Ka nui te mihi kia kotou, kia ora, and good morning everyone.

To those of you visiting us from overseas, can I extend a very special welcome to each and every one of you.

Welcome to New Zealand, welcome to the best country on planet Earth, and welcome to our stunning Auckland waterfront.

And to all those Kiwis I see in the room today, thank you for being here and showcasing some of the extraordinary businesses and talent that exists in our business community.

And it was a real pleasure to meet many of you informally last night, and my Ministers and I are really looking forward to spending much more time with you over the next two days.

I meant it before when I said this is the best country on planet Earth.

Because what makes New Zealand so very special and unique is our Kiwi Spirit which is exemplified in the qualities, character, and attitude of New Zealanders.

For us, it‘s about resilience and determination, ingenuity and innovation, adventure and exploration, creativity and practical problem-solving, humility and mateship, fairness, and a deep care for our land and community.

It’s no surprise that growing up in New Zealand, our heroes are Kiwi trailblazers and pioneers, people who have dared to push boundaries, challenge the status quo, and leave a lasting mark on the world.

From our early Māori explorers navigating vast oceans guided by the stars, to modern-day adventurers like Sir Edmund Hillary conquering Everest.

To Ernest Rutherford, the father of nuclear physics, who split the atom and revolutionised our understanding of science. To Rocket Lab’s Peter Beck and his groundbreaking developments in rocket technology launching satellites into space.

And Kate Shepperd, who secured New Zealand women the right to vote – the very first country in the world to do so.

And our phenomenal athletes who show the world what determination and talent can achieve. Or the stunning world of The Lord of the Rings created by one of our most creative storytellers - Peter Jackson.

We may be a small country, but time and again, we have proven that size is no barrier to greatness. From the peaks of Everest to the frontlines of social progress, from scientific breakthroughs to arts and sporting legends, Kiwis have led the way.

And we’re living in an age when New Zealand has never been closer to the action - right in the middle of the booming Indo-Pacific with direct connections to Asia and North America.

With the weight of global economic activity shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific and digital connections breaking down barriers, New Zealand has never been closer to the world.

But for all our spirit and hard work, we also know New Zealand can’t do it alone.

We’re a small country of around five million people like Ireland, Singapore, and Denmark.

Just as those countries have prospered by tapping into larger markets, building stronger international connections, and fostering trade and investment, New Zealand needs to do the same.

If we want our country to thrive, we need to work even harder to compete on the world stage – and, in particular, to unlock the commercial partnerships that will supercharge the next generation of growth in the New Zealand economy.

That means the Government will work more with Industry to deliver much of the infrastructure and projects that will be showcased over the next two days.

Many of your organisations will have extensive experience delivering outstanding world-class infrastructure to national and regional governments worldwide.

I want New Zealand to seize every opportunity to partner with the private sector and deliver a fresh generation of infrastructure investment to unleash economic growth.

But it’s not just infrastructure.

I want to develop closer ties between outstanding New Zealanders and their companies based here, with investors and organisations based offshore.

I also want to unlock more partnerships between indigenous Iwi Māori organisations and commercial investors, whether they are based in Auckland or Abu Dhabi, Dunedin or Denver.

I want start-ups based in Christchurch and Hamilton fighting for seed capital in San Francisco and London – winning their share of global influence and success.

Breaking perceptions about the New Zealand economy is critical to that.

Yes, we have globally competitive dairy, film, and tourist industries, but our space industry is also operating at the cutting edge, ranking fourth in the world for launches behind the US, China, and Russia.

Over the next two days, you will hear more about our plan to unleash growth and ensure New Zealand reaches its full potential.

We want you to join us on that journey, and we will have several opportunities on display.

That will include the opportunity to deliver infrastructure in partnership with the Crown – both in the form of immediate opportunities and the pipeline of projects going forward.

It will include working with Iwi Māori organisations to grow their businesses as they make a multigenerational investment in their people.

It will include opportunities in a range of specific sectors where we believe New Zealand has a unique role to play and where we expect the Government to focus its efforts on growth.

In the very short term, we have made good economic progress in our first year in Government, although there’s still a long way to go.

New Zealand is now in the early stages of a cyclical economic recovery, with growth beginning to pick up and unemployment expected to peak around its current rate.

Inflation has fallen and now sits comfortably anchored within the Reserve Bank’s target band at 2.2%.

Annual tourism expenditure was up 23% last year, and services and manufacturing activity have returned to growth after extended periods of contraction.

Business confidence is at around its highest level in a decade. As confidence has risen, retail trade has picked up, and growth is expected to rise, hitting 3% in 2026.

So, there’s now cause for optimism in the New Zealand economy that the recovery is underway and better days lie ahead.

For policymakers here in New Zealand, that poses an opportunity - not just to watch the economic recovery, but to shape it.

Step-changing economic productivity, lifting incomes, creating jobs, and unleashing the investment New Zealand needs to become much more prosperous.

Which brings us to today.

I know the only way we will raise incomes, lift New Zealanders’ standard of living, and fund the quality public services we rely on is by unlocking more investment, more innovation, and more entrepreneurship.

Having broken inflation last year, our collective focus has now turned to shaping the economic recovery - ensuring we take every possible step to lift New Zealand’s economic performance.

That renewed energy and effort forms the backdrop of this Summit.

My Government is working around the clock to make New Zealand an outstanding place to do business.

But before I highlight some of those reforms and my economic priorities as Prime Minister, I want to make a more fundamental point about New Zealand as an investment destination.

New Zealand has been and will continue to be a poster child for social and political stability in a more volatile and challenging world.

That reputation is long-standing, but in challenging times, it has come into sharper focus.

We stand up for our values and live by them, too. That means respecting civil liberties, private property and private life, and the democratic and social institutions that underpin them.

We consistently advocate for a rules-based international order that allows small countries like New Zealand to thrive. Free trade isn’t just an idea in New Zealand; it’s the bedrock of our prosperity.

For farmers and growers living in rural New Zealand, it has allowed a modern economic miracle: the opportunity to not just collectively operate one of the most efficient agricultural sectors in the world but to live in some of the most stunning parts of the world while they do it.

Finally, we might disagree sometimes – but we’re not disagreeable. Over the next two days, you will hear from various political leaders.

You will hear from senior Ministers representing each of the three political parties in our Coalition Government, as well as Barbara Edmonds, the Labour Party’s Opposition Finance Spokesperson.

It’s pretty normal in New Zealand for political parties to disagree with each other – often loudly, and sometimes even with my own Coalition colleagues.

But I believe the broad political representation that is here demonstrates that most New Zealanders share the same motivations – higher incomes and more financial freedom, quality public services, and a long-standing belief that our best days lie ahead of us.

When you look at all the tension, volatility, and strife in the world today, I think that makes us pretty special, and a very attractive destination for anyone looking to take shelter from the global storm.

Political stability, however, is not an excuse for a lack of ambition.

You should be under no illusions about my commitment to the Government’s growth agenda and the reforms we are pushing through to unleash investment in the New Zealand economy.

Last month, Minister for Economic Growth Nicola Willis published our Government’s Going for Growth Agenda – we have copies for you here - which outlines a range of actions we are taking to get the New Zealand economy moving and realising its vast potential.

Each of those actions fits into one of five pillars we have identified as critical to lifting economic growth and improving New Zealanders’ standard of living:

1. Developing talent,
2. Encouraging innovation, science, and technology,
3. Introducing competitive business settings,
4. Promoting global trade and investment,
5. And delivering infrastructure for growth.

Across each of those pillars, we have Ministers from across the Government working day and night to drive through reform – in transport, tourism, aquaculture, construction, advanced aviation, mining, energy, agriculture, and horticulture.

Over the next two days, you will hear much more about our work programme in those areas that will play a critical role in the next phase of New Zealand’s growth story – with more information on a series of specific investable propositions available in the private sector.

Among that reform programme are some significant changes designed to achieve a profound step change in the New Zealand economy that I would like to touch on today.

For a start, we are clearing away decades of broken planning law – brick by brick.

We have introduced the Fast Track regime, which streamlines the consenting process for projects that are regionally and nationally significant.

In short, instead of seeking different permissions under different laws, under Fast Track, it’s all done in one place, with a faster process and fewer hurdles to getting underway.

That regime is now up and running, and I know a number of projects have already submitted applications since it became operational last month.

In short, if you want to build a wind farm, a highway, a quarry, hundreds of new homes, or any other regionally or nationally significant projects, we are busting down the doors to make it happen faster and cheaper.

149 projects have already been listed in legislation, but nothing prevents new projects from applying for referral into the scheme.

And it doesn’t stop with Fast Track.

Further planning reforms are also on the way, including a total replacement of the Resource Management Act.

We are also eliminating the barriers to more significant investment in energy and generation to unleash abundant, affordable energy.

The impact of unaffordable and unreliable energy on economic growth has been brought into the spotlight in recent years following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Industries in Europe that had historically relied on access to low-cost natural gas came under tremendous strain, putting pressure on growth and household incomes.

In New Zealand, we are lucky that 85% of electricity generation is already renewable, thanks to decades of investment in hydro, wind, solar, and geothermal.

But we can’t risk falling short in the years to come. So, as a Government, we are tearing down the barriers to fresh energy investment. That means introducing more permissive rules for renewables.

But it also means ending restrictions on offshore oil and gas exploration – and providing certainty for market participants by confidently saying that gas has to be part of New Zealand’s energy mix going forward.

At the same time, we are making it easier to invest in New Zealand from offshore.

That started last year, with fresh directives to our Overseas Investment Office, which slashed processing times and made applications more predictable.

Today, an application for offshore investment is approved within 18 days on average, compared to 28 days prior to those changes.

And two weeks ago, we announced upcoming changes to legislation designed to further improve the timeliness and reliability of our overseas investment regime.

We also announced just last month that, from April 1 this year, individuals who invest at least $5 million in New Zealand will be eligible for an Active Investor Visa, with a pathway to residency after three years.

I know that for many of you from offshore in this room, that will be positive news. But as a New Zealander, I have to say it’s an even bigger deal for the sharp, ambitious Kiwis here and all around the country, who are hungry for capital and hungry to grow.

We know the impact foreign investment has on local businesses. It’s not just the capital investment; it’s the skills, connections, and linkages into new markets.

That translates into higher wages, more jobs, more money in Kiwi wallets, and more resilient businesses that make an even greater contribution in the community.

We need more of it, especially for a small country hungry to grow like New Zealand, which is why I have invited many of you here today.

I believe New Zealand’s best days are ahead of us—and we can make them happen if we get serious about partnering with commercial expertise to solve some of our biggest economic challenges and seize on the huge economic opportunities ahead of us.

Helping to end New Zealand’s infrastructure deficit through private sector partnership.

Fattening out our capital markets and opening up new sectors for growth.

Strengthening our connections to the world, enhancing technology, lifting productivity, and opening new markets for our products and services.

Over the next two days, you will hear from a range of leaders—cabinet Ministers, business leaders, and Iwi Māori leaders—who I know are committed to responding to our challenges and opportunities.

There will also be plenty of time across both days for closer interactions and to discuss the opportunities and challenges that you are confronting in your own businesses.

While you’re here, please also enjoy our hospitality and culture. We’re not just here to do business—we’re here to build relationships and make the case for New Zealand as an outstanding country to invest in, to visit, and to establish roots in.

So once again, and on behalf of the New Zealand Government and the New Zealand people, welcome to this year’s Summit.

I’m excited to get stuck in – and I can’t wait to hear more from you over the next two days about your approach to business and the difference you could make for growth, investment, jobs, and opportunity for us here in New Zealand.

Thank you.

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