Genter Julie AnneHon JULIE ANNE GENTER (Minister for Women): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker. Tēnā koutou e Te Whare. I am so proud to be a Green Minister in this coalition Government. In fact I was reflecting listening to the Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern give the opening statement that I have not been so proud—I never imagined I could be so proud—of where New Zealand is right now. In all my time as a member of Parliament I've never listened to the PM's statement with so much pride. On the world stage at the UN she is setting the tone. She's demonstrating as a young woman leader what the next generation of global leaders will need to do and can do to solve the challenges that we are facing of climate change and inequality. Already this Government is delivering on some of that good green change that we campaigned on and will make a real difference to New Zealanders.In the area of transport we are investing record amounts to make zero-emission transport the easy option the affordable option that will enable more people to access opportunities education and employment. The tired old way that the last Government and previous Governments before them were planning for transport improvements actually limited people's choice and increased pollution and this Government is turning that around. We are giving people real choice in how they get around whether that's by car bus train bike or even e-scooter. That will make the big difference to congestion in our cities. By giving people more choice we take cars off congested roads and free them up for the tradies and the freight that needs to move on them.We're making it possible to build more quality inner-city housing and vibrant neighbourhoods by linking people's homes to the city with world-class light rail lines and I know the Opposition loves to scaremonger about light rail. The truth is New Zealand is so far behind the rest of the world when it comes to investing in quality public transport and Aucklanders are desperate for it but it's not just Aucklanders who will benefit from quality public transport infrastructure in our biggest cities.We are making our roads safer because we do not accept that 380 people dying on our roads every year is an acceptable price to pay. Our investment in road safety is really about drastically cutting the number of white crosses on the sides of our roads right across the country. It's not about cutting a few ribbons in a few National Party electorates. I know that the Opposition would love to believe that you can cut taxes and spend billions on infrastructure at the same time—actually that's not possible. But also instead of just spending the money on a few flash motorways like a couple of kilometres of the East-West Link—which that Government was planning to spend an eye-watering amount on for 5.5 kilometres of motorway—we are actually going to improve safety right around the country because that's how you reduce deaths and serious injuries on our roads.As the Minister for Women I'm incredibly proud at the progress we have already made in introducing pay equity legislation that will actually help women get a better deal not put barriers in their way. Women in this country should be paid fairly for the work they do and the undervaluing of so-called women's work needs to stop. We need to recognise the incredible contribution—economic contribution but more importantly social contribution—that is made by women in the form of unpaid work.In the health area we are making real progress on mental health. When I was young like so many other people I went through some times that were extremely emotionally turbulent. I was fortunate enough to have access to counselling support when I needed it and I believe all young people should have that kind of access to health. This week I had the honour of launching alongside Minister Clark and my colleague Chlöe Swarbrick the youth mental health pilot Piki in Porirua. This was a key part of the Greens' confidence and supply agreement with Labour. This pilot will help an estimated 10000 young people access support when they are facing mild to moderate mental health challenges. Young people are already leading Aotearoa's response on mental health and are demanding change. I am proud to stand with them and deliver real results.This year I look forward to the Minister for Climate Change and the Green Party co-leader introducing the zero carbon bill. As a new parent this issue is incredibly important to me. We are making real progress on the issues that matter most to New Zealanders.