Hon Lianne Dalziel, MP
Minister of Immigration

Launch of www.business-migrants.govt.nz website

Monday, 9 October 2000, 5:30 pm
Banquet Hall, Parliament House, Wellington

Welcome to you all, and thank you for coming here to Parliament to join in the launch of a great new resource for business migrants.

I first learned of this resource when I was asked by officials if I would sign up to a press statement, launching the newly-developed business migrant web-site. I said I'd like to see it first.

After I had seen the site, I refused to have anything to do with a press statement launch. I told them it was far too good for that, and that I wanted to host a launch at Parliament with invited guests, to celebrate the superb effort of the designers of the web-site, and to re-state this government's commitment to the Business Migrant sector – both present and future.

This site is professional and attractive; it's user-friendly; its home page is in 13 languages other than English; it's even got some humour, and it links to over 650 different web-sites, and it's interactive – that is, you can e-mail questions directly to the Business Migrant Unit.

I believe this web-site will help to increase interest in New Zealand as a business migrant destination.

I cannot stress enough how vital it is that we make it easy for both potential and new migrants to find out about New Zealand, and our immigration policies and procedures, so that they can make well-informed decisions.

If you live in China or Argentina or Italy, finding out what it is like to live in New Zealand and establish a business here is probably not all that easy.

Nor is it easy for us to have a presence in every part of the world. It is a global marketplace now, and New Zealand competes with larger countries – particularly the US, Canada and Australia – that are usually better placed to promote themselves to people with business skills, ideas and capital.

This is where www.business-migrants.govt.nz comes in. The world-wide web is good for NZ, as it gives us a presence everywhere. Where there is a modem, there is a way.

We have previously had a web-site for business migrants, but this is much more than an upgrade. This site has been designed with the user in mind. It is designed to help business migrants gain the information they need to decide that New Zealand is the place to establish a business – and then to support them right through the process of application, settlement and beyond.

This site acts as a guide to doing business in New Zealand, helping business migrants find the information they need on many aspects of doing business here and living here. The site is also a resource that business migrants can continue to use after they have arrived in New Zealand.

We know that many migrants find it hard to operate in a new and unfamiliar, cultural and legal framework. For someone setting up a business, these challenges can be even greater.

One of the reasons we are confident the redesigned site will be a useful resource is the endorsement we have had from people who have already made a transition to New Zealand as business migrants. They and the immigration staff who work with business migrants had significant input into the site design. Some of the business migrants who helped with this process are here tonight, and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you and to acknowledge the wider contribution you have made to New Zealand.

This improved website is one of the ways in which the New Zealand Immigration Service is becoming more responsive to the needs of those who want to make their home in New Zealand. It’s important that the Service works as a facilitator, helping new migrants make the transition to living in New Zealand as smooth as possible.

Congratulations once more to the designers of the website. It is just superb, and graphically shows New Zealand's comparative advantages to the world. Well done.

ENDS

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