My
My question is to the Minister of
manu kei te noho tino morearea, e ai ki Te Kaitiaki Taiao a Te Whare
ki Te Kaitiaki Taiao a Te Whare
I
I welcome
I welcome the report that has identified 54 species of birds
I welcome the report that has being in trouble. That is consistent
with the assessment
released in the strategy three weeks
ago. The Government is under no
illusions whatsoever about the
danger our Native birds are in. That is why
we have committed to predator Free 2050
and set up a board
that has a plan to enact it. That is why we have
our birds in the last two years and the war on weeds and
wilding pines. There is, more
conservation work being done in New Zealand today than
at any other time
in New Zealand's history.
Why
Why has
Why has her Government cut DOCs funding in real terms by
million since 2009 when the PCE, Parliamentary Commissioner for
the Environment has now described the
situation with our native birds and
situation with our native birds and
Wright that we have a serious situation with our
Wright that we have a serious situation with our threatened
situation with our threatened
species and we need to
do something about it and that is why we have
moved so quickly into the
space in appointing someone that at a seener
leadership team will
have some response bill for bio
diversity. It is not something that one department
can do alone. The member remains
and is, is at least consistent in
this, completely wrong in the idea that
DOCS spending has not increased. It
has. A
DOCS spending has not increased. It
Budget is not a decrease by anybody's standards. There has been
investment in DOC since 2008 when we came into Government.
Given
Given her
Given her decision to cut DOCs funding, will she
Given her decision to cut DOCs
agree, look at your numbers...
Order! Allow the member to complete the question. Given her decision to
cut DOCs funding, will she
also accept responsibility
accept responsibility for the extinction of the Torua, our
wandering albatross, given the
Parliamentary Commissioner for
the Environment's latest report
which describes this great bird as being
in serious trouble and at risk
of
member has never been anywhere near Government she doesn't
understand very much about the Budget process.
The increase in spending in DOC is
member's willful misrepresentation of the figures is pretty pathetic,
even by that member's standards so
when we look at the birds that are
in danger, the Fio for example has
had a
in danger, the Fio for example has
kao Rangi national park alone. That is because of predator scale and bio
diversity protection by DOC.
is because of predator scale and bio diversity protection by DOC. Does
the minister accept that her and her
Government have failed New
Zealanders when the
Parliamentary Commissioner for
Commissioner for the parliament finds,
Commissioner for the parliament
Kakapau back from the brink of extinction is not correct. Rather,
it continues to teeter on the brink
the Dept of Conservation has worked tirelessly on the recovery of
Kaukapau. I feel that the work
of Dr Andrew rig by and the recovery team
has been overshadowed by some of the
misunderstanding that that
member is pushing out there. It is a species
pushing out there. It is a species
that is in grave danger and one that
we have put a great
deal of resources into and there may well be
a time when genetic diversity with
that particular breed does
need another level of action, but at the
moment the results
speak for themselves and we have greatly
increased
themselves and we have greatly increased the number of them in New
increased the number of them in New
Zealand. Genetically diversity and
such a Dean pool of such a bird is
a problem and one we have to grapple
with. We have scientists
from predator Free
predator Free 2050 and their board and they have just received a
report on this. Is the member
seeking a further supplement. If Greens have
used their full allocation. Is this
a point of order. As I understand
it the allocation
a point of order. As I understand it
checking. There was six used in the first
checking. There was six used in the
on the basis that Mr Shaw's indicating that there
weren't it is hard for me to keep a tally and
the Greens are normally very accurate
with their counting and
I will accept in is room
for one more supplementary question.
accept in is room for one more supplementary question. We're
good at maths. Turns out we are good
at maths. I will be checking my
maths later. Does the minister accept
that her and her Government have
failed her and her Government have
failed the Dept of Conservation and our
conservationist state
conservationist state when the Parliamentary Commissioner for
the Environment has revealed today
that,
birds is not far off from following the moor and many others into
extinction. The situation
is desperate.
extinction. The situation is
that the member has only just caught up with what most of us have known
for a decade and that is that
our that
for a decade and that is that our vulnerable threatened bird
species are under threat. The
New Zealand Threatened Species Strategy,
the first one that has ever been
first one that has ever been
released in New Zealand has detailed
pretty much the same things that the
pretty much the same things that the
Parliamentary Commissioner for the
Environment has detailed so we
are
deal of resources into this, and a great deal of thought. The
predator Free New Zealand, 2050 board has met
four times and are about to
announce their chief executive and the plan
is well under way. Threatened
species are a concern to all of us
on this side of the House and
the unknowing ignorant stance
from that member is woeful. I'd check
your maths if I were you. That
concludes Oral Questions.
I
I call on
I call on Government Order of the Day number 1. Adjourned debate on
the second reading
Bill and the amendment proposed to it.
Bill and the amendment proposed to it. I can't tell you
how incredibly proud I feel to be standing here
speaking in support
of this Budget. The