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Thank you for your invitation to speak here today. I want to acknowledge the 3,400 New Zealanders who served in Vietnam from 1964 to 1972. On behalf of the New Zealand Government, thank you for your sacrifice and your efforts.

I particularly want to pay tribute to the 37 who died in active service, the 187 who were wounded and many more who suffered long term effects.

New research on the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme shows it continues to have major benefits for workers, employers and the countries involved, says Immigration Minister Nathan Guy.

“The RSE policy was designed to help with seasonal labour shortages in the horticulture and viticulture industries, and this new research by the Department of Labour shows the scheme is working well.

“Research on earnings and return rates found that the majority of new workers will return to work another season in New Zealand, many for the same employer. 

Good morning everyone and thank you for inviting me along today. This forum is a great opportunity to connect with representatives from the refugee community, and the key people involved in helping refugees settle in New Zealand.

International reputation

New Zealand has a good record in receiving refugees and our nation’s contribution is well recognised internationally.

New immigration family policies will help New Zealand attract and retain skilled migrants, and ensure that their family members can settle well and are self-sufficient, says Immigration Minister Nathan Guy.

"We are making changes to give priority to migrants who can make a real contribution to New Zealand. Overall we expect these changes will eventually save the taxpayer around $40 million a year.

A Memorandum of Understanding signed by Immigration New Zealand and Education New Zealand will improve visa processing times for international students wanting to study in New Zealand.

International students who use a New Zealand Specialist Agent (NZSA) will have their visa applications processed within 10 working days. There will also be a dedicated point of contact within Immigration New Zealand branches for NZSA members – education agents recognised as New Zealand education specialists.

The New Zealand and the United States governments have signed an agreement to do all they can to stop human trafficking in the Pacific.

The agreement was signed in Wellington by the Minister of Immigration, Nathan Guy, and the visiting Secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano.

Under the agreement the two countries have stated their intention to continue working together to detect, disrupt, dismantle and deter criminal enterprises which seek to profit from the exploitation of others in the Pacific region.

A major exercise to test New Zealand’s preparations for a mass arrival of asylum seekers by boat is starting tomorrow, the Immigration Minister Nathan Guy has announced.

“The aim is to make sure New Zealand is fully prepared to respond to a mass arrival by sea of potentially illegal immigrants. We know that New Zealand has been a target in the past for people smugglers, and we need to be prepared for future attempts.

Measures are being introduced to deter a mass arrival of potentially illegal migrants into New Zealand, Immigration Minister Nathan Guy has announced today.

“An amendment to the Immigration Act introduced into Parliament today contains strong measures to deter people smuggling, making New Zealand a less desirable target,” says Mr Guy.

“The amendments will enable a mass arrival to be detained under a group warrant, rather than under individual warrants as currently happens with asylum seekers.

The Government is stepping up border protection with a new penalty and enforcement regime for airlines which breach their obligations under the Immigration Act, Immigration Minister Nathan Guy announced today.

“With more than 4.5 million people flying into New Zealand every year, it’s important that we protect our borders and encourage compliance with the law,” says Mr Guy.

“This new regime will have penalties ranging from $500 to $5000, depending on the breach of the Immigration Act.

Minister of Immigration Nathan Guy has announced changes to health screening rules which will reduce red tape for international students and other migrants, while protecting the public health system.

“From July this year, international students will no longer need to supply full medicals. Unless they have other health conditions, they will only need to be screened for tuberculosis.

“This will greatly reduce the cost and hassle for around 62,800 students who will save around $17 million a year in medical costs.

Good morning - I’ve been asked to talk to you about my role and where I see the dairy industry heading in the future.

As the Associate Minister I’ll be working closely with my colleague David Carter, and in particular on forestry issues which will be a challenge I’m looking forward to.

I’m also the Minister of Immigration, Racing, and Veterans Affairs. Immigration has some important connections with the Dairy industry, which I’ll say a few words about later.

Immigration and Associate Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has launched two new guides today to help migrant dairy workers and their employers work together more successfully.

“Migrant workers make up a small but significant part of the dairy industry workforce, filling the gaps where there are not enough New Zealanders available.

Immigration Minister Nathan Guy has welcomed the release of Immigration New Zealand’s “Vision for 2015”, a blueprint setting out how the department will continue to improve its operations over the next three years.

“Immigration New Zealand has put a lot of hard work into winning back the confidence and trust of the public and the Government. This plan is an important step towards building on these achievements,” says Mr Guy.

Good morning. It’s great to be here today as the new Minister of Immigration for the launch of your Vision for 2015.

I thought this would be a good opportunity to meet senior managers at Immigration New Zealand and share with you some of my thoughts about the Government’s priorities for immigration over the next three years.

Turnaround of INZ over last three years

The Government’s three border agencies are stepping up work to make trade and travel more efficient through better co-ordination of border services.

Primary Industries Minister David Carter, Customs Minister Maurice Williamson and Immigration Minister Nathan Guy today announced “Future Directions for the Border Sector”, a work programme to look at how the three agencies can operate together more effectively.

Ladies and Gentlemen - welcome to Auckland, the City of Sails.  I hope you have a chance to explore the city and perhaps see a bit more of New Zealand after this workshop.

I would like to acknowledge our guests from overseas today, particularly the Indonesian Ambassador, His Excellency Mr Antonius Agus Sriyono. Welcome to you all.

For those who haven’t been here before, New Zealand has a lot to offer. For a small country we have a huge variety of landscapes, scenery and attractions.