Carter KahurangiKAHURANGI CARTER (Green): Thank you Madam Speaker. When the brightest minds of our future are having to make the choice between paying the rent or attending university we know we have to do better. I am so grateful and honoured to be speaking on this omnibus bill the Regulatory Systems (Education) Amendment Bill which will support Māori and Pacific New Zealanders to enter tertiary education. This last week I've been talking to some of the worst statistics and outcomes for Māori and Pacific tamariki but my vision for all tamariki in Aotearoa is to thrive and to use their independent thought and skills to be the best versions of themselves. I want our tamariki and rangatahi to walk like they know they have 3000 of their ancestors walking behind them.Kelvin Davis said these scholarships and awards are a tribute to the heroes of the 28th (Māori) Battalion and were established to commemorate Second Lieutenant Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa Ngarimu the first Māori to be awarded the Victoria Cross and remind our Māori and Pacific students that they are not just a statistic but are connected to those who went before them and that their tīpuna can have a present and real influence on the lives that they live today by the way they held themselves the way they lived their lives the values that they lived by and how they fought so hard for the future generations. We see that in the application process where applicants can show how they possess some of the same characteristics of the Māori Battalion troops. This bill provides the conditions to inspire reward and support Māori achievement. Ngarimu scholarships in 2024 included one doctoral four masters four undergraduate and two vocational education and training awards.The Pacific Education Foundation Act of 1972 will promote and encourage the better education of Pacific people and students and provide financial assistance for that purpose. My sister and I studied at Auckland University and my sister studied structural engineering. She was asked to talk to Pacific high school students to inspire them to do structural engineering. Now as a Māori she was confused as to why she was asked to speak to these students. Well there were no Pacific students to ask to speak to them in structural engineering at Auckland Uni. So this bill really is so wonderful because it gives us the opportunity to encourage Pacific students to take up tertiary education.My father Piripi Waretini was the first in our whānau to attend university and I was lucky because when I grew up it was just expected of me that I would go to university which is an absolute privilege that I was afforded by living in an affluent area and going to one of the best-achieving schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. I want that same vision for all of our students and our Māori and Pacific students in New Zealand so that they can just expect that they are going to go on and have higher education to nurture and grow their strong minds and to be able to be the best versions of themselves. If we treated these bright minds like competitive athletes focusing on the best conditions for their peak performance New Zealand wins—all of us in New Zealand win. So I am so grateful to be speaking in support of this bill so that more students can live their best lives use their amazing minds and just contribute to a legacy for our future generations. Mauri ora.