Collins JudithHon JUDITH COLLINS (National—Papakura): Thank you to the Labour Government for clapping as I stood. Mr Speaker knowing how often you have said to us on so many occasions that we should not rise and read our speeches I can assure you that I won't be. I'd like to obviously acknowledge the person who has just resumed her seat the Hon Jenny Salesa and say to her I am very pleased that we have another strong voice in the South Auckland area. The member and I have often worked together on various things and it's always good to see someone who has such a nice personality although she does read her speeches come through and become a Minister.Hon Chris Hipkins: Oh Judith you were doing so well. Why did you have to spoil it?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Ha ha! That's because I know my job. That's because I know my job Mr Hipkins. I would like to talk about this bill because I think this is an excellent bill and I'll tell you why I think it's an excellent bill: because it's actually National Party policy for the 2017 election. I've got it here for those on the other side who might have missed it but it's our policy. It's always good to be able to support a Government or a party that wants to support the National Party's policy. Of course it was the National Government that increased paid parental leave last time and it's great we've been hearing tonight—Hon Member: Twice!Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Twice in fact. Of course a miserable Labour Government which left office thankfully in 2008 was not actually nearly as generous as a National Government—but we are so used to that.I think one of the things that I thought was so interesting is how everybody tonight has talked about our departed former MP Sue Moroney. And I think we should acknowledge the work that Sue did. She was always an effective member of the Opposition. She worked hard she tried hard and she got dumped so far down the list of the Labour Party that she just gave up and went home—except actually she is now apparently going to work for the Public Service Association so good luck with that over there in the Labour Government. I think Sue might want a bit of utu because frankly why wouldn't she?Hon Ruth Dyson: Well she's not like you.Hon JUDITH COLLINS: But anyway apparently they didn't like her when she was the whip. Watch out Hon Ruth Dyson. They didn't like her when she was the whip and look what happened to her.So let's just talk about this bill again our National Party policy that the Labour Government has kindly taken up for us. It is—Hon Member: Not as good as ours.Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Not as good as ours. It's good to note that New Zealand actually has one of the highest participation rates for women in the paid workforce in the OECD and we could do better personally. And I think the whole paid parental leave issue is one that does enable women in particular and men to continue to work in the workforce have a job and have a family and raise the children. As a mother who has in fact raised a child when I was working full-time in my own law firm with no parental leave—terrible employer of course to myself—the fact is that it is quite a big tough call for a lot of small businesses particularly if there is a client-solicitor relationship or some sort of client relationship there. It is tough but I believe that New Zealand businesses have overall really embraced the concept of paid parental leave because they can see that obviously so often it's the best woman for the job in my opinion. I think many of us often think that about it.When we see that as mothers we know that mothers can do anything and we also know that the people who actually look after children who raise them up are far more realistic about life generally and far more forgiving of people's foibles because when you're doing what you have to do as a parent you're working you often have broken sleep through the night and you learn to sleep in three- to four-hour blocks normally and you actually either survive with that or you don't. And I want many women to see that to come back into the workforce after the paid parental leave is really important.There is some international research that indicates that the longer that women take paid parental leave for the less likely they are to come back to the workforce. I think that's something that people should be able to discuss and to think What's going on there?" Is it that women do in fact as mothers away from the workforce lose the confidence to come back? Maybe they have learnt that they don't want to go back but I actually think it's got a lot to do with confidence myself. Certainly when I had my own law firm I often used to particularly want to employ women who were coming back to the workforce with children. Apart from the fact I knew they could do anything and actually really loved being at work the big issue I noticed was quite a lot of women coming back to the workforce after they had left to have children underestimated their own value as to what they could add to the workforce and often simply just weren't sure that people would take what they said. They'd lost a lot of confidence. So I think there's a lot that we could talk about with that.In particular it's a bit of a shame this is not going to select committee so I—as a new member of a select committee again—could actually partake in that discussion because I think this is important. It is not just a matter of saying "Oh go and have this leave or these other things." It's actually also about giving people the confidence to do the job but also knowing that they are valued and that their time as mothers and their work as mothers and their experience as mothers is something that adds to their value into the workforce. So personally I think it's a great thing to be able to have this. I well remember when the first bills came through when it was first introduced back in the old days of a miserable Labour Government and it wasn't open at that stage to people in small businesses—as in self-employed people.Hon Iain Lees-Galloway: How did National vote on that bill Judith?Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Because it didn't actually involve self-employed people—people who are self-employed like I had been who were in fact being asked to pay for things.Hon Iain Lees-Galloway: So because you didn't get it you voted against it?Mr SPEAKER: Order!Hon JUDITH COLLINS: No no it's about being fair. I know that Mr Iain Lees-Galloway will never have the experience of life that I have. He needs to perhaps just consider—and he would be a much better person if he did—that it's all very well to make silly little comments from the sidelines but sometimes he's actually expected to do something. So I'm looking forward to him actually doing something now that he's a Minister. I think it will be an interesting experience that may even be new for him.So really this bill is an exceptionally good piece of National Party policy ably taken up by the Government—Hon Amy Adams: Not that ably.Hon JUDITH COLLINS: —but having said that missing as my friend the Hon Amy Adams has told me some of the better the kinder and the more caring parts that we would have put in.It's so good Mr Speaker to see you so embracing children in the House as well.Hon Amy Adams: Literally.Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Ha ha! I thought the baby was very good and didn't cry either by the way. I thought it was excellent—I see very good parenting going on there. But I well remember when I first started in Parliament. It was a mere 15 years ago; I was then 22.Hon Members: Ha ha!Hon JUDITH COLLINS: OK 22 in my mind. Anyway I can well remember the Rt Hon Jonathan Hunt—and the Speaker and a few others may well remember that we would have had the call about a stranger in the House at that stage and it would have been a very difficult situation. My good friend Katherine Rich—who many will remember actually became a mother twice as a member of Parliament—found that some of the nastiest comments were unfortunately directed to her by people who today are professing to be such advocates for women in the workforce and mothers in the workforce. People like Katherine were given a very hard time.If you want to talk to someone like the Hon Ruth Richardson who was in fact one of the very first mothers with babies in Parliament—I also remember that Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan was one too. The difficulties that they faced from an extremely male-dominated hierarchical situation where there was no thought about children being part of a normal working environment seem utterly bizarre today. Certainly growing up on a farm like I did with my mum and working on a farm me working—or not really actually; mostly getting in the way. But kids on farms are used to their parents working being in the workplace and learning not to end up in a dangerous situation or anything else. So I don't think it's that difficult.I personally think as a former employer that I really loved having kids come into the workplace and I'm really pleased to see them here today. I think when they're two it might be a little challenging but you know it won't be me that's having to do that job. I just think it's great to see kids being part of our Parliament because actually isn't that why we're all here?"