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Madam Chair and conference delegates. Good morning and thank-you for your kind invitation to open your conference today.

We are about to make major, positive changes in the way citizens do business with government. The changes in customer service - and the ICT transformation needed to achieve this - represent the biggest reforms since the 1980s.

Kia ora tātau. Good morning, and thank you for your warm welcome.

Passion, dedication, and innovation.

Those three words describe the individuals and organisations represented in this room today. As the Minister responsible for mental health and addiction, I am privileged to be in a position to see how much these qualities are exemplified in the mental health sector.

So I would like to thank you now for those qualities and all that you bring to your work every day – work that makes a huge difference to so many across New Zealand.

Thank you for inviting me to speak to you this afternoon. I am honoured to be representing the Government of New Zealand, as Minister of Internal Affairs, at this workshop on Legislative Openness.

The New Zealand Government has a strong citizen centric focus, and is making strong achievements in its digital engagement and service delivery, in support of core Open Government principles.

I have been invited to speak to you today on the topic of Moving toward Digital Democracy: Using technology in Citizen Engagement.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister Kuntoro Mangkusubroto and signatories.

New Zealand has a proud tradition of openness and transparency.  We are number one on a range of integrity measures including:

Mr Chairman and distinguished colleagues.

Thank you for the opportunity to address this fifty-seventh meeting of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs.  I represent the New Zealand delegation in my capacity as Associate Minister of Health and the Minister responsible for alcohol and drugs policy. I am delighted to again return to Vienna and to express once more New Zealand’s support for the work of the CND and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 

Tena koutou katoa, good morning and thank you for the invitation to speak today at the opening of the 5th International Gambling Conference.

I would like to begin by welcoming all of you, in particular our international guests and distinguished speakers, some of whom have travelled from around the globe to be here.