Carter David: Real Estate Agents Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Carter David: Real Estate Agents Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:649;Page:18408] 
Hon DAVID CARTER (National) 
: 
 As we move to Part 3 “Licensing” we come to the very nuts and bolts of this legislation. This is the part where we are talking about how one becomes licensed how a licence is suspended how a licence is cancelled how a licence is renewed etc. We come to the very essence of this legislation as it impacts on the real players within the industry and I am talking about the real estate agents themselves. 
I want the Committee to note that we now have a fresh Minister in the chair the Hon Shane Jones and to note also that some valuable questions raised in the previous discussion remain unanswered because Mr Cosgrove who was then the Minister in the chair decided not to answer the legitimate questions put by members of the National Party. In referring to clause 16 I notice that when we are talking about the nuts and bolts of the licensing as in Part 3 this is a significant function of the authority. Therefore I say it is important that we are absolutely assured today by the Minister in the chair that consideration has been given to who the members of the authority are. It is my understanding that following the conclusion of the Committee stage of the debate we will move to the third reading later on today. If that is the case then this legislation will have the Royal assent in the early part of next week—say on Monday or Tuesday depending on how busy our very distinguished Governor-General is. On that basis the Minister has to have revealed on the day after that who the members of the authority are because those members will then have responsibility for administering the licensing regime of Part 3 which affects every person participating as a real estate agent within this industry and affects people who want to enter the industry. 
I think that the least the Minister in the chair the Hon Shane Jones could do is to rise to his feet and assure the members of this Committee that due consideration has been given to the appointment of members to the authority. Furthermore he should assure members—and maybe this has happened with my colleague Simon Power with regard to the normal conventions that have applied in this House for a long long period of time; decades in fact—that there has been a reasonable consensus between and consultation with other political parties as to the membership of this authority. If as we are discussing in Part 3 we are to end up with a licensing regime administered by an authority that has not been appointed in a fair and open manner then this legislation will not be enduring. For example it might be an authority that could be stacked with Labour Party lackeys. I note that it is now 32 years since we last had reforming legislation involving the real estate industry and I do not want to see this legislation coming back because it was rammed through without a fair and consensual discussion in Parliament on the membership of that authority. 
I hope that Shane Jones will be more cooperative than the bullying arrogant Minister whom we had earlier the Hon Clayton Cosgrove but I think that this Committee has every right to know whether those appointments have been considered whether they have been approved by a Cabinet process and if so I ask why the Minister cannot simply tell us who they are today. Unless that authority has the confidence of this Parliament and more important has the confidence of the industry this legislation and the licensing regime we are now debating in Part 3 will not be enduring and I think it would be a shame for this House if that is the process the Minister Shane Jones is prepared to endorse in Parliament this afternoon.