Mahuta NanaiaHon NANAIA MAHUTA (Minister for Māori Development): Kia orana Madam Speaker. Can I just say following on from the general debate grin grimace grin grimace thing going on on the Opposition side that we've figured it out. We've figured out the strategy of the Opposition: obfuscation by association. It's characterised like this: I think somewhere between yesterday and today a comment was made that One person's misinformation is another person's facts."—One person's misinformation is another person's facts.Now this is what's going on. Mr Bridges will say one thing and we know that one of the other members like Ms Collins will say another thing. One person's misinformation is one person's facts. So we can figure this out in terms of what's going on. It's an interesting tag-team approach to ensure that the Opposition is continually confusing the facts. The facts are this: when we came into Government unemployment was up. When we came into Government there were more young people not in education employment and training. When we came into Government there were poor health outcomes and poor educational achievement amongst a lot of New Zealanders.But here's the thing we came into Government with a plan. We weren't satisfied with the status quo. We needed to know that by being a coalition - confidence and supply Government people would feel differently about where the investments we would make would fundamentally make a difference.It's like this: we said we would invest in the regions. The Provincial Growth Fund has delivered so much to our regions. We can go anywhere throughout the country and it's started a different conversation: local government talking with the business community the business community talking with the private sector the private sector talking with employment education and training providers. Overall a whole different vibe's going on and those are the facts.The regional economy is growing in such a way that we then fall to the second priority that this Government had which was to ensure that people would benefit—that the prosperity would be shared. The employment statistics I think are very positive. And I want to commend my colleague Willie Jackson because we can say that Māori unemployment has dropped from 9.4 percent to 7.7 percent comparative to this time last year. That's huge. And what we can say about that is that more Māori are participating in the economy and more Māori are seeing the opportunity to contribute to a regional economy that is serving them.But unemployment generally has dropped to 3.9 percent. That's huge. That is huge. So that just shows that the investments of this Government are really getting cut-through. And then here's the other thing because we know underpinning a productive regional economy we've got to address the issues of productivity. So it's about lifting the minimum wage and ensuring that we don't maintain a low-wage economy approach—ensuring that we're looking to productivity and we're looking to raise wages. People see a purposeful opportunity in the way that we're resetting our investments to grow the regional economy so that more people can benefit.But I want to come back to young people because really when I came into Parliament it was all about young people. How do they see themselves in the future if led by a Government who has values and wants to make sure that they're a part of the next wave of ambition for who we are as a country? I am very very proud about some of the investments that my colleague Willie Jackson is leading especially for young people. I think about cadetships and I look across at some of the really good examples: getting our young people back into planting. Yes there's the billion trees initiative but also restoration of our waterways helps the environmental outcomes. There are so many good things happening. The cadetships that we have throughout the regions where employers are able to take on young people and track them through to more permanent employment opportunities alongside apprenticeships are all the things that build the aspirations of our young people and that is fantastic. Here's the thing and I'm sure young people will get it. There's a saying: "To have hope is to have wings." Young people now under this Government have hope because they can see the real practical benefits on the ground of a Government who is investing in the regional economy ensuring that they're investing in the skills of our young people the next generation to take up the opportunities of employment and training and a long-term sustainable pathway for the future. At the end of the day they want to contribute to the New Zealand we're building here on this side of the House.We're not confusing things. The facts are that we know where the priorities are. We're investing in the issues that really matter for many more New Zealanders so that prosperity can be shared around. We know we can't change everything all at once but we're going to give it a damn good try because our young people and the rest of New Zealand deserve that kind of vision."