Jones ShaneRESOURCE MANAGEMENT (EXTENDED DURATION OF COASTAL PERMITS FOR MARINE FARMS) AMENDMENT BILLThird ReadingHon SHANE JONES (Minister for Oceans and Fisheries): I present a legislative statement on the Resource Management (Extended Duration of Coastal Permits for Marine Farms) Amendment Bill.DEPUTY SPEAKER: That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon SHANE JONES: I move That the Resource Management (Extended Duration of Coastal Permits for Marine Farms) Amendment Bill be now read a third time.With characteristic coyness and diffidence I stand in our House in this late hour to share with New Zealanders: after 40 years—almost biblical—day and night marine farmers have been waiting for this type of economic salvation.Now let me briefly explain that this bill extends aquaculture consents by 20 years. It delivers the promise the potential that New Zealanders saw when they enabled this Government to be formed through the sovereignty of the democratic franchise not the sovereignty of the Treaty. This enables us to deliver on the commitments in our party coalition agreement—National and New Zealand First. The bill is designed to practically remove obstacles and impediments that thwart entrepreneurialism and drain the confidence of Kiwis who take a punt go into debt and create businesses and build jobs in the scattered coastal hamlets of New Zealand.What the bill does is it enables 25 percent of our marine farms that need to be re-consented who would have been facing bills up to $100000—it enables them to keep $6 million within the industry to grow and to boost the productivity of that industry owned by garden variety Kiwis by and large. This gives marine farmers certainty. No more empty promises no more waking up to invasive correspondence from regional councils who have long since overstepped their statutory mark—no. This bill enables people to enjoy the tangible benefits of creating a higher level of confidence and getting on with the business of practising the best type of farming techniques to grow wealth for their families. What could possibly be wrong with that?Of course 2050 under this bill is the point in the future where current holders of consents will need to come back and reapply—a substantial compromise on behalf of the party that I represent. My preference was for perpetual consents because it's important that we give long time multigenerational confidence. Given that a substantial amount of the marine farming industry is owned by tanga whenua I hear the songs being sung in my honour on the marae as I stand and offer this short little speech—there may be one or three hakas being conceived through kapa haka festivals etc. But when we turn up to those events they'll meet the Matua and I'll give them a lesson in the real meaning of Māori language. But let me not be disrespectful to this House in digress.Of course there is controversy generated by falsehoods by a number of the commentators on this bill. People fear that there are conditions that may need to be renewed within these marine farming enterprises because they have had historic rights. There will be an opportunity for regional councils to redress that situation at their own cost. We are not having any more indiscriminate loose imposition of taxes on our enterprises for precious little return. Of course in the event that a regional council does want to poke its nose into the affairs of legitimate God-fearing businesses running marine farms they must get the permission of the Director-General of the Ministry of Primary Industries i.e. fisheries.Now this doesn't mean we are compromising localism but as we are seeing too many regional councils are pretending that they have the sovereignty of the nation such as the Otago Regional Council. Soon they are to learn the sovereignty is with Parliament not these scattered ill-informed individuals in regional New Zealand. I will meet them in my regional summits as I move around the country spreading the gospel of growth.Now I must come back as we draw this speech to an end to acknowledge the work carried out by the officials to acknowledge the work of the Primary Production Committee members because we're now at a point where trade-off is necessary. Yes we do want positive environmental outcomes but at the same time we must have economic resilience in the provinces of New Zealand and we'll get that by giving greater certainty to the people who hold rights. I only hope we can emulate this modest level of improvement in the water management system of New Zealand as well. Of course we'll get to that point in the very near future. The chair of the select committee Mark Cameron—very quiet thoughtful. It's quite extraordinary he comes from the same part of New Zealand that I do; a very judicious member of Parliament. We need to acknowledge the work progressing the bill through.And I say to the other side of the House: yes we have our differences but surely we all share the need to create outcomes in these benighted parts of New Zealand where this is often the only industry that is capable of rapid growth and expansion farming salmon oysters.In fact I had two dozen oysters yesterday and fortunately I do not suffer gout. I can assure you I am practising at a biological level the intent of this bill. And indeed I'm reminded of the word kūtai"—don't get the front consonant wrong. That is a type of kai moana that will be grown in greater volume as a consequence of this bill. I find it quite extraordinary that a growing percentage of that great delicacy is now being turned into pet food. So for those members of society who may or may not treat children as a luxury good and have gone for pets kai moana is on the way to help you with that part of your whānau. On this note of common sense and the spirit of innovation and investment under the cloak of certainty I commend the bill to the House.DEPUTY SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be agreed to."