Mitchell ClaytonCLAYTON MITCHELL (NZ First): What a load of nonsense that was. It's great to stand up and take a call on the economic development and infrastructure sector of the Appropriation (2016/17 Confirmation and Validation) Bill. You know the irony that we heard from the last speakers over here Alastair Scott and now Melissa Lee talking about how the previous Government were the champions of the regions and what a wonderful job they did for them—I think they think that actually Auckland is one of those provinces that need their attention. Not that we think that it shouldn't have attention but I think they've forgotten every other hamlet town and grove around the country. They're certainly now going to be hearing from the champions of the regions very shortly and of course we have got a lot going on there. Now we have a reprieve. Now we're hearing people coming out and championing them. Despite them saying it's a lolly scramble and How dare they throw their money around looking after the people in the provinces of New Zealand?" in the same breath the irony is the fact that they're holding out their hands saying "Please Minister can we have a little bit for our area because we were so terrible at looking after the regions our people need some help?"But I'm not here to talk about that. We've got somebody far more qualified to have that discussion than I am right now. I'm going to have a discussion about the fact that everybody in this committee no matter where we sit no matter what colour shirts we wear is about making sure that people can have a fair day's work expect a fair day's pay and come home after that day and actually get home safely. The previous Government worked towards putting a health and safety policy together. They introduced new buzzwords like person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) and we talked about setting up all these work groups. Some of it was actually very very good and some of it we actually very very staunchly supported particularly when we looked at reducing the numbers of serious injuries and deaths in our workplaces.However when we look at the money that hasn't been spent in this area and the underfunding when we look at health and safety officers that haven't been implemented because of the lack of funding when we look at the money that hasn't been appropriated in the previous Government to make sure that we had labour inspectorates checking on our workplaces to ensure that they were safe and that they were going to be the right place to actually go into your work environment—we only need to look at what happened at Pike River. We only need to look and see what's happening around the country through this lack of funding. It's this Government on this side—when I hear our Budgets that we're going to be having—that is actually going to look at boosting those numbers to make sure that we've got healthy workplaces.I can see just from the previous term in Government—2016 was a $153 million spend on workplace relations. This last previous year in 2017 it was $146 million. That's $7 million of funding dropped and of course we had an increase in serious harm and deaths in workplaces in that last year as well up to 33 fatalities in workplaces. Now surely they've got to come to their senses and look at the shortfall the shortcomings where the previous Government didn't put the time the effort the energy or the right amount of funding into the workplace health and safety workplace relations part of the bill.This Government is absolutely committed to making sure that you can as a worker go to your employment have a fair day's work expect a fair day's pay and come home safely at the end of that day. That is why we are going to be working towards lifting and introducing the living wage into New Zealand and we're going to be doing that over a period of four years whilst introducing tax packages for businesses to ensure that they can actually afford to do it. We've got to get that balance right between the needs of a worker which are a stable workplace where they can expect a safe environment and they can make sure that they receive well-remunerated wages—and we need some flexibility in that as well—but we also from an employer's point of view need to make sure that we've got a skilled labour force and to make sure that they are fit for purpose ready to work and obviously have got the means to do the job. So we are absolutely committed this side of the House this Government to ensure that workplace relations and health and safety get good support unlike the previous Government.I notice actually tomorrow they've got a member's bill coming through to amend one of their basket case policies that they managed to implement—not looking at it despite it being brought to their attention in the last round of discussions for the Health and Safety at Work Act that went through in relation to what constitutes a PCBU and where that liability sits. I'm going to be interested to see how that one goes through the House tomorrow—something that New Zealand First has already gone and spoken to in the past. Thank you Madam Chair."