New Zealand First's outspoken regional development minister came to town this morning and told an elderly audience at the Tauranga Citizens' Club exactly what they wanted to hear.

He kicked off with State Highway 2. Shane Jones got a firsthand experience of the controversial highway in the worst of weather because it forced the cancellation of his flight and he had to drive to Tauranga.

'I finally got to see that dodgy piece of road that Clayton Mitchell has been telling me all about and something needs to be done about it.”

That drew a loud round of applause from his audience. Then he moved onto another potboiler – employment.

'If you are fit and able to work, you should go out and work,” the Minister told the Cits Club. ”Adults and parents need to set a good example for the younger generation by going out and working instead of relying on the government."

There was another spontaneous burst of applause and cheering.

He says with his one billion trees scheme he aims to get people out working and planting trees.

A total of 485 million dollars is already invested into the scheme and 50 million trees are planted each year.

Shane says that the funds are there to do the projects.

'We just need to groom up the proposals so that they pass muster and that the public can see the value within them as we approve them.”

But what is in the pot for the Bay of Plenty is unclear.

'I don't know exactly at this stage what the future projects of the Bay of Plenty are. I'm relying on civic leaders to lead the way.”