While his removal will not necessarily bring an immediate end to terrorist activity, I have absolutely no doubt that the world is a safer place without Osama Bin Laden.

New Zealand as a whole needs to save more, spend less and reduce our reliance on foreign debt.

Osama Bin Laden was responsible for the deaths of thousands of people, including New Zealanders, in several different parts of the world.

I think for the most part people are proud of the bicultural foundation New Zealand is built on and the fact that we are a multicultural society.

Your personality as the prime minister feeds through to what you emphasise, and what you don't, how you'll handle a situation - whether you've got the combination of intelligence or instincts to adapt and to make good decisions.

We have been given the trust and goodwill of New Zealanders. I do not take that trust for granted, and I never will.

We also need to remember the enduring principles on which the National Party is based – individual responsibility, support for families and communities, and a belief that the State can't and shouldn't do everything.