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E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā karangatanga maha, tēnā koutou katoa,

Tēnei te mihi ki a koutou katoa ngā mana whenua o tēnei whenua me ngā rangatira o Te Tari o Te Ariki o Ngāti Tūwharetoa hoki, tēnā koutou, tēnā tatou katoa.

I acknowledge the iwi of Tūwharetoa, who have upheld the sacred expression of kaitiakitanga over your special landing places.

I am so pleased to be here with the Māori Reference Group of the Taskforce for Action on Family Violence and to be gathered in this place, to recognise such a significant – indeed a historic milestone.

I am thrilled to be with you tonight; at this very important launch – and to celebrate with you and congratulate you on an amazing milestone in reaching thirty years.

I’ll let you into a secret too – I’ll go out of my way to be in the company of such beautiful kuia as Aunty Kiwa (Hutchens) because she does so much for our wairua just learning from her example in life.  She has had a huge impact on me.

Mr Speaker, I move that the Vulnerable Children Bill, the Children, Young Persons and Their Families (Vulnerable Children) Amendment Bill, and the KiwiSaver (Vulnerable Children) Amendment Bill be now read a third time.

In this country, from the moment a child is born the Government is there to provide support – for them, their parents, and their wider family.

We have free education, and our schools are the envy of many countries.

I acknowledge firstly, Pastor Kenneth Fuliese, for blessing our fono with your presence and your gift of words.

Thank you to our accomplished Master of Ceremonies – Memea - and I am always happy to be in the company of Fa’amatuainu Tino Pereira who has provided such fine leadership to the work of the Pacific Advisory Group and in particular the evolution of the Pasefika Proud fono.

Talofa lava, Kia ora, Fakalofa lahi atu, Aloha, Ni sa bula, Malo e lelei, Kia orana, Taloha ni, Halo olaketa.

I am so pleased to be here tonight to celebrate with you the diversity, the resilience and the splendour of tagata o te moana nui, the peoples of the Pacific.

Thank you Reverend Tokerau Joseph for opening this fono with your blessing for our day.

As we gathered together in silence, I thought of a Native American verse, which in less than twenty words challenges us to focus on what we know to be right:

It is right and proper that our first acknowledgement is to Reverend Tui Sopoaga for the opening prayers for this very special day.   I want to also mihi to Toeaina Mika Perez for laying the foundation for such an important event.

I want to thank Zechariah Reuelu, the facilitator of this project, the Tokelau Core Group, and families from the Atafu, Fakaofo and Nukunonu communities for the great honour of being with you today.

Introduction

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

Acknowledgments

• Diane Vivian, Chair and Founder
• Geoff Lawson, CEO
• The GRG Board
• GRG Members

Introduction

It’s great to be with all of you today, at what is the beginning of a very exciting year ahead.

It’s going to be a pretty significant one for me personally.

E nga mana, e nga reo, tena koutou. Ngati Toa Rangatira, Ngati Raukawa, Te Atiawa, tena koutou katoa.

Tena hoki koutou nga whanaunga aku tuakana o te puku o te wheke ara o Te Moana Nui a Kiwa.

E nga kaiwhakahaere o tenei hui, tena hoki koutou.

I want to acknowledge the nations that you call home and the birth waters of the Pacific Ocean that is the umbilical cord that connects us and creates our whakapapa ties.

It is a particular honour for us all to have the Niue High Commissioner her Excellency, Mrs O’Love Jacobson with us tonight.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

It’s a pleasure to be here this morning to open the SAS Users New Zealand conference.

We’re at a very exciting place at the moment.

The world of data analytics is new for a lot of people in Government, and just a little bit scary for some.

But the way I see it - by harnessing the skills analysts like you have when you look at information, we have the power to change - and save - lives. 

I am delighted to say a few words of welcome and of acknowledgment of this very significant day for you all in your study journey.

I want to formally extend a welcome to Gary Banks, the Dean of the Australia New Zealand School of Government  and lecturers on the programme Michael Di Francesco, Zina O’Leary and Claudia Scott. I am also delighted to acknowledge Michael Mintrom, the Course Director of the Executive Master of Public Administration, Tim Wigg and Rosie Colosimo - the programme managers.  

Thank you Reverend Elama Maea for opening this fono with your blessing for our day.

I want to acknowledge:

·       Fa’amatuainu Tino Pereira : the Chair of the Pacific Advisory Group;

·       Murray Edridge; the Deputy Chief Executive of the Ministry of Social Development

Thank you Reverend Elama Maea for the opening prayers – for setting the right platform for us tonight; to come together in the spirit of Pasefika Pride.

Thank you, also to Sandra Kailahi  - who was such a wonderful host when we launched the Ngā Vaka o Kaiga Tapu Family Violence conceptual framework last year.  It is with great pleasure that I learnt you would be helping us to celebrate the next part of our journey tonight.

My humble acknowledgments, firstly to

The Vulnerable Children omnibus Bill proposes two new Acts: the Vulnerable Children Act, and the Child Harm Prevention Orders Act.

It also amends the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989 and the KiwiSaver Act 2006 and makes consequential amendments to a number of other Acts.

This Bill is about protecting vulnerable children, and putting that priority ahead of the needs of adults.

These changes are bold and by their nature, controversial.

Talofa lava.  Malo e lelei.   Fakaalofa lahi atu.   Ni sa bula vinaka.   Kia orana.   Ia Orana.  Taloha ni.   Kia ora tatou katoa.

Fifty years ago this week, an African-American Baptist Minister, addressed a crowd of 250,000 people assembled in the March of Washington and spoke out about a nation that was failing to live up to its promise as a home for all God’s children. 

Talofa lava.  Malo e lelei.   Fakaalofa lahi atu.   Ni sa bula vinaka.   Kia orana.   Ia Orana.  Taloha ni.   Kia ora tatou katoa.

Fifty years ago this week, an African-American Baptist Minister, addressed a crowd of 250,000 people assembled in the March of Washington and spoke out about a nation that was failing to live up to its promise as a home for all God’s children. 

I think the most important work I will ever do as a Minister is the work contained in the Children’s Action Plan.

E ngā mātāwaka e tau mai nei ki raro i te mana o Ngā Pūmanawa e Waru o Te Arawa, tēnā koutou katoa.

I am pleased to be here amongst you all today. I would especially like to congratulate the recipients of last night’s E Tū Whānau awards for being courageous, for standing up and for making a difference in our communities. To speak out against violence is not easy – but this brave stance that you are all taking will ensure that the future for our tamariki and mokopuna will be a safer one.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today.

There are things non-government organisations can do that government just can’t.

NGOs move faster and get alongside families and communities in a way Government can’t.

They often know their communities best.

The Government still has a role to play, by providing a framework, direction and support

Sometimes though, the best thing the Government can do is get out of the way

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

Thank you Prime Minister for your introduction, and thank you also to Peter Clare and Westpac for hosting this event.

It’s great to see you all here, especially those from the Phobic Trust, Youthline, and ZEAL, whose innovative social media projects I’ll be talking about tonight.

It’s also great to see people here from organisations working with young people day in, day out. Thank you for coming.

I’m excited by the Social Media Innovations Fund.

Five years ago the first Programme of Action was launched following a hui co-hosted by Tainui and Ngāi Tahu with the Ministry of Social Development.

That summit brought together a wide range of people from across the country to contribute to a plan on how to address issues of violence for our people. The objective was clear and compelling – how to reduce harm to whānau and to provide the impetus for whānau to recognise they have the solutions to their own issues, particularly for violence.

E rau rangatira ma, e huihui mai nei ki raro i te maru o nga marae o Ngati Maniapoto, tena koutou katoa.

E Barney, e Koata me nga kaumatua o Maniapoto, tenei te mihi ki a koutou katoa mo ou whakaaro rangatira kia ora tonu enei waiata tuku iho hei taonga ma nga uri whakatipu. Na reira, tēna koutou katoa.

In making our way here to the land of Maniapoto, I reflected on the legacy begun in the late 1970s, by the movers and shakers of the day - Morehu Te Whare, Kingi Hetet, Koro Wetere, Daniel Te Kanawa – and the whānau that dreamed of a better day.

Introduction

Take care of our children, take care of what they hear, take care of what they see, take care of what they feel.

For how the children grow, so will be the shape of Aotearoa.

The work I introduce today is for the broken and the neglected, for those children that need us most as parents, neighbours, practitioners, politicians, and carers and as New Zealanders.

To honour Dame Whina Cooper's words; this is a new way of caring for our most vulnerable children.

Thank you Debbie Power, for your introduction.

I have been greatly looking forward to this ceremony to recognise and celebrate the successes of employers and employment agents who are doing so much to create an enabling society.

The annual Mainstream Placement Awards are a fantastic opportunity to recognise excellence in supported employment practice.

Today we celebrate a group of businesses, people and whanau who are taking action to create a more inclusive society.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

I would like to acknowledge the Dean of Medicine Sunny Collins and Otago University Wellington for generously hosting us this evening and the Health and Disability Panel for their advice and expertise.