SpeechAGNES LOHENI (National): Thank you Madam Chair. I'd like to make my contribution at this stage on Part 2 clause 8 of this bill. I'd just like to concur with what the previous speaker Alfred Ngaro has said about as members of this House—particularly members who voted to get this bill to this stage because they wanted the scrutiny because they wanted to make this a better bill. So I hope that the members who have wanted to get this bill to this stage come to the committee of the whole House and actually contribute to making this bill better. So I'd like to see those members in the Chamber today.Clause 8 is the choice clause. Proponents of this bill say that we should pass this bill because it's about giving people a choice and the member for this bill David Seymour has I note in an earlier debate said What this bill is about is giving choice and safety giving people an ability to make a particular choice should it suit them. It doesn't take anything away from all of the other choices people might have; it gives an additional choice to some people who might want it." So why are we talking about safeguards if it's all about choice? Either these requirements are a cynical way for proponents to pretend to care about people being abused under this law when they don't or maybe the proponents are gradually realising that this law is dangerous so as time goes on they're introducing more rules. The truth is that there are obvious reasons people might be under pressure—the ill elderly and pressured people into euthanasia. My colleague Melissa Lee in the last committee stage gave a glaring example of the abuse that does happen in this case. Proponents are pretending that the rules can deal with that danger and so this is what clauses 8 to 16 are supposed to do but they are entirely inadequate to prevent abuse. And if I could just also add there is a whole spectrum of scenarios that can occur that will occur under this bill and in particular there are two types of abuse that New Zealanders will be at risk from. First straightforward elder abuse which is already unfortunately—it's sad but it is well documented in this country—a tragedy. This law gives elder abusers the ultimate weapon. Second subtle pressures around decision making—these pressures can come from family from the healthcare system and society as a whole. The mere existence of this bill is a subtle pressure. Choice to one is pressure to another. It may manifest as a subtle pressure; it may also manifest as a not-so-subtle pressure depending on the environment that that person is in. But if I could just also use this time to please highlight the Supplementary Order Paper (SOP) in my name which is SOP 317 which has in clause 9 just tightened up some wording around people who may wish to change their minds after they've gone through the process of section 8. It is not unusual for elderly people to want to change their minds. It is not unusual for them to change their minds on a daily basis or weekly basis depending on the nature of their care depending on the nature of the relationships of the people that are close to them the people that are around them. So in tightening up that wording in my SOP 317 in clause 9(2)—to replace "wishes to proceed" with "still appears to wish to proceed and has done nothing to indicate that they may have changed their mind after previously expressing a wish for assisted dying under section 8".So I please urge members of this committee to at least consider the amendment that I've put down in my name No. 317 as some way to go to tightening up that wording and to providing some measure of safeguard in that particular text. Thank you."