Malcolm and Betty who are here today for their guidance and encouragement throughout my life. I wish to acknowledge my wife Erica who is here today. She is the proud mother of our son Henry who is turning 1 tomorrow. This is a journey that we are undertaking as a strong family unit. I thank them for their support. I say thank you to my brother Christopher and his wife. As Wellingtonians they are just up the road and that is great to know. 
I take my hat off to the Hon Roger Sowry who was 15 years in this House representing Kapiti and Otaki. He is missed in caucus and his support of me is valued. I know he is only a phone call away. I also wish to acknowledge the warmth of his wife Shirley. Thank you. My electorate chairman Ted Cobb who could not be here today has offered me decades of support with his wife Jenny. My campaign chairman Mike Gilbert did a fantastic job with our team in the campaign this year. We are privileged with the result we got in Otaki; we started from 7700-odd behind and it is now the most marginal seat in the country. I say to Mike that I need him to hang tough for me; we have unfinished business. 
There are many more people who I would love to mention here today. They are people who tirelessly gave their support to me and to the National Party: Ann Rogers Peter Roe Shelly Mitchell-Jenkins Russell Griffiths Lisa O’Neill and Bruce and Elaine Little—all of Levin; Sue and Ridley Stockwell of Foxton; Antone Smith and John Williams of Shannon; Alan and Daphne Ayson of Waikanae; Murray Lobb John Aburn and Sam Simms of Paraparaumu; and last but by no means least Sue Reid who has given me wonderful support here in Parliament. 
The Otaki electorate combines the districts of Horowhenua and Kapiti stretching from Paraparaumu to Tokomaru and containing a diverse mix of people and communities. I was born and bred there. I believe in our region’s exciting future and I am ready to play my role in making a difference. 
The Guy family has a proud history in politics. I am the fifth generation in local government politics. I am fortunate to have made the step up and to be representing the Guy family here today. We started with Duncan Guy my great-great-grandfather in the Napier Borough Council—probably before Pania was even there. My father Malcolm and grandfather Duncan were both county chairmen in the Horowhenua district. Our family has worked for years and years for different sectors of our community including the Maori people—mainly around the restoration of Lake Horowhenua. He moana pukepuke e ekengia e te waka. A choppy sea can be navigated. Persevere. The Guy family are listeners and leaders. We put people first. We prefer to lead by consensus if we can. But we are prepared to make a stand and stick to it. 
Members will have seen this. I have come out strong on Transmission Gully as I believe we need an alternative route in and of Wellington. [ 
Interruption 
] I advise the member for Wairarapa not to worry about the Rimutaka road right now—this is my turn. I was also strong on saving our rescue helicopter launching a petition that collected 13000 signatures. As a Horowhenua district councillor of three terms I have enjoyed my experience in local government. I am ready for the challenge that lies ahead. 
In the last few years I have seen the impacts of legislation passed by this House actually affecting the wallets of my ratepayers in Horowhenua. I am concerned about rural representation now that the Local Government Act allows councils to move away from voting by ward to district-wide voting. My concern with this is that rural communities are going to be neglected and forgotten by the power base of the urban voter. Rural representation needs to be fair and balanced. I say to members that it will not be if we head down that track. 
My grandmother’s Nathan family also served in the community. My great-grandfather Fred Nathan was Mayor of Palmerston North. He was instrumental in lobbying the Government way way back for an agriculture college in Palmerston North. This college is now called Massey University and I proudly spent 4 years there—as Ashraf Choudhary mentioned earlier. As leading figures in the dairy industry the Nathan family produced Glaxo pharmaceutical products and milk powder. My great-grandfather appreciated the value of agricultural research and education and so do I. Our farming business north of Levin has grown through three generations of Guys who have farmed the land through advances in technology research and development. We have been pioneers of peaty swamp land which we have now developed into black gold—that is of course if the Manawatu River does not decide to smash its stopbank down like it did on our property in 2004 when we had 1000 acres under water for a month. We travelled over our farm in a speedboat without hitting a fence. 
I am a supporter of the upkeep of major rivers being subsidised by central government not just by those people who live in the proximity of the stopbank who have to pay most of the rates. Rivers are a national public good. As river channels continue to clog up the cost of raising stopbanks will be huge and I fear New Zealand will end up like Holland where the water always runs above houses. This is a big issue and one that I believe needs addressing. That flood tested our mettle did it not Dad? We are a family of survivors and I will need survival instincts in here. I have been on the bottom of a few rucks when I have played NPC rugby and I am prepared for the kicking I may get here. But I will always stand up and smile at my opposition. 
We are in the business of people grass cows and milk—yes people first. I will need to escape from here from time to time to get back to the green pastures of Koputaroa near Levin and my staff of seven will provide that necessary reality check with the grassroots. I need to thank my farm team for all that they have done for me to enable me to get here today. They are probably milking the cows as we speak and listening to the radio. Do not forget to hose the poo off the wall fellas! 
Today I question how much we value agriculture in this House. I believe we are losing our rural roots our Kiwi number eight wire mentality and our can-do attitude. Last weekend I judged an iconic rural event. It was calf and lamb day—agriculture day. The numbers of children and pets that are participating in that event are dwindling across the country. Those numbers continue to decline as it is easier for kids to watch TV and play PlayStation than to look after their pets. I believe that we actually need to be fostering greater links in schools with urban and rural communities. More and more people are growing up in schools with no appreciation of rural life. People in the past may have had the opportunity as children of going out to their grandparents’ farm in the holidays. That seems to be dwindling and I am concerned about the possible divide in this country. 
Even the Speech from the Throne outlining the Government’s plans for the next 3 years paid little attention to the country’s producers. It is no wonder that National did so well in provincial New Zealand. Those in the agricultural sector will be sorely disappointed with the Government’s vision of our most productive sector I believe. “The backbone of the New Zealand economy will continue to be our primary industries … with the objective of ensuring these sectors lead the way in improving productivity and in innovation.” That was it—a 45-minute speech and agriculture gets mentioned in two sentences. 
New Zealand has depended on the agriculture sector for the majority of its export earnings for more than a century and we all know that it will depend on it for the next century—we can bank on that. Fonterra is New Zealand’s No. 1 company. It is a world leader in exports and it is ranked among the top ten dairy companies in the world. We actually need to pay accolades to that company not knock it around. We should spare a thought for the cow cockies who get up at 4 a.m. in the morning and work extremely hard to support their families and earn our export dollars. The Fonterra chairman Henry van der Heyden has said that the message still has not got across to urban New Zealand and the Government as to how important the pastoral industry is to this economy. I quote from Henry Van der Heyden: “If the pastoral economy declines the whole economy declines. The aim should be to increase funding for research and development with the aim of lifting productivity rather than trying to start new industries.” I endorse those comments and will push hard for increased funding into pastoral research and development and innovation. 
During my first term I want to earn the respect of my colleagues and the trust of the National Party people in Kapiti and Horowhenua. In conclusion I will endeavour to make the right decisions. My can-do attitude is the way that New Zealand used to be. We have not lost that attitude; we have just forgotten that it is OK to work hard and play hard. If my seat in the House is ever empty people can rest assured that I will be working hard in the Otaki electorate. I am ready for the battle. Kia kaha tena koutou tena koutou tena koutou katoa.