Auchinvole Chris: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Auchinvole Chris: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
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CHRIS AUCHINVOLE (National—West Coast - Tasman) 
: 
 This evening listening to the debates in the House and reflecting back on the firm and confident presentation given by the Prime Minister on this the first parliamentary sitting day of the year I feel proud to be part of the National-led Government. I am proud to be part of a Government that wants the best for New Zealanders. I am proud to be part of a Government that bases progress on good business practice on earning more money and on letting people keep it in their pockets. It has been a very tough year for some. 
I have the privilege of representing the electorate of West Coast - Tasman as its MP. 
Hon Christopher Finlayson 
: And you will for many years. 
CHRIS AUCHINVOLE 
: I thank Mr Finlayson. Both the West Coast and Tasman are showing themselves to be resilient during the recession. The people of the West Coast and Tasman are enterprising resourceful and successful. National encourages enterprise rewards resourcefulness and salutes success and that is what the economic address will deliver. 
 I join with my colleagues though in expressing disappointment in the response from the Labour Party. I share the point of view of my colleague Sam if I may call him Sam that Mr Goff is a nice person. Indeed he actually signed me up as a justice of the peace following the recommendation of the electorate MP of the time Mr Damien O’Connor. I am most grateful to them for that. 
John Hayes 
: Bad judgment! 
CHRIS AUCHINVOLE 
: It was excellent judgment. I was sorry to hear Mr Goff giving a speech that rapidly fell away from economics and moved into personal attack. I was saddened by the way he chose to personalise his attack trying to discredit the Prime Minister as a person rather than achieve much in a well-structured argument. I had hoped for better but there we are. 
Reflecting on the speeches thus far given from this side of the House I must say that the one given by one of our senior MPs the Hon Simon Power had some excellent points towards the end. It was given in an amusing manner but was none the less smack on the button in relation to his perceptions of the leadership aspirations of other members of the Labour Party. I thought his phrase about seeing Shane Jones actually licking his lips at the end of Mr Goff’s speech was telling. I suggest in all seriousness having watched the body language that Mr Goff’s performance will leave him vulnerable in his position at the moment. 
But now I will talk on the economy. I speak in support of that particular part of the Prime Minister’s presentation where he talked about national resource development. I guess we are really talking about minerals. That is the most important point. Well all of the speech was important but that was one of the most attractive parts for me. I have seen the benefits that can accrue from modern mining—from mineral extraction. A railway passes my house and it carries $630 million worth of high-grade coking coal to the port of Lyttelton every year. We have a system called Glass Earth technology. By using all sorts of clever technical electromagnetic responses one can fly over an area with an aeroplane and detect the mineral levels. A survey showed there was $39 billion worth in Northland. Modern mining does not represent rip tear and bust. It is too expensive for that and it has to be done with care with precision and with profit in mind. 
Modern mining involves geology and engineering and it is very much part of our culture particularly on the West Coast. There is nothing better than spending an evening with a group of gold miners in the Ross pub. I remember an altercation broke out and I heard one say to the other: “Pick a window—you’re leaving.” I like that good fundamental straightforward speaking. We have the records of Mr Explorer Douglas who should be proclaimed with far greater voice than he is because he did so much surveying throughout South Westland. We have the records of Captain Moonlite who could sense where gold was with unerring accuracy. We had the miners’ seats; let us not forget them. They started at the same time as the Maori seats. They were to represent miners who did not own the land they were working on but who largely were the economy of the time. The miners’ seats lasted only 5 years. The Maori seats have lasted a little longer. It has been suggested that perhaps we should bring miners’ seats back. 
Debate interrupted.