Mark RonHon RON MARK (Deputy Leader—NZ First): Thank you Mr Speaker. It is a privilege and an honour to be able to stand and speak on behalf of the Deputy Prime Minister—our leader—the Rt Hon Winston Peters and that I do today.Thank you Mr Speaker. Could we first of all congratulate the Rt Hon Trevor Mallard on his election as Speaker of this House. Congratulations also to the new Deputy Speaker and the Assistant Speakers. We look forward to maintaining the harmonious relationships that have begun and to which we are accustomed. We want to congratulate all the MPs who have been elected to this House whether newly elected or returning and most especially my colleagues from New Zealand First.We in New Zealand First are greatly appreciative of the support we received across the length and breadth of New Zealand—from Kaitāia in the Far North to Stewart Island in the South. New Zealand First voters signalled that they had had enough. We here in New Zealand First heard their message. It informed our subsequent negotiations and then our decision to enter into a coalition with the New Zealand Labour Party. We will not forget our voters or their expectations of us over these next three years. In many respects it was a difficult campaign for all of those parties not labelled Labour or National. We all felt the squeeze as the media chose to frame the election contest as a straight two-horse race which it was not. So let me pose this question: how after our eighth post-MMP campaign and election can the political media still be lagging so far behind the reality of New Zealand's multiparty politics? But in another respect we could call the 2017 general election the keystone election". Former Prime Minister Sir John Key's decision to abandon National—as we knew he would—left it vulnerable to his lieutenant's judgments and so National ended up running around during the campaign like keystone cops. Self-styled campaign maestro the Hon Steven Joyce tripped up in a hole of his own fevered imagination—a pretty slight indeed just like his pretty legal defence of lifting Eminem's music from three years earlier.The decision by National to tell the public to cut out the middleman was designed to kill us off here in New Zealand First. Well that short-term tactic the electoral arm of National's all-pervasive "short-termism" didn't succeed and New Zealand First and the country has emerged the stronger for it.But enough of the past—well almost—maybe. New Zealand First ultimately succeeded because National was tired. It was tired of the public. It was tired of criticism. It was tired of cooperating with anyone but its mates. The maestro's strategy was always going to lead to a cul-de-sac. All could see it bar the honourable member and his colleagues. But for the remnants of its third-to-last victim the hapless Colin Craig and his Conservative Party's nearly four percent National had no more votes left to feed on so its electoral fuel was spent. So National put themselves there where they now sit.The campaign also revealed that Labour leader Jacinda Ardern had a personality and had skills that voters found refreshing and appealing and encouraging—the Prime Minister has some serious game. The rise in support for Labour that followed the Prime Minister's elevation was historically significant. That is a fact we are now very happy to acknowledge even if at the time that it was happening we felt somewhat less inclined to do so.MMP is about learning how to compete hard for a party vote share within an overall strategic framework of cooperation with like-minded parties so that once the dust has settled separate parties with unique identities can come together in the public's interests. During our history of proportional representation parties that have remembered that wisdom have succeeded. The parties that haven't remembered it have only repeated their same old mistakes. On election night with still over 15 percent of the vote to come in the media once more fell over themselves to declare the Government formation a done deal. The public however understood better than their fourth estate that the election night result was only a provisional one. There was no panic. There was no capital flight. In fact New Zealand seemed to survive it all right. The sun kept rising in the morning and setting in the evening and the All Blacks carried on winning in our absence. The people went about their business undisturbed. No one fainted during the tiny window of uncertainty while our democracy's votes were fully counted at least not on this side of the House. Then once the final results were declared with each party now being delivered its final hand of cards by the people the process of Government formation began.We in New Zealand First entered into negotiations with National and Labour in good faith. We maintained that good faith throughout with both parties and we will continue to maintain and honour the confidentiality agreements that we made. We believe that good faith was reciprocated. Our focus was then as it is now on policy. We wanted as a coalition partner the party that would share our policy vision going forward. We knew we couldn't win everything but we wanted to work with the party that having committed to an agreed-upon policy vision would work with New Zealand First to translate it into action to make New Zealand a demonstrably better place. We wanted as a partner the party that like us believed in the potential of all New Zealanders from all walks of life to be the best that they can be.This positive view of the New Zealand people their strength of character in good times and in bad their resilience their hope every single day for their children to do better be better and reach higher than they had was always on our minds as we worked through negotiations policy area by policy area. For far too many New Zealanders the neo-liberal forces of the past three-plus decades are seen as having left too many of their countrymen and women powerless to shape their own futures. In another similar age when wealth was also grossly unequal the same forces of avarice greed and rampant inequality saw individual pitted against individual in a Darwinian struggle for economic survival. Brother was arrayed against brother father against son. The warmest ties of love and fraternity were disregarded. In that previous gilded age old leaders were cast aside when they refused to give expression to the sentiments of those whom they would lead and new leaders sprung up to give direction to the cause of freedom—and I'm thinking of a few on that side.In reaching the decision to join in our two-party coalition with the Jacinda Ardern - led New Zealand Labour Party the New Zealand First Party found in Labour the party most willing to share our vision of building a more prosperous fairer New Zealand to help restore old verities. Our party is committed to making this coalition work. Our supporters in the wider New Zealand public need it to. That is also our track record. The New Zealand First Party's word is our bond and we have given it. We ask for the same in return. We acknowledge here too the confidence and supply agreement entered into between Labour and the Green Party. While we in New Zealand First come from different traditions and ideas we share a love of land of the sea of the air and that is a solid foundation for our majority moving forward. And make no bones about it we are the majority supported by over 50 percent of the voting public.The Speech from the Throne outlined the goals we have set for ourselves for the next three years. It is a challenging but realistic programme that will bring to a halt the prolonged nine-year period of drift under the previous Government. Instead of avoiding the hardest problems the coalition will confront them. Instead of denying that problems exist the coalition will solve them. Instead of cronyism we'll have the enthusiasm and confidence to bring everyone along with us because all of us here share the same ambition to forge a better country. We believe the people will be with us.The coalition agreement between Labour and New Zealand First reinforces our commitment to effect transformative change. The regions are our primary focus because provincial New Zealand has missed out for far too long—nine years too long. We are proud to play our part in restoring vital infrastructure. We will work with the regions to identify and prioritise how best to utilise our investment approach. The $1 billion per annum regional development fund will fuel provincial growth. It's a significant investment and we are proud to have secured that. New Zealand First has also secured the commitment to regionalise some Government services such as the New Zealand forestry service. But we will not wait for people to catch up with our active approach. Our sense of urgency will drive us and our commitment to a new planting programme—a hundred million trees a year one billion over a decade—will have a triple purpose; a triple purpose. It will help regenerate the regions; it'll help create vital jobs and new opportunities for any who want to work. Our initiative also links directly to the Government's actions on climate change.New Zealand First also secured as part of its regional development strategy a rethink into the country's wider port strategy examining whether the Ports of Auckland should be moved to Northport near Whangarei. It was noted in the Speech from the Throne. There is also a win-win strategy at play here: more vital infrastructure more jobs for the regions and freeing up capital development in Auckland's most sought-after real estate.The Labour - New Zealand First coalition has taken bold and wide-ranging choices across a large number of policy areas. We are proud to have played our part in securing an immediate rise in the minimum wage rising to $20 per hour by 2020 and we will tackle the scourge of homelessness head-on. It is not right that in this bountiful and beautiful country of ours we have economic refugees sleeping in door fronts. We support also the move to help New Zealand's most vulnerable people our mentally ill. There has been too much neglect and it stops now. We will help people to buy an affordable home and create more choices for our young through educational or vocational opportunity. We will support all of these policies and more that aim to restore dignity and opportunity. We are very proud to confirm that a new-generation SuperGold smart card will be introduced. New Zealand First is pleased to help older New Zealanders who have contributed so much to their country through a free annual health check and an eye check as well as other new entitlements and concessions that will come with that smart card. Probably one of the smartest things that is going to happen in this Government is that we'll be looking after our elderly.Younger New Zealanders after nine years of enormous opportunity costs billions and billions of dollars forgone by National—we'll see contributions to the New Zealand Superannuation Fund restored protecting older New Zealanders by safeguarding the provision of superannuation at 65 alongside of restoring super fund contributions. It offers greater intergenerational fairness than from the previous Government.The Hon—and this is from the Rt Hon Winston Peters—Ron Mark Minister of Defence and Minister for Veterans will ensure future defence procurement is of high quality giving taxpayers the assurance that their hard-earned dollars their hard-earned taxes are being spent wisely while also providing funding certainty and greater rigour to assist defence with their vital planning forward. We will also ensure that the interests and well-being of the men and women of our New Zealand Defence Force and the veterans who have served our country are once again heard within the heart of Government.The Hon Tracey Martin in her role as Minister for Children will work closely with the Prime Minister to help lift children out of poverty. As the Governor-General so eloquently said if we put child well-being at the heart of what we do then the well-being of all New Zealanders will be lifted. We have to do better—it's a moral imperative.The Hon Shane Jones will drive New Zealand First's and the coalition's regional strategy. He will also in his role as Associate Minister of Finance work with the Minister of Finance in the upcoming review of monetary policy.The Minister of Foreign Affairs the Rt Hon Winston—and by crikey aren't they so pleased to have him back over at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade eh?—will be working tirelessly to advance New Zealand's interests. Whether with our near neighbour Australia in our home in the Pacific or beyond we will be unapologetic about helping to create opportunities for our exporters whatever opportunity lays be it in bolstering trade opportunities in the Commonwealth the post-Brexit European Union or with Russia Belarus Kazakhstan customs union—oh yes: crisis what crisis? We will ensure that in any future trade agreements that this coalition Government launches the protection of New Zealand's sovereignty and its ability to determine its own future free of coercion by global entities who care nothing for us is front and centre.Last but by no means least we share the sentiment from the Speech from the Throne: we stand with the families of Pike River. We are already working closely with the Hon Andrew Little on honouring our commitments to those families. We understand our moral obligation and we will not shirk our duty and our responsibility to them.New Zealand is a nation whose values have been forged by a long history of shared sacrifice with like-minded nations. Those traditions will be respected in the deepest and most tangible ways. We are also an independent sovereign country an energetic people whose best days are still ahead of us. It may be a cliché but it is nonetheless true that there is nothing wrong about New Zealand that can't be put right by the best of New Zealand and its peoples. Democracy matters but it only flourishes when we treat it with the reverence it needs to flourish. For too much of the last nine years democratic processes have been ignored or abused. No more shonky processes. The coalition intends to enhance the integrity of our electoral processes and to ensure that Parliament's processes better reflect multiparty politics—I'll say that again: that they better reflect multiparty politics. We will also ensure as a matter of priority that the make-up of Parliament continues to reflect the expressed preference of voters.As we said on the day that New Zealand First made its decision to enter into a coalition with the Labour Party there were great risks in whatever decision we took. We could've taken an easier choice committing to only a slightly modified status quo. The markets whether financial political or in the media would've approved. Our egos would've been stroked. We would've been called wise and pragmatic. But we chose a harder path—a harder path one of regeneration and change. We could've gone for the baubles—no actually we couldn't. Policy gains drove us from the beginning and they pointed us in a more challenging direction. We do not for one second however resile from our choice. We are pleased we made it. Change was required. Change is happening. Change is here. The Labour - New Zealand First coalition firmly stands here to represent people who are equals before the law. There will be no favourites. We want business to understand the needs of the poor just as we want Kiwi battlers to understand the contribution of business in creating opportunities for work and prosperity. We are all in this together equally. To paraphrase what was said long ago the man who is employed for wages in Kerikeri is as much a businessman as his employer. The lawyer in Feilding is as much a business person as the corporate counsel in Wellington.The merchant at the crossroads store in Rotorua or Sanson is as much a business person as the financier in Auckland. The Southland farmer—who goes forth in the morning toils all day begins in the spring and toils all through summer and by the application of brain and muscle to the natural resources of this country creates wealth—is as much a business person as the futures trader or the ticket clipper in the city playing roulette with other people's money.We are entering a challenging phase of history and we need to carry the best of our traditions forward even as we strive for new understandings. We are looking forward to it. Thank you very much Mr Speaker."