Goff Phil: Motions — Rt Hon Helen Clark—Appointment as Head of United Nations  Development Programme 
Goff Phil: Motions — Rt Hon Helen Clark—Appointment as Head of United Nations  Development Programme 
[Volume:653;Page:2272] 
Hon PHIL GOFF (Leader of the Opposition) 
: 
 It is a very rare occasion in this House when we get a unanimous standing ovation for a member who has served this country so well and who will go on to serve not only New Zealand but the whole of the international community in the job she is about to undertake. On behalf of the Labour Party I warmly support the motion moved by the Prime Minister. The nomination by Ban Ki-moon as Secretary-General of the United Nations and the confirmation by the General Assembly of the United Nations this morning of Helen Clark as leader of the United Nations Development Programme is a singular reflection of the very high regard in which Helen Clark is held internationally. Everyone in this House has already demonstrated this but I am sure overwhelmingly New Zealanders would wish to show their congratulations to Helen Clark as well and to wish her well as she meets the challenges of this new job. 
Helen Clark’s job is one of the most important jobs in the United Nations. It has a large budget of $5 billion. I am sure that she will be working very hard to make that budget even larger than it is because of the scale of the task that she has to fulfil: to meet the development needs of all of the countries in the developing world. The task is consistent with the values that Helen Clark has pursued throughout her long political career. Those values are ones of support for development social justice sustainability democracy and good governance. Helen Clark brings to the job skills and integrity. She brings to it her renowned commitment and determination her mastery of detail and her international knowledge and networks which make her an ideal choice for this position. As a small country of 4.3 million people we can be truly proud that a New Zealander has been chosen ahead of others from countries much more powerful and much larger than our own to head such an important international agency. 
I join the Prime Minister in thanking the people in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. They do a huge job. When given a task of this nature they do it with skill and they do it with diplomacy and they have delivered for us. I also thank the Government for continuing a bipartisan tradition that has seen both major parties and other parties in this House endorse New Zealanders for international positions—people such as the former Director-General of the World Trade Organization Mike Moore and the former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Don McKinnon. I think it is important that our country shows our unanimity in support of people who seek such high international positions. 
Finally I thank you Helen personally for the contributions that you have made through the Labour Party to New Zealand over a long political career spanning some 27 years. Helen we are proud of what you have achieved for New Zealand and we know that you will represent our country with distinction in the position that you will hold. Thank you Helen.