Woods MeganHon Dr MEGAN WOODS (Minister of Energy and Resources): I'd like to start by offering a huge congratulations to our Minister of Finance the Hon Grant Robertson who has delivered a Budget that manages to do many many complex things. The times in which we live call on a Minister of Finance when putting together a Budget to not only look at the here and now and to recognise the pain that many of our families are feeling at the moment but also to have the courage to have the vision to look to the future and to start fixing some of New Zealand's long-term challenges.That is what Budget 2022 delivers for New Zealanders. It does address some of the pain that New Zealanders are feeling in the wake of a global pandemic and on the back of a war in Ukraine. It does put in place the equivalent of the winter energy payment for those families earning up to $70000 who were not already gaining their winter energy payment. That will bring 81 percent of all New Zealanders who will receive additional support with the cost of living this year. This Budget also extends the 25c a litre cut in fuel excise tax for an extra two months. It also extends out half-price public transport and it also made permanent for those on a community services card half-price public transport. These are the ways in which we will meaningfully address the cost of living pressures that New Zealanders are feeling.But this Budget couldn't just deal with the here and now; this Budget had to deal with the long-term issues that New Zealand faces. It was a Budget that focused on climate and it was a Budget that focused on health. It was yet another Budget delivered by our Government that also did not kick the infrastructure can down the road that recognised that investment needs to be made or we will be left behind and we will be leaving it to another Government to play catch-up like we have had to in Government after nine years of under-investment in infrastructure from the previous National Government.I am immensely proud of the Climate Emergency Response Fund and the way in which we are setting our country up to deal with the future. All parties—well nearly all parties—in this Parliament agreed to a net zero figure for New Zealand by 2050. It is legislated. We agreed to a process with an independent climate commission whereby we would set carbon budgets. Those were accepted by the main Opposition party the National Party. The next step on that is for a Government to produce a plan of how we are going to meet those targets and how we are going to pay for the measures required to meet those targets. I think the National Party have got themselves into a right pickle here in that they have said they agree to the budgets but they are opposing every measure in the Climate Emergency Response Fund. If I look to my own portfolio of energy they're saying Oh let's just leave it to the emissions trading scheme for the industrial process heat sector to decarbonise." I've got news for those businesses who are in manufacturing who are using fossil fuels as heat in their processors: the National Party want to accelerate the price of carbon to $180 in order for that to make economic sense. Instead what we as a Government have done is take a partnership approach with business. We will walk with them. We know that we can meet our emissions targets; we have the technology there. But what it needs is Government commitment and a partnership approach with business to achieve this.In the first round of the Government Investment in Decarbonising Industry fund—GIDI fund as we like to call it—we spent $69 million. This catalysed nearly double that spending by business. This is about us working with business but importantly it was the equivalent of taking 134000 cars off the road. If the National Party is going to oppose these measures I want to hear policies I want to hear plans and I want to hear real alternatives because at the moment they've signed up for a budget there is no way they can meet."