Jones’s New Zealand First colors mean that he is “sensitive” to foreign ownership of pastoral lands because “the control and use of pastoral lands is deeply embedded in New Zealand’s identity”.

But he said there were other areas where Singapore could choose to invest, including infrastructure such as food production and water storage.

“In my conversations with food organizations in Singapore, I have emphasized that if you want food security, ideally you should invest in this.

“You can buy food from New Zealand at any time of day, but if you want to hedge your risk to ensure that key food inputs are available in the future, then finding the right partners in New Zealand is key,” Jones said. reporter.

Also joining the trip was former Nationals Minister Murray McCully, who now chairs the Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust, which aims to establish two working water schemes planned for Northland.

Jones said Singaporeans understand that access to water means “having the ability to diversify land use.”

“They understand the strategic value of water,” he said.

During his trip, Jones met members of the Singapore Government, including Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.

He spoke at Singapore Energy Week, which brought together ministers and executives from the energy sector, including Amin Nasser, chairman and CEO of Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco. Jones said his own message at the conference was to convey the Government’s views. A “major reset” on the energy mix and the new Government’s “openness to oil and gas as it represents an unexpected fuel”.

Jones also met with executives from the agricultural sector and Singaporean companies state-owned investment giant Temasek.

The government is trying to increase foreign investment to help meet some of its infrastructure targets. His visit follows visits by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters earlier this year.

Jones said Singaporean investors were generally attracted to New Zealand because of its strong legal system and cultural ties between the two countries, which will soon celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations. But the problem is that capital surveys in Singapore are so “tremendously large” that they often need incentives to “invest alongside Kiwis in projects that would not normally come on their radar screens”.

There was still work to be done in terms of establishing the Kiwis themselves. “The impression I get from them is that we’re not immediately on the radar anymore, whether it’s Covid-related or whether we’ve become complacent without appreciating that you need to get out and hurry,” Jones said.

Jones said there was interest in road investment and building a dry dock facility, an area in which Singapore has a lot of expertise; Many New Zealand ships, including Inter-Island ships, use Singapore dry docks for maintenance.

NZ First wants to build a dry dock in New Zealand and has included in its coalition agreement with National a promise to conduct a detailed business case for a dry dock at Marsden Point.

He said there was also interest in New Zealand’s water infrastructure, but whether private capital would be involved in water investment would ultimately be determined by local councils.

Jones said New Zealanders would have to get used to some foreign investment in infrastructure, given the difficult state of the Government’s finances.

“I am a Deputy Minister of Finance and have in-depth knowledge of the state of the Crown books… We do not have the taxpayer revenue to meet the infrastructure expectations that the public expects from us,” he said.

“If you want accelerated infrastructure then you are going to have to strike a balance between historical faith (government ownership and financing) and contemporary reality,” Jones said.

Thomas Coughlan is deputy political editor and follows politics in Parliament. She has been with the Herald since 2021 and has worked in the Press Gallery since 2018.