Young Jonathan; Mallard TrevorAPPROPRIATION (2016/17 ESTIMATES) BILLThird ReadingIMPREST SUPPLY DEBATEDebate resumed from 11 August.JONATHAN YOUNG (National—New Plymouth): I am very pleased to stand and speak on Budget 2016 this Estimates debate and I am very pleased to support the Hon Bill English on a great Budget which across New Zealand business and all of the different types of sectors are seeing as a good way and good road forward. Throughout the extent of this Government National has focused on building a stronger and more prosperous New Zealand. As we know we went through some very difficult times at the end of 2008 and 2009 with the global financial crisis. We have gone through devastating times in New Zealand's recent history that brought tragedy and of course around that not only personal cost but great cost to communities and also to the Government. So building a strong economy and a prosperous New Zealand can sound very clichéd but in the context of those events it has been a tremendous goal which I believe this Government has strongly pursued and we are seeing the fruit of it and the benefit of job creation happening in our economy in a very positive and very gratifying way. It is great to see that over the last 3 years there have been around 200000 new jobs created in the economy. This reflects businesses that have confidence businesses that are doing better and are doing well and businesses that are prepared to invest in opportunities particularly for young people to come through into the workforce and also to help people who are repositioning themselves into new positions because of redundancies that have occurred. I believe that it comes down to responsible management and whether it is central government local government or regional government we are put in these places to manage the resources that are given to us through ratepayers and taxpayers very responsibly. It is also because of the hard work of New Zealanders. It is not just responsible management of an economy and all the settings that that economy needs by Governments by ministries and by Government departments but combined with that is the hard work the commitment the trust and the faith in the New Zealand way of life that businesses have as well and because of that our economy is performing well. We are projected to be performing growth of 3.4 percent over this next coming year and the year ahead and that is better than most countries in the world. We can be very thankful about that because it provides more jobs provides higher incomes and ensures that we can provide essential services and support to New Zealand families and have families in New Zealand who have confidence that their young people have great futures here. That is a very good thing. So we are very thankful for many many things and it does come down to the smart and hard work of New Zealanders who through those difficult times have had to be resilient have had to push ahead. One of the areas that we have seen development in is this area of innovation particularly in the ICT sector but also right across manufacturing and particularly in the food and beverages sector where we have seen great growth expansion and New Zealand products in high demand around the world. It is a very competitive global economy. One thing that we need to be is not only smarter but also more efficient because we know that the costs of getting our products to market are very high. We probably live the farthest away from many of our markets than any other country. Therefore we have to be efficient. It requires infrastructure that will support efficient transportation to ensure that we do get our products to market in the quickest safest and also the most cost-effective way. This Government has invested a huge amount into transport infrastructure and will continue to do so. We realise that the route to market is not just road and not just rail but it is also across the oceans. Getting our products to port is very very important. We need to get them there on time and in good condition and coordinate in such a way with the shipping lines that come and service New Zealand so that we get to our world markets and are able to compete. New Zealand is a very small nation at the bottom of the world—we all know that—yet around the world the New Zealand story is being heard. It is not just about an economy that is doing better than most and it is not just about leadership that is consistent stable firm and focused; it is about the innovation that takes place. I was overseas and I was sitting at a restaurant table—and this is a really interesting story because it is a story that you hear about only when you have those conversations. An Indian gentleman and his wife and family were sitting next to my wife and me. We asked each other where we were from. Obviously I said New Zealand and he said Boston. He had been in Boston for 25 years. I said: Look you must come to New Zealand. We are a beautiful country. You are here visiting this nation."—that we were visiting at the time—"Come to New Zealand." He said: "I know New Zealand. I've never been there but I know New Zealand. Every day when I am on my treadmill I am watching videos of the Great Walks of New Zealand"—this is what he said—"and I run the Great Walks." There are nine of them that the Department of Conservation (DOC) has produced. What this is is the innovation that is putting New Zealand into the world market place. So there was somebody who said "I see New Zealand all the time."—perhaps he has probably seen more of the Great Walks than I have. This is the type of thinking where if we are going to cross the barriers of distance we are going to have to be smart about how we market this place. This is the type of thinking that I believe is going to make the great difference. He said: "I am coming and I am bringing my family." I gave him my card and said: "Please look me up when you come." He looked at it and said "Oh you're a politician aren't you?" and I said: "Yes I am." He said "My wife's father was a Speaker of the House in India and he passed away." and then he said that his wife's mother then became an MP. So I am sure that when they come we will see them here visiting Parliament and you will know that that is a true story. Kris Faafoi: We believe you.JONATHAN YOUNG: Thank you. It is wonderful when the members of the Opposition have such great confidence in a National speaker. Anyway in terms of management in the economy one of the areas that we have done—and it has been very important—is to work through to the place where surpluses become increasingly available for debt reduction but also for the reduction of the tax burden in New Zealand.Back in 2010 taxation was reduced to 28 percent for businesses which kept us competitive—more than competitive—with Australia. Those sorts of advantages are important because what we are seeing these days as I said before are businesses gaining confidence as they do their business in New Zealand as they export and as they employ New Zealanders. All of that—I believe right across the House we would agree—is very important for our future prosperity. The infrastructure investment which I touched on before includes nearly $14 billion for our roads. This Government has also over this last period of time invested nearly $4 billion into KiwiRail. So you cannot accuse us of just loving tar and tarmac and people cannot accuse us of not investing into the mode of transport that is most able to carry bulk loads—such as KiwiRail. We believe that all of these aspects of infrastructure are very important for the New Zealand economy. We have invested over $2 billion in ultra-fast broadband. It is ultra-fast broadband that connects us city to city—to rural areas with the Rural Broadband Initiative as well—but it also connects us to the world. Why was it that that businessman from Boston was able to sit there and watch those videos of the Great Walks of New Zealand? It is because of the platform that ultra-fast broadband offers and that is part of the marketing strategy of not only Tourism New Zealand but DOC which produces those videos. It is part of putting our story out there in a very exciting way. We have great confidence in our quality trade agreements and I do look forward to seeing the Trans-Pacific Partnership go ahead. We wait with bated breath of course regarding the United States—The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Order! The member's time has expired."