Garrett David: Vehicle Confiscation and Seizure Bill — First Reading 
Garrett David: Vehicle Confiscation and Seizure Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:654;Page:4110] 
It is all about reducing traffic offending. It strengthens the power to order the confiscation of motor vehicles. It empowers the courts “to order the destruction of motor vehicles used by persistent illegal street racing offenders:”. I emphasise the phrase “persistent illegal street racing offenders”. The bill strengthens the seizure provisions to enhance the collection of unpaid fines and reparations. It is about getting rid of harm and the nuisance issue of the illegal street racers. I suppose that in the vein of the previous speaker Clayton Cosgrove—the Walter Mitty of New Zealand politics the congenital strutter of New Zealand politics and the forever hard man of New Zealand politics—I say to the illegal street racers that they should use their cars properly or lose them entirely. 
The bill is not about noise or even modification; it is about behaviour and about what people do with the modifications to their cars. I come from two areas. I am a one-time long-serving resident of South Auckland and am now ensconced in west Auckland. I suppose the view of west Aucklanders has been of them wearing black t-shirts and driving big V8 Ford Fairlane 500s that make a lot of noise. Everybody in every generation has modified cars since the Ford Model T but only of late have they used the modifications in terms of the street race culture. There is a guy who lives up the road from me whose dad owns the dairy who is a car nut. Quite frankly he is appalled by what is going on in terms of illegal street racing and the harm it does to communities. This bill is about sending a message. It is about taking the toys off the illegal street racers. Essentially that is what the cars are; they are very expensive toys. 
David Garrett 
: Dangerous toys. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: And they are dangerous toys. I thank the member from ACT. 
I will say just a couple of things about my learned colleague Clayton Cosgrove. 
Hon Darren Hughes 
: The honourable. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: The Hon Clayton Cosgrove. It is all well and good to talk tough talk hard and rumble round as if one is doing the rumble in the jungle but it would have been better if he had been like that about this issue when he was in Government. I have never heard a speech with more use of the words “my” and “I”. That is what his speech was all about: “When I was there” “This was my bill” “My this my that my everything else” and “I did this and I did that but basically I didn’t do anything and that was why we got kicked out.” Labour members can say platitudes and talk about reserving their judgment. What does that mean? Their reserving judgment means that they have not come to a position. They have never been able to come to a position on this issue. This is the first time— 
Hon David Carter 
: They’re soft on crime. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: —they are soft on crime—that a Government has actually brought the issue right to the fore. Quite frankly it is about time. Not only do I commend this bill to the House and to the select committee but I give a warning to those illegal street racers: their time is up. They will lose their toys and their babies.