Dear John,

 

A big development for the Waitaki in recent weeks has been limiting the
conversion of good farmland into carbon forestry. This has been a concern for
many people in our electorate and I’m very pleased to see the Government is
responding with a Bill that passed its first reading in Parliament with strong
support. It will end the large-scale conversion of productive farmland into
carbon-only forestry, while continuing to back production forestry as an
important part of our economy.

 

This Bill is about protecting our most valuable land that grows food for export
and sustains rural communities like ours.

 

For too long, ETS incentives have driven the wrong outcomes for our rural
sector. Once farms are planted in trees for carbon credits, we lose the ability
to produce the high-quality safe food that consumers demand – and we lose rural
jobs, export earnings, and the families that go with them. We are putting a stop
to the harm that this has done to rural New Zealand.

 

Another major focus recently has been on growing the economy to create jobs,
lift incomes and help Kiwis with the cost-of-living. We know things are still
tough for a lot of families and that’s why we are determined to see economic
growth to help Kiwis get ahead.

 

The economy is expected to grow on average 2.7 per cent per year creating
240,000 jobs over the next four years, but in the short term we are pulling
every lever we can to help Kiwi families with the cost of living.

 

We recently announced that we are scrapping surcharges at the till. New
Zealanders are paying up to $150 million in surcharges every year. That’s money
that could be saved or spent elsewhere.

 

We also recently marked one year of tax relief meaning the average household is
$1,560 better off.

 

We have also introduced FamilyBoost, which with the latest expansion gives
families up to 40 per cent off their childcare costs. We have introduced
12-month prescriptions, increased the rates rebate for 66,000 seniors and
increased Working for Families payments.

 

Most importantly we have stopped wasteful government spending and got inflation
under control. Inflation has dropped from a peak of 7.3 per cent under the
previous government to 2.7 per cent under ours.

 

This has meant lower interest rates, so a family re-fixing a $500,000 mortgage
today will save around $320 per fortnight compared to September 2023. We have
also driven rent inflation down.

 

Long term, we know the most important thing we can do is to increase wages, and
the way to do that is by growing the economy.

 

That is why this Government is focusing on five key areas: developing talent,
ensuring business settings are competitive, promoting global trade and
investment, supporting innovation, technology and science; and providing a
pipeline of infrastructure for growth.

 

Another positive move the Government has made is around building products.
Thousands of additional building products including plasterboard, cladding
systems, external doors, and windows will all be easier to use in construction
sites across New Zealand.

 

We want to see a construction boom, and this is an important step.

 

It is 50 per cent more expensive to build a standalone home in New Zealand than
in Australia. That is frankly outrageous. 

 

These changes have the potential to reduce total building costs by thousands of
dollars when building a home.

 

This Government is pulling every lever it has to drive economic growth and
building materials is one of many areas where a good dose of competition might
do the trick.

This is just the beginning of our work to open the door to more building
products, lower the cost of homes and turbo charge the construction sector and
there will be more to come.

 

Ōamaru recently had a visit from Associate Health Minister with responsibility
for Rural Health and Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey who came to town as
part of the rural health roadshow touring the country. 

 

We were able to announce a new mental health crisis support service will be
introduced in Ōamaru this month. I am incredibly pleased to see this service
becoming available for the people of our town and the wider Waitaki area. This
service is a result of local advocacy by the likes of Stronger Waitaki and will
take pressure off our emergency department and other agencies.

 

Another major recent announcement in health is for GPs, with the Government
confirming the largest funding boost for general practice in our country’s
history - $175 million this year alone. It’s part of a $1.37 billion package
focused on delivering timely, quality care closer to home. This includes a
13.89% funding increase for GP clinics to help them see more patients and ease
wait times. It also provides support to keep care affordable for low-income
families and under-14s.

 

The Government is also delivering the most significant investment in learning
support in a generation to better support Kiwi kids to thrive at school.

Key investments include substantial annual increases to teacher aide hours,
building up to over 2 million additional teacher aide hours per year, from 2028;
Learning Support Co-ordinators for all schools with Year 1-8 students; expanding
early intervention services from early learning through to end of year 1; and an
historic overhaul of the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme (ORS) funding model to ensure
that demand for the service is met with guaranteed funding so all students with
high and complex needs who are verified for ORS receive the support they need.

 

Too many children wait too long to receive support, or miss out altogether, on
the help they need to succeed. We are addressing this by investing in a smart,
system-wide reform that significantly increases specialist and support staff
resources in our schools.

 

It's great having spring just around the corner. On Friday 13 September I'll be
hosting the 'Rural Nats on Tour' at Glenbrook Station, Omarama. It'll be an open
discussion about all things rural and all are welcome. Would be great to see you
there!



 I hope the remainder of your winter goes well.

Miles

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