Good morning, it's great to have you all here today.

I'd like to thank Sean and acknowledge the presence of:

• Lesley McTurk, chief executive of Housing New Zealand Corporation


• Bob Harvey, mayor of Waitakere City


• John Banks, mayor of Auckland City


• Jerome, Bruce, Richard and Peter of AV Jennings


• Representatives of local government and community groups with an interest in the area


• And all those who have played a part in the launch of Hobsonville Point

Today, October the 1^st, marks the first day of construction season.

It's a significant occasion, as this Hobsonville project is a very large scale project in partnership with the private sector.

I'm delighted to have some involvement in one of the first public-private-partnerships of serious scale in this country, following the model's long track record of success in delivering infrastructure in many other countries.

I know many of you will say "it's about time," and I agree.

National said in opposition that we weren't afraid of the PPP model and our support for this and other projects, such as Auckland's Victoria Park Tunnel, is proof of that.

The vision for Hobsonville Point is to build a strong, vibrant community. 

We want to respect and enhance this magnificent site.

Given what a special piece of land this is, I'm confident it will become a highly sought after part of the upper Waitemata Harbour, offering quality, accessible housing within easy reach of the city.

The overall development site is about 167 hectares, upon which will be 3000 dwellings, a primary and secondary school, a marine industry precinct, local retail and commercial spaces, reserves and a wide range of community facilities.

Earth moving and the installation of basic infrastructure starts today, providing jobs for surveyors, earth movers and other trades.

House construction will be begin in the middle of next year, providing over 300 jobs for carpenters, roofers, painters, plumbers, electricians, project managers and people with design skills.

And the work won't be fleeting.

On completion of the development there will be an estimated 2000 full-time equivalent jobs on site, with great opportunities for ongoing, local employment.

It's a quirk of the New Zealand economy that despite the recession delivering a house price slump, there is still significant housing demand.

There is a lack of supply of houses accessible to those on modest-to-middle incomes, including first home buyers.

The Reserve Bank governor Alan Bollard acknowledged two weeks ago, when he reviewed the official cash rate, that there is a need for new housing supply, in part to offset the likelihood of another bubble.

Since becoming Housing Minister I've made no bones about the fact that there is a housing shortage in this country, and we have to incentivise building and pull down the barriers to development.

A lack of housing supply sees buyers do irrational things as they compete for what property is available to them.

This is especially the case in places like Auckland.

A big reason for the lack of supply is poorly drafted law.

Cognisant of this fact, our new government immediately got to work on reforms to the Resource Management Act.

We're also amending the Building Act and streamlining the processes of local government in Auckland.

If we stop distortionary bottlenecks developing in the supply of new land and buildings we'll go a fair way to reducing the sort of housing market volatility we've seen in this country.

I mentioned how tough it's been for those on modest-to-middle incomes to find houses in Auckland.

I'm particularly pleased this development will provide a platform to deliver on one of National's campaign promises for first home buyers.

Up to 100 of the 660 lots in the first stage of development - the Buckley Precinct - have been earmarked as Gateway Housing sites, which will provide a helping hand to first home buyers who have previously found it difficult to enter the Auckland housing market.

We said in our policy that Gateway recipients would have cheap use of sections for up to 10 years, and we're going to deliver that right here.

This will allow first home buyers to pay off the cost of their house before addressing the cost of the land at a later date.

This two step process will remove a great deal of financial stress from these young families.

The policy will be formally launched soon and the first sections - other than those in Hobsonville Point - will be available next year.

Besides Gateway sections we also plan to supply some affordable houses and sections here, as well as affordable housing for Defence Force families.

Again, thank you all for being here; I'll now hand you back to Sean to introduce our next speaker.