Whanganui MP Carl Bates delivers maiden speech to Parliament

Carl Bates, National MP for Whanganui.

Whanganui MP Carl Bates delivered his maiden speech to Parliament on Tuesday evening.

Bates paid tribute to his family, noting seven of his eight great-grandparents were alive when he was born, and had a special word for his grandmothers Shirley Bates and June Hudson who were in the public gallery. He also had acknowledgments to his parents, his wife Candice and his sons Angus and Logan.

There was a strong legacy component to Bates’ speech. He talked about wanting to leave a more meaningful legacy to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren than the debt they would burden.

He concluded his speech: “Ultimately, my goal in this House is to ensure I can tell my grandchildren that our great nation has the First World healthcare, education and social services we deserve because we built a productive First World economy that enabled us to pay for them.”

He talked at length about the Whanganui electorate, describing it as “a microcosm of New Zealand” and reminded listeners the rural sector was the backbone of our regional economy.

His speech included a tribute to the late Chester Borrows, with whom Bates began a friendship in 1996. Bates acknowledged Borrows’ 12 years as the MP for Whanganui and spoke of how his final illness had “robbed him of a long retirement”. He spoke warmly of Chester and Ella’s long record of service to the community.

Bates talked about his career, having first been appointed an independent director at the age of 18, leading him to form a professional services company in 2006 training directors, managing boardrooms and growing businesses throughout Africa and the world.

This, he said, had given him further opportunities to serve as chairman or director of several businesses in a range of sectors, which had given him real-world skills, experience and knowledge to take into the House.

As he concluded, Bates referred to the 9000 people he had met while campaigning, including a sole parent and a superannuitant in Whanganui, a Stratford farmer and a Hāwera businessman, all of whom raised particular issues with him. He promised to work hard for them and every constituent of the Whanganui electorate.

A group of nearly 60 family and friends watched Carl Bates’ speech from Parliament’s public gallery.