“It’s time we really backed our own economy,” he said.

“We’re either going to start taking ourselves seriously as a player, or we’re going to continue paying lip service to our economy and our future.

“But until we do start putting our money back into this country, let’s not pretend we’re doing all we can to grow our economy,” he said.

Mr Copeland said that the view that the economy was too small for the New Zealand Superannuation Fund was a fallacy, given that the country has $80 billion in overseas borrowings today, while the Government Super Fund and the New Zealand Super Fund have combined assets of around $6 billion.

“That’s pretty simple maths. There is no question about the size of the investment opportunities in our economy,” he said.

“And if we won’t invest in ourselves, how can we seriously stand in the international community and invite others to?”

Ends.