The amount of investment that the organisations and the people of the
organisations and the people of the
Chatham Islands have
actually put into their shipping company and the
surrounding organisations. Order! I
do apologise for interrupting
the member's contribution but in
accordance withstanding
accordance withstanding Order 360(3) I call on Dr Kennedy Graham to make
I call on Dr Kennedy Graham to make
his valedictory statement.
Mr
Mr Speaker, it is my privilege to have been a member of the New
Zealand Parliament over the last
nine years. I have
appreciated the opportunity to be here and
wish first to thank all
parliamentary staff for their unfailing
courtesy and professionalism. I shall
always remember the spontaneous hug
I received last Friday. Let
me extend my love and thanks to the wonderful
people up in the gallery. Green
members and close friend who
have come here to be with us
today following the passage of time
come here to be with us today
and Bruce and Angela and Jenny and Diana and Claire, all
from Christchurch. Sue and Denis, Ann and
Paul from Wellington. Bruce
and Ingrid and Lynda from Waiheke,
Felicity and Anna from North Shore.
I think you each have
an inkling of just how much it means to me to have
you here. I am honoured to
acknowledge the presence in the
Chamber of Sir Geoffrey Palmer,
one of New Zealand's greats. I
am touch that Mike and robin are here from
Auckland and our memories
together stretch back to childhood.
Auckland and our memories together stretch back to childhood. I gave my
maiden speech from the seat
immediately in front of me. The
distance between there and here
is 1.9m. You might not think that is
a long distance for a
is about half a centimetre per sitting week, in my case backwards!
sitting week, in my case backwards! The common
The common snail proceeding leisurely but forwards at 2.4mm
per second can achieve more. Not only
is the snail faster, it carries a shell
on its back as it goes.
Another thing to note.
on its back as it goes. Another thing to note. I have not carried a
shell as I have gone through life. I
have carried instead the belief that
respect towards others will almost
always be reciprocated and that
this is preferable to
carrying a concealed dagger.
is preferable to carrying a concealed dagger. I
maintain that approach to this day,
notwithstanding an election
campaign and the recent political events in
which I have
been somewhat intimately involved.
which I have been somewhat intimately involved. I joined the
Green Party of New Zealand,
Aotearoa New Zealand, in January '05 from the
UN secretariat building in New York.
Moments after accepting a
position at Canterbury
at Canterbury University that enabled me to return home
following 34 years overseas. I
have been active in the party for the
12 years since, including
since, including those representing it here in parliament. Such a
time in politics presents a challenge
as to how to conduct oneself from day
to day. In my time here I have come,
I have learnt to admire most those
colleagues that show
courtesy and respect across the traditional lines
respect
respect across the traditional lines of division. We all carry our own
important to remain open to the views of others. At the
global level in our tumultuous age this is
arguably the most
critical thing we can display. I have worked and
lived in nine countries beyond my own. In
Asia, the Middle East, Europe and
North America. Living in societies
that are Buddhist or Islamic weaves
a tapestry of what is common to us
all and what is not. Each is as rich
as the other. Each is distinctive
from the other. The far
reaching disruption in our present age is
due not only to the quickening pace
of change, it is due to a lowered
readiness to embrace each people's
readiness to embrace each people's
values and customs as equally valid.
Here in Aotearoa we have made some
progress in reconciling our own
progress in reconciling our own
value systems, albeit with some ways
still to go. But for the world as a
whole, that is more challenging
by an order of magnitude. 200 nation
states, 10,000 communities. How
do we develop a coherent
and legitimate system of global
ecological crisis. This is the defining challenge of our century.
In my professional career I have
focused primarily on the two
existential threats facing humanity.
Climate change and the untamed use
of force, especially
with nuclear of force, especially with nuclear
weapons. In that context, I
treasure a few special experiences
in my life. The first was in
a few special experiences in my
serving on the New Zealand delegate when we me united
the South Pacific
the late '90s, conceiving and Editing the book Planetary
Interest which argued for global solutions
to global problems and for
each country's legitimate
country's legitimate national interest to derive from its share in
the global solution
rather than pursuing an obsolete
version and competitive style at the expense of
competitive style at the expense of
the global Commons. More
recently was in 2013, setting up the NZ
Centre for Global Studies on
Waiheke Island, a think tank that
institutionalises
institutionalises the planetary interests. We had Sir Geoffrey give
your third annual electure last year
and we have Gareth Evans coming in a
few months time from Australia
to do the fourth and Jim Bolger has
agreed to do it next year. And a fourth,
most recently of all in 2015,
group of MPs working together on climate policy with our Vivid report
on net zero domestic emissions,
the unique parliamentary debate
in April and our recent common statement
of collaborative purpose. I think,
as an executive, of six MPs
from different pears, we are
most proud of our statement of purpose,
which we announced last month after a
series of discussions following the
April debate. It was the first time
our
April debate. It was the first time
with one voice. We accepted the goals of the Paris agreement and
the
them, including the 2015 platform Pathway agreement from Marrakech. We
welcomed the Vivid report that would
welcomed the Vivid report that would
have New Zealand reach net zero
emissions on or shortly
after 2050. We undertook to evaluate the merits
of the Vivid scenarios. We plan
now to develop an
indicative broadbanded pathway to that goal
and commence a dialogue on the policy measures
to ensure its achievement. I believe
that this represents the best
kind of politics that
a democratic parliament can display. I look
forward to seeing
those goals realised over the next few years. I
am certain
realised over the next few years. I
effective future that will live beyond me and my immediate
colleagues on the executive. More
generally on policy, if we can
witness during the 52nd parliament
the following three achievements
by New Zealand I believe we shall all
New Zealand I believe we shall all
be able to take pride. A
climate target for domestic emix
reductions, equivalent to an
independently calculated share of the Global
Carbon Budget, ratification of
the treaty for the prohibition of
knew cheer weapons
treaty for the prohibition of knew
and serious work in persuading the nuclear powers to join as part of
the obligation under the treaty,
and legislation that makes
aggression in violation of the event charter a
leader ship crime placing any PM
or Deputy PM in prison if found guilty.
No hard feelings, James.
Deputy PM in prison if found guilty. No hard feelings, James. Those
goals reflect
No hard feelings, James. Those goals
Cherished over the past century and more. Principles are developed to
guide us through life without which
we are alone in the dark. Life
on earth is naturally raw. Through
our evolution we have
developed technology to understand reality and
even direct it and principles to
understand and direct ourselves. It
is not perfect because we are not.
Each principle reflects a slice of
that understanding. So
it is inevitable that they compete and
occasionally clash. After
moments of crisis we seek to reorder them and
crisis we seek to reorder them and
embrace a clearer set of principles
of the future. And in so doing,
we evolve towards a higher level
of insight, a wiser state of
being as individuals, as
individuals, as societies and as the human group.
individuals, as societies and as the human group. There are three central
political principles of our age
and they are here in this Chamber today
sustainability. My experience in leading
sustainability. My experience in
years has brought home to me how each MP embraces a mix of
all three. How we hoist one to the top of our
own flag pole and how we
need to respect one anothers, there is no
room for unbridled anger in
New Zealand politics. But principles are
simply signposts to a
common destination. In that they differ
destination.
destination. In that they differ from conscience. The
reason I am leaving parliament is because of
a stance that I and my colleague David
Clendon took on grounds
of personal conscience. This is
not the moment to explore the issues that arose and
both of us were prepared to
accept whatever fate was in store when
we made our decision. Once you
make a decision on a matter of
made our decision. Once you make a
conviction the rest is conviction the rest
is consequential. Subject to a
collective fate that the individual
consequential. Subject to a collective
consequential. Subject to a cannot orchestrate. What I
should cannot orchestrate. What I should
say, however, is this, there
are two say, however, is this, there are two
dimensions to the task of political
representation. The first is
political judgement. That
is empirical, relative, contestable and
open to negotiation. It
empirical, relative, contestable and our daily job. The second is when
an issue of personal conscience arises.
That is ethical, absolute,
negotiation. If politics transgresses conscience,
transgresses conscience, politics must creed. This is the decision we
took, simple as that. Yet decisions taken on conscience can, of course,
have political consequences. The
fate of any political party will
have political consequences. The fate of any political party will wax
and Wayne,
fate of any political party will wax
that is the nature of politickings. A party is an institution,
an institution is a vehicle for
ideals and principles. Like any vehicle,
it requires ongoing maintenance.
Sometimes the way ahead is difficult
to discern, parties can
lose their way but they can also recover. I
believe the Green Party will do so
on behalf of the Green
movement around the world. Individuals
come and go but the institutions remain
to serve the ideals they Cherish. A
consultant colleague was in touch a
few days ago,
consultant colleague was in touch a
assumed it was best not to disturb you but you have been in
my thoughts and
you but you have been in my thoughts assumed
you but you have been in my thoughts and I hope you are keeping your
spirit resilient through all of
this. I practice faith that
says things will evolve for the highest
good
things will evolve for the highest
parliament in 2008 I had two granddaughters. Mia was four, Kahli
was two. Now I have six.
Grandchildren have a way of lighting
up our lives. Pushing us to be
morass rayional, more resolute
up our lives. Pushing us to be
more aspirational, more resolute in forging a future. I have done my
best here for them as I know
we all aspire to do for future generations.
aspire to do for future generations. And now I look up to Marilyn.
aspire to do for future generations. And now I look up to Marilyn. With
whom I celebrate 25
years of marriage next Tuesday.
whom I celebrate 25 years of marriage next Tuesday. I did not
know it was possible to be so close
know it was possible to be so close
to another human being. Your beauty
and
to another human being. Your beauty and grace, your forbearance and your
love, they overwhelm me. My
great best
love, they overwhelm me. My great grandfather was present in this
grandfather was present in this parliament from 1855
grandfather was present in this
come and gone but I feel his spirit. My brother came,
made his contribution and left. Now it
is my turn. Farewell my colleagues. It has
been such a privilege.
Honourable members, the house is suspended for the dinner break.
I will resume the
will
will resume the chair at
Captioned
Captioned by Ericsson Access Services