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Mr Speaker, I move that the Subantarctic Islands Marine Reserves Bill be read for a first time.

I nominate the Local Government and Environment Select Committee to consider this Bill.

New Zealand’s subantarctic islands (Antipodes Island Group, Bounty Islands, Auckland Island and Campbell Island and Snares Islands are located in the southeast of New Zealand’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Tena koutou, tena koutou katoa,

It is a pleasure to be here today to officiate at the opening of this hugely important workshop. I would like to congratulate the Department of Conservation for initiating what I hope will be two days of fruitful discussions and to also thank those agencies that have provided support to allow this event to occur.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, friends in conservation:

Welcome to the 2012 Encore Awards ceremony. I’m delighted to join Greater Wellington Regional Council, the Department of Conservation's Wellington Hawke's Bay Conservancy and the Wellington Hawke's Bay Conservation Board in recognizing those who have made a difference in our local community.

Good afternoon everyone, it is a pleasure to be here today.

Ohaaki Wetland is a great example of what can be achieved when a leading energy company like Contact - partners with trusts, government agencies and NGO’s – on a project that has so many environmental, recreational and other benefits.

Like most worthwhile projects – this has taken time to come to fruition. It’s been decades since the idea was first mooted but earthworks only began 2010 and took five months to complete.

I have much pleasure in being here today and I would like to thank Ngati Kuri and Te Korowai for their warm welcome.

I remember with great fondness my last visit in August 2010 when I joined with you to celebrate the opening of the predator proof fence for the Hutton’s Shearwater on the Kaikoura Peninsula. It is great to hear that since the fence has been completed, many things have followed including a recent successful chick translocation to the site with another one planned for early next year.

Thank you for the invitation to speak at the Mountain Safety Council AGM today.

I’d like to acknowledge the Chair of the Mountain Safety Council, Ross Meder; the Deputy Chair, Murray Douglas and the Council member delegates, I’d also like to acknowledge the Chief Executive, Darryl Carpenter.

I’m pleased to be able to come and speak to you today because outdoor recreation is an important part of my role as the Conservation Minister.

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour

2.05pm, Thursday 4 October 2012

Thank you David and thank you all. It's a great pleasure to be here today.

It's always good to see so many leaders of our major businesses, industries, unions and government officials together in one room focusing on health and safety.

I would like to give a very special welcome to our guest speaker today, Judith Hackitt – Chair of the United Kingdom Health and Safety Executive.

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington

Introductory remarks

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. It's great to be here and I'm pleased to see you all in Wellington for the Safety 2012 World Conference.

A warm welcome especially to all our overseas visitors, I hope you are enjoying some Kiwi hospitality and seeing some of what our country has to offer.

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour
3.05pm, Tuesday 2 October 2012

Thank you all for coming today, it's great to see so many leaders, both from Canterbury and nationally, all in one place to discuss how we can make the rebuild of this city safe, as well as swift and cost-effective.

26 September 2012

Tēnā koutou.

Thank you for inviting me to speak at today's celebration.

I'm here today to acknowledge and celebrate with you the launch of the new NaPALIS system.

The launch of NaPALIS marks a huge milestone for DOC and LINZ, and the culmination of over two and a half years of hard work.

As you all know, DOC and LINZ manage over 40 percent of New Zealand's land area – so, naturally, it made sense for both departments to work together to develop this new system.

16 August 2012, Queens Wharf (Dockside restaurant)

Thank you, David for your kind introduction.

It is great to see a wide cross-section of the fishing industry here for what is a very important piece of work.

We are here to officially launch the Fishing Sector Action Plan – and it has a very important purpose – to address the high rate of injury and death in the fishing sector.

Main Road North, Belfast, Christchurch
11 August 2012

Kia ora, it's great to be back here in Christchurch to celebrate the second year of the Living Legends project. It's also great to see so many people here today to help get these trees in the ground and to honour our local Rugby Legend, Tane Norton.

Firstly I'd like to acknowledge the organisations that continue to work hard to make the Living Legends projects happen - Project Crimson, The Tindall Foundation, Meridian and of course DOC.

10 August 2012

Good morning and thank you for such a warm welcome.  It's fantastic to see so many people here today to celebrate this significant occasion.

I would particularly like to acknowledge the chair of the Whanganui River Māori Trust Board,  Dr Te Tiwha Puketapu and kaumātua John Maihi, the Taranaki-Whanganui Conservation Board and its chair, Mr Darryn Ratana, and Whanganui Mayor Her Worship Annette Main.

Good afternoon. I’m pleased to welcome so many of you here today for the launch of the Code of conduct for minimising acoustic disturbance to marine mammals from seismic survey operations.

There’s no doubt that conservation is important to New Zealanders as a whole. This is a fantastic attribute – it means we take a keen interest in conservation matters and also means that there is no shortage of challenging issues that gain a high profile in the media and around dinner tables across the country.

I am very pleased to be here at the signing of the Taranaki Biodiversity Forum Accord. This is a big step forward and sees a range of agencies and parties working together to better protect the special values of the region.

First of all though, I want to congratulate you on recognising the importance and value of biodiversity. Often people ask - what is the importance of biodiversity? Why do we need to worry about it?

Tena koutou, Tena koutou Katoa (Greetings to you all)

Thank you to the Chairperson, Director General, and Regional Directors for your opening remarks.

It is an opportune time to be discussing youth unemployment at this Conference as it is clear that the numbers of our young people out of work has been rising in both developed and developing economies, even where general unemployment rates are stabilising following the global recession.

Tena koutou, Tena koutou katoa (Greetings to you all).

Mr President, fellow delegates. I’m very pleased to be able to address this session, to acknowledge the contribution Director General Juan Somavia has made to the ILO, and to congratulate and welcome our new Director-General, Guy Ryder, who we have elected to lead this organisation over the years to come.

Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland
31 May 2012

I would like start by congratulating the award winners from last night. The breadth and imagination in their winning programmes was very significant. We can all learn from the entrants – whether winning or not.  

This morning I've been asked to give you a Ministerial perspective of health and safety. It's something I take very seriously and we all must take very seriously.

Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland

30 May 2012

Can I start by saying how pleased I am to be back to address the Business Leaders' Health and Safety Forum once again. The idea of a health and safety leadership group for Chief Executives was floated back in May 2009 - so to stand in front of you in your third year is a real honour.

It's also exciting as there are some really big initiatives happening in the health and safety sector in terms of investment and strategy.

Conservation Boards are an important link between DOC and the community - you are independent and whilst you do not have a formal function to represent or be your community’s voice in conservation management – you are representative of your communities . Your members are drawn from your communities with extensive regional knowledge, varying skills and networks. You bring an understanding of what locals want, what is important to your communities and also how conservation initiatives can help them grow.

Introduction

Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you all today.

Health and safety within New Zealand workplaces is something the Government takes very seriously and is a key focus area for me personally, so I am pleased to be able to come and talk to you about the issues and our priorities for the next three years.

This term the Government has four key priorities. These are to responsibly manage our finances; deliver better public services; build a more competitive and productive economy; and rebuild Christchurch.

I am delighted to have the opportunity to talk to you this evening and thank you for organising such an interesting day. The Bay of Plenty is well known as a major producer of food - kiwifruit, avocado and also wine. You are indeed a “foodie” region – with 80% of the national kiwifruit canopy area here and nearly 70% of the avocado export growers.

Addington Events Centre, Christchurch
22 March 2012

Good afternoon and welcome to you all.  I am very pleased the Productivity Partnership has given me this opportunity to speak to you today, on what is a great step forward for Canterbury – the launch of the Built Environment Skills Strategy.

The Strategy is a very important piece of work which will help the Government to reach two of its four priorities - to build a more competitive and productive economy and to rebuild Christchurch.

Crowne Plaza, Auckland
13 March 2012

Introduction

Thank you for the opportunity to speak to your conference today about my government's priorities for employment relations for the next three years.

I thought I should start by emphasising our Government's driving goal – as articulated by the Prime Minister – which is to build a more competitive and internationally-focused economy with less debt, more jobs and higher incomes.