Hipkins ChrisRt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Leader of the Opposition): Mr Speaker-Elect on behalf of the Opposition can I also add our congratulations to your elevation to this role and take the opportunity to congratulate all members who have been sworn into Parliament today. Regardless of where in this Chamber you sit it is an enormous privilege and an enormous responsibility to be a member of Parliament and I know that it is one that every member who has taken the oath today will take very seriously. It's the sixth time that I've been sworn in as a member of Parliament but I can honestly say that every time still feels like a special occasion. There are very few people who get to have the initials MP" after their name at some point during their working lives and so everybody should take a moment to reflect on that.There are even fewer people Mr Speaker-Elect who get to master the art of being a true parliamentarian and in fact you are one of those. You are someone who understands the culture of the House. You understand the rules of the House. You understand the importance of what goes on here in a way that very few people actually get to understand and I think that marks you out as being a very appropriate person for the Government to have nominated to be the Speaker of the House.Mr Speaker-Elect there once was a tradition where the Speaker-Elect would be dragged to the Chair after being elected. I think that was dispatched with by Jonathan Hunt when the party whips couldn't keep up with him as he galloped his way to the Speaker's Chair. But I'm pleased to see you at least made the pretence of trying to keep up the tradition. You have been a member of Parliament since 1996. You've served in a vast number of roles including ones that are near and dear to my heart including party whip and Leader of the House two very important and underrated roles in my view. You've served as deputy leader of the National Party not once but twice and you've been a Minister in the Key Government where you held I think at last count eleven different portfolios.You supported the people of Christchurch through some of their darkest and most challenging hours and I think that that also marks you up well for this role because you are familiar with holding a position in which no matter what decision you make someone is going to be upset at the outcome of that. I think those who preside over natural disasters like the one in Christchurch will know that there are very few easy choices in that role and you I think led over a long period of time the country through that and we thank you for that service.One of the most important roles of the Speaker is to protect the rights of the minority and we find ourselves now in the minority in this House. You have a role to ensure that the Government can govern and you have a role to ensure that the Opposition can hold the Government to account in the decisions that they are taking. I know that you will take both of those responsibilities incredibly seriously and we look forward to working with you in good humour as you have previously demonstrated as you embark on this new role. So on behalf of the Opposition once again our warmest congratulations."