2004 Speeches

Deaflympics Athletes Farewell
Thursday 16 December 2004
Good afternoon. Today I need to start by passing on an apology from Ruth Dyson, who is the Patron of the Deaf Society of Canterbury. Ruth says that she has to be in Wellington today but would like to pass on her congratulations to the athletes for being selected. She sends, in short, her very best wishes.

Italy Star Association Lunch
Saturday 27 November 2004
Have said before to you that the easy contempt of a peacetime youth for former soldiers has long ago been replaced by the greatest respect. And grey hair.

6th World Congress on Coloured Sheep
Saturday 13 November 2004
Good morning. I really cannot think of any country better suited to host this Congress than New Zealand.

Annual Review Function for Apprentice Training NZ
Wednesday 3 November 2004
It’s good to be here talking about creating real skills for real jobs.

Address by the Mayor of Christchurch to the inaugural Council meeting
Wednesday 27 October 2004
Firstly, today I would like to congratulate you all on your successfully being elected to this great council. To all of your families I thank you for putting up with those of us who want to change the world and to make this a better place. For those candidates who were unsuccessful at the polls our thanks for your participation in the democratic process and I wish you well for the future.

NZ Water and Wastes Association 46th Annual Conference & Expo Opening
Wednesday October 2004
Good morning and welcome to Christchurch. I must say that your organisers have chosen well in picking a relevant location for this conference.

Antarctic Season Opening
Saturday 2 October 2004
Greetings. A special welcome to Colonel Tye Beazly and Brigadier General Jim Toscano of the United States Airforce, David Burnett of the US Embassy and Art Brown of the National Science Foundation, to Members of Parliament and guests.

PILLARS A.G.M.
Tuesday 28 September 2004
I share your vision of a crime free society. I believe I also share your insight that getting there does not have one simple solution, much as many in politics would like us to think.

Meat Industry Association Annual Conference
Sunday 12 September
Welcome to Christchurch, the second biggest city in New Zealand and also the second-to-top conference and convention venue in the country.

Official Opening of New Sharp Business Centre
Monday 23 August 2004
Greetings and welcome to New Zealand's second largest city. I note that you have already opened business centres in that Babylon beyond the Bombay Hills, also known as Auckland and also in Wellington, home of that tribe of paper producers the Iwi Sir Humphrey. My question is, what took you so long?

Redesigning Resources Conference
Thursday 12 August 2004
I've now had the pleasure of welcoming delegates to the Redesigning Resources conferences of 2000, 2002 and now 2004. I assume that this means they are either bi-annual, or that Mr Prain holds them on the sly each alternating year. Which would be a great shame.

Turners and Growers Official Opening
Tuesday 10 August 2004
I would just like to start out by noting that your move has been good for you, and good for the city too. We now have a prime slice of inner city land to develop in a way that history will show was a catalyst for the next big surge of inner city development.

United Way 2004 Grant Allocations
Thursday 15 July 2004
It’s good to be here today to help out a group with such a track record for doing good. I've always thought it's a sad reflection on our society when a "do-gooder" has become a term of abuse. It's a shame. The energy and commitment of the voluntary sector are ultimately what glues our community together.

NZ Machine Knitters’ Society Festival 2004
Wednesday 14 July 2004
Good evening...I'm delighted to be able to officially open the Canterbury area version of the New Zealand Machine Knitters Society Festival. Even by my standards, I understand that I am in fact a little late, given that you all got started last Sunday.

Launch of “Getting Back on Track” Kit
Monday 12 July 2004
Good afternoon. Punishment ideas for criminals has been getting a bit of a public airing lately. Prevention ideas do not seem to have been quite so popular. Which is a great shame, particularly from people who take great pride in their ability to manage money matters.

Reception for World Vision 40 Hour Famine Leaders
Tuesday, 29 June 2004
Great to be here to salute officially those who have led this year, and quite possibly those who will lead us all in the future.

Wuhan University Visit, China
Tuesday 15 June 2004
Thank you for your time and attention today. It has been a highly instructive visit that has given us a valuable insight into the scale and depth of the education available at Wuhan University. It has also reinforced my belief that, in the global supermarket of education options, there is a place for education "shops" of all sizes

Education Agents Cocktail Function, Wuhan, China
Monday 14 June 2004
Good evening education agents and school principals. It is a reminder to me of how life can change, that such a school pupil as I was is now greeting school principals on behalf of Christchurch

Friends of Christchurch Education lunch, Wuhan, China
Sunday June 13 2004
Good afternoon. Welcome to all of you who have at any time entrusted your children’s education to us in Christchurch. Those of you who have will know that there is much more involved to this act of trust than just the desire to acquire formal education.

Canterbury Investor Network Function
Friday 28 May 2004
Good afternoon. I'm pleased to welcome you here and endeavour to help us put together a Budget for Investors that has the merit of being Canterbury based. I don't plan to speak long or too formally.

Selwyn house School, 75 th Anniversary
Wednesday 26 th Mary 2004
Welcome to Cathedral Square! After three weeks of rain the sun’s finally come out to shine on your parade!

Community Energy Action Function
Thursday 20 May 2004
One of our biggest gaps between the haves and have nots is that of energy. Some enjoy energy and heat rich environments, others find it a real struggle when it turns colder.

Road Sense Programme
Tuesday 18 May 2004
I rather think that the Road Sense programme is a really good idea. Like most really good ideas it seems so obvious that you wonder why nobody thought of it before.

Nuffield Scholars’ Biennial Conference
Saturday 8 May 2004
Welcome to the partners of the Nuffield Farm scholars and their audience. I say a special welcome to the partners because I'm told that at first the hayseeds wanted to have this event in the McKenzie Country.

Age Concern National A.G.M
Friday 16 April 2004
Good evening. Welcome to Christchurch, a city of many titles and names. Once it was the City that Shines. It is also known as the world's best Garden City. To the tourists it is part of the Fresh each Day promotion, and every winter we also get reminded it can be the city that has smog at times.

National Landscape Architects Conference
Monday 5 April 2004
Greetings, temporary Ecopolites. Rest assured that your organisers have left nothing to chance, even down to including instructions on how to pronounce Ecopolis. I'll take that as a tribute to my powerhouse Irish intellect.

Sister Cities Conference Welcome Speech
Thursday 25 March 2004
Good morning. While it is hard to speak after the Prime Minister, I can at least do so by reminding you that I am Christchurch's Mayor. Helen may lead the nation but I have the pleasure of leading the smaller city state of Christchurch.

Central City Revitalisation Workshop
Thursday 18 March 2004
We have already come a long, long way from where we were just a few years ago. We have moved ahead as a city, and shown that as we grow we can also be grown up about taking on our common problems and opportunities.

Riding for the Disabled Equestrian Centre Opening
Thursday 11 March 2004
Events like this are the building blocks of a truly civilised city. It's easy to dismiss ideas like inclusion unless you happen to be one of the excluded.

APEC Ministers' Cocktail Function
Wednesday 10 March 2004
Greetings again to APEC Ministers and the members of their delegations. Fresh greetings to our business leaders, Mayors, councillors and the members of our local academic community

APEC Ministers' Welcome Reception
Wednesday 10 March 2004
Good evening APEC Ministers, Mario Artaza, Executive Director of APEC, the delegations and all the other support staff tied up with such a major event. On a more local front, greetings to our Minister, Pete Hodgson, Bryce Heard of the Crown Research Institute and Tim Gibson of Trade and Enterprise. Greetings to Christchurch.

8th International Conference: Upper Limb Surgery for Tetraplegia
Tuesday 24 February 2004
Welcome to Christchurch and what I understand is the first time this event has been held in New Zealand. In fact, I also understand it is only the second time you have held your meeting in the Southern Hemisphere.

NZPGA Championship Civic Reception
Tuesday 24 February 2004
On behalf of the city I would like to welcome everyone here to Christchurch. This function gives our Council the chance to say thank you to everyone for supporting the 2004 New Zealand PGA Championship at Clearwater Golf Club.

Victoria Clock Tower Unveiling
Monday 16 February 2004
One of the keys to reviving the inner city has been making sure that we hold onto as much of the best of our past as we can.   This is a bit of the best.   Of the past, the present, and the future.

Boise Office Solutions Depot Opening
Monday 16 February 2004
Good afternoon. I’m glad to be here to help you officially open your new $10 million centre for sales and distribution. I’m also pleased to note that you are going to help make 40 new jobs in your Christchurch customer service centre.

Delta House, Official Opening
Saturday 14 February 2004
"It’s a pleasure to be here to help salute a form of community care that actually delivers. I always thought the absolute high tide of cruel social change was when it became fashionable to shut down the big safe places and replace them with very little in return."

Opening of Flowers & Romance Festival
12 February 2004
"On other nights, and days, I have gradually learnt there are some topics where to be brief is a very good thing. Gardening is one such subject. Romance, sadly is another.
I did take Pam home some flowers once but it was so unusual an action it did not work out like in the chocolate ads. She was more wary than cheery shall we say. I guess as partners go I'm more the durable type, a Labrador type of husband."

Rotary Club of Christchurch South
Wednesday 11 February 2004
"If Christchurch was a country it would be one of the economic success stories of the developed world. Along with Canterbury we have now enjoyed many continuous quarters of growth. It has been a boom time for the record books."

Kea Campervan Rental/Customer Services Depot Opening
Wednesday 4 February 2004
"It’s great to see a company that understands the need to provide tourists with a high-end experience of quality and consistency."

Radio NZ National Programme FM Launch
Wednesday 4 February 2004
"Without being overly political, I must say I think it is completely apt that Radio New Zealand has chosen Christchurch as its venue for this launch."

Wuhan Graduation Banquet
Monday 2 February 2004
"Good evening. It has been a long time since I have been a student of anything other than what they call the school of life."

Men's World Softball Championships Official Opening
Thursday 29 January 2004
"Good afternoon, I'm Garry Moore, Mayor of Christchurch. Some older guests may well remember the great quest years ago for runners to break the 3 minute mile. The 3 minute barrier is back for this opening, except now the target is politicians such as myself."

World Softball Championships Civic Reception
Wednesday 28 January 2004
"I won't tempt fate by talking about our settled climate. Up until yesterday we were having a drought. Yesterday brought so much rain that many gutters around town flooded. Let's just say our climate is so varied at the moment that no softball players can rely on a consistent seasonal advantage."