Dowie Sarah: Debate on Prime Minister’s StatementText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeDowie Sarah: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement[Sitting date: 12 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1573. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]SARAH DOWIE (National—Invercargill):What an opportunity it is to take this call in support of the Prime Minister’s statement. I am so proud to be part of this John Key and National - led Government that has delivered on its promises to New Zealanders. It is a Government that has navigated this country through the global financial crisis all the while supporting the vulnerable and still within its third term has an ambitious programme to lock in the gains we have made and continue to grow this country’s economy to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy to deliver better public services and to support ordinary Kiwis to achieve their hopes and dreams. New Zealand the country that we live in and we thrive in will continue to be the envy of the rest of the world.I want to take this time to talk about our competitive economy which is creating more jobs which is raising incomes and providing more opportunities for our people. What better way to highlight this than to talk about Southland—sensational Southland sunny Southland Sarah’s Southland. Did you know that according to the Business and Economic Research Ltd report of November 2014 that as a region Southland produces 15 percent of New Zealand’s total exports including value-added products?Stuart Smith: How much?SARAH DOWIE: 15 percent. One of the goals of the Business Growth Agenda is for all New Zealand regions to apply a 40 percent ratio of GDP to exports. Southland already has a ratio of 70 percent of our GDP to exports predominantly in the primary value-added industry. That makes Southland the food bowl of New Zealand. Through the opening of markets with our free-trade agreements largely in China we can sell more of our goods. Production is high and we can increase. We have jobs—3.2 percent unemployment.Stuart Smith: How much?SARAH DOWIE: 3.2 percent. In fact local economic agencies are forecasting ongoing demand in the trades technology and service sectors so there will be jobs in the future. The median house price in Invercargill is $186000 against the New Zealand median of $450000—come on down. Southland produces nearly $53000 of GDP per head the third highest in the country behind Taranaki’s oil and gas production and Wellington’s policy production according to the regional economic activity report of 2014 from the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment. Southland is the best in the country when it comes to affordable house rentals. And guess what! In Invercargill we do not have traffic jams. We officially have a rush minute.But we will not rest there. We are ambitious as we move into the future. Diversifying our economy is important to building resilience in an export-driven economy. We have opportunities thanks to the potential of platinum and silica—sensible resource development supported by a John Key – led Government. We have the Southern Institute of Technology offering everything from free trade courses to a Bachelor of Commerce and of course zero fees.There are plenty of reasons to live in Southland. One of them is that Southland responds well to responsible fiscally savvy and forward-thinking Governments like this National-led one. We will create policy and macroeconomic tools to ensure Southland Invercargill and any other parts of New Zealand that want to work as hard as us Southlanders will have the opportunities to do so and to create more wealth jobs and chances.This team on the centre to centre-right is a united one. Our Prime Minister is inspiring our Ministers are brilliant and our members are passionate about the regions they represent and this country. We will work together and we will continue to deliver for the people of New Zealand now and in the future.