edithatogo/nz-hansard-corpus huggingface dataset:
Clark DavidHon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs): Obviously I covered this off in my previous comments on this part of the bill—and we've debated it in previous parts—but I'm happy to recap because the member's right: it's a while since we've had this debate come up in the House.Effectively the committee has a decision-making power in relation to the applications it considers. It's the right thing to do. Just as the commissioner is empowered to make decisions on matters relating to their expertise so is the Māori Plant Varieties Committee empowered to make decisions on matters relating to their expertise namely Te Ao Māori.I do note that the select committee and the National members on it supported this unanimously. But I did also want to acknowledge and thank them and we have canvassed this in debate too for putting forward the suggestion that there should be an appeal. The committee agreed that there should be the right and the ability to appeal these decisions to a higher court. So I want to acknowledge that change that came through the select committee again in the debate. No doubt that will be further discussed. Thank you Mr Chair.
Bayly AndrewANDREW BAYLY (National—Port Waikato): Thank you Mr Chair. There are a number of Supplementary Order Papers in this part Part 5 which I'd like to cover in subsequent contributions but I suppose the start point is clause 52 which is around the role of the Māori advisory board. This is one that we have some concerns with. It's the establishment of the Māori Plant Varieties Committee. As set out in clause 52 it's there to provide additional procedures that will recognise and protect kaitiaki relationships provide for the Māori Plant Varieties Committee to administer these procedures and to make determinations about those kaitiaki relationships and to have an advisory function and to enable the nullification or cancellation of plant variety rights that have adverse effects. So one of the big things for members of the community the wider community who are involved in developing new plant varieties is their concern that this committee has the right to make determinations as opposed to being an advisory committee. I don't think for a moment anyone doesn't believe that Māori have a right to be involved in the process; that's not for debate. It's just the question of whether this committee has the ability to make determinations which will basically set aside applications—that they have the absolute ability to say no. One of the points I will subsequently talk about is where those appeals can be heard. But many people believe that yes Māori should be consulted and should have an instrumental role in this but there's a difference between having the opportunity to have a meaningful contribution and to be able to look at these aspects—that is one side of the coin—and moving to an arrangement where this Māori Plant Varieties Committee can actually make decisions. So just to start off the debate today because it's been a while since we last debated this can the Minister be very clear why the Government thinks it's appropriate that the Māori Plant Varieties Committee should have an absolute right to make determinations as opposed to being a committee that things should be referred to but in an advisory capacity only.
O'Connor GregPLANT VARIETY RIGHTS BILLIn CommitteeDebate resumed from 28 September.Part 5 Additional provisions that apply to indigenous plant species and non-indigenous plant species of significance (continued)CHAIRPERSON (Greg O'Connor): Members the House is in committee on the Plant Variety Rights Bill. When we were last debating this bill we were debating Part 5 which is the debate on clauses 52 to 68D and Schedule 1A Additional provisions that apply to indigenous plant species and non-indigenous plant species of significance". The question is that Part 5 stand part."
Prime Willow-JeanWILLOW-JEAN PRIME (Labour—Northland): Thank you Madam Speaker for the opportunity to take a very brief call. I just want to acknowledge the Minister who introduced the bill to the House as a response to the inquiry into Operation Burnham. I also acknowledge that we have set aside a budget of $5.6 million to establish the office of the Inspector-General of Defence in its first three years of operations. I note that this is going to the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee. I wish them well with that and with that I commend the bill to the House.
Voting — Correction—United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement Legislation Bill
Upston LouiseVOTINGCorrection—United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement Legislation BillHon LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupō): Point of order. Thank you Madam Speaker. I seek leave of the House to correct a vote in the vote for the United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement Legislation Bill.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jacqui Dean): Thank you. Leave is sought for that to happen. Is there any objection? There appears to be none.Hon LOUISE UPSTON: I wish to cast for 32 in favour for the National Party.
Inspector-General of Defence Bill — First Reading
Henderson EmilyDr EMILY HENDERSON (Labour—Whangārei): Kia ora e te Māngai o te Whare. It is my great pleasure to wrap this up. I do though want to acknowledge the hurt in Mr David Bennett. It is tough. It is tough when you consider yourself the ruling class and those with the moral obligation to rule to realise that the other side is just bringing it home so much better. So bring it on Mr Bennett. Bring on for example record exports in the primary sector of $53 billion. We're doing badly? We're doing incredibly well: 83 percent of our primary exports—$53 billion; an absolute record. Absolutely brilliant management and I want to commend the Minister for this agreement for the absolute joy and productivity that it is going to add to our already booming sector and our already booming economy. Productivity is up even within ourselves since COVID. So it must be a bit miserable to be around the Bennett table at Christmas with Mr Grinch" over there. But let's get back to the real deal.This is a remarkable piece of legislation a remarkable agreement which is going to revolutionise our trade with our traditional partners in the UK. This particular little piece of legislation we have is merely technical and enables us to implement that agreement. I want to give a very quick shout-out on one particular aspect of it which is the provision to increase the earnings of sound-recording artists. As the mother of a budding sound-recording artist who frequently sees very little joy in the future prospects of being able to be supported by one's children I am grateful personally to Mr Damien O'Connor and his team for bringing that one home. But the fundamental point that we are here to say is that we are here to implement legislation which will implement a deal which is going to on day one remove 99.5 percent of current New Zealand tariffs with the UK and over the next seven to 15 years it will eliminate the whole darned lot. It's a remarkable thing for us. On I think the 130th anniversary of the first export of frozen meat from Dunedin this is a darned good way to celebrate and I commend it to the House."
Roberts AngelaANGELA ROBERTS (Labour): Thank you Madam Speaker. It is a great pleasure to stand and take a call on these bills. There are good reasons for that. We've heard a lot about the numbers and everyone being really really excited about that. But this deal isn't just about numbers; it is about people.I just want to reflect. We've heard the member from Tukituki talking about apples so you might expect me stand up and talk about cows but actually I'm not. I'm going to talk about the exciting things that are going to be opened up for our producers in Taranaki because of trade deals like this one.We've got this really amazing little company Greenfern Industries in South Taranaki. Dan Casey and his team are really exciting to go meet with. They're the only Toitū carbonzero certified medicinal cannabis company in New Zealand. They do really amazing stuff with industrial hemp and hemp food. They are working really really hard to have an amazing export and domestic industry. There are—quite rightly—huge huge standards and things that they need to do in order to be great at what they do. This sort of deal helps them a little bit as they go out into the big wide world with their amazing products.There's also some really exciting work happening—so organisations like Venture Taranaki who are really exploring what we do with our wonderful wonderful land in Taranaki. The food and fibre sector contributes over $1.5 million to our GDP—just from little old Taranaki—and more than 10000 jobs. It isn't just from dairy. We have had significant investment and innovation that is going to be helped and supported by this free-trade agreement because we have locked in really high expectations about sustainable and progressive land use that leads to great export products: hocks avocados gin botanicals—so you know we're just complementing that wine that's coming out of the Hawke's Bay—construction hemp fibre sheep dairy trees medicinal plants kiwifruit; all things that you wouldn't really expect to be coming out of Taranaki but that innovation and that entrepreneurship and that ambition is supported by deals like this.When I used to teach this subject at school economics and we talked about—we've heard about how relationships are enhanced by trade deals. GATT came out after World War II. In 1957 65 percent of our exports went to the UK. That was down to just over 6 percent in 2000. So that relationship has changed a lot over the years and this trade deal means that we are futureproofed and able to grow in a way that is sustainable and ambitious. I commend this bill to the House.
Lubeck MarjaMARJA LUBECK (Labour): Thank you Madam Speaker. It's a pleasure to have the opportunity to speak this morning on the third reading of these significant United Kingdom free-trade agreement bills. I would like to start off as others have before me by congratulating the Minister the Hon Damien O'Connor and his team for doing the mahi in concluding this significant agreement.What we're talking about this morning is of course an omnibus bill—it is amending several pieces of legislation because there are a limited number of legislative and regulatory amendments that are required to ensure that we align New Zealand's domestic law with certain obligations that are in the free-trade agreement.New Zealand signed this free-trade agreement with the United Kingdom in March 2022 and as mentioned before by several speakers it is a gold-standard agreement—it offers unprecedented access to the United Kingdom market. From entry into force almost all tariffs will be eliminated on New Zealand's exports in the United Kingdom. New Zealand exporters will save approximately $37 million per year on tariff elimination. It is also a free-trade agreement of firsts: this is our very first bilateral free-trade agreement to include a specific article on climate change.I'd like to also commend my colleagues on the Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade Committee. They examined the legislation between 26 July and 20 October and they made a limited number of recommendations that are contained in the bills that are being brought back to this House.Now the UK as has been mentioned was New Zealand's seventh largest trading partner pre-COVID-19 and our two countries have a very strong relationship that this bill will only strengthen.I'd like to echo the comments of a previous speaker who said that this is a good day for free trade and I commend these bills to the House.
Omer IbrahimIBRAHIM OMER (Labour): Thank you Madam Speaker. It's a pleasure to take a call on the United Kingdom free-trade agreement legislation bills. The Minister the Hon Damien O'Connor has described this as a gold standard agreement that is going to benefit New Zealand a lot. It's an agreement that is going to deliver for our environment for our small business enterprises for our women and for our indigenous people as well.The UK is the sixth-biggest economy in the world which is worth about $3.7 billion and New Zealand has everything to win from this agreement. It will also strengthen the relationship that's already warm and strong as well. This agreement means that the UK will eliminate all tariffs on New Zealand exports with duties removed on 99.5 percent of current trade from entry into force. This will provide New Zealand exporters with more favourable access to the UK market. The agreement will save approximately $37 million every year on goods exports. The economic modelling estimates that the UK exports will increase by 50 percent. This will provide a boost to New Zealand GDP by about $700 million and $1 billion once it's fully implemented. It will also cut red tape allowing New Zealand exports into the UK market on a level playing field—duties and all tariffs removed on 99.5 percent.Climate change is a big winner in this agreement. It eliminates fisheries subsidies and takes steps to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies as well. It promotes sustainable agriculture and underlines the urgent need to address climate change. Animal welfare provisions are also included and recognise both countries' commitments—New Zealand's first bilateral trade deal to include an article on climate change. This also allows the New Zealand Government to reserve the right to regulate and target interests. Visas for business persons make it easier for people to get into the UK with a specific category that includes their family members as well. The investment provisions provide certainty and stability regarding market access in both countries. Intellectual property agreements to extend the copyright terms by 20 years—15 years to implement these changes.As many have said this is a big deal for New Zealand. We are a trading nation at the bottom of the Pacific Islands and we have a lot to gain from this agreement. I'd like to thank the Minister for his hard work. Actually he travelled when COVID was still raging around potentially risking his life but he prioritised this and he got it over the line. I'd like to thank the officials who worked hard who worked around the clock to make sure that this deal was reached. Globalisation has made everything movement from countries to countries from continents to continents very smooth and freight is very competitive. The UK leaving the European Union means that New Zealand has managed to get this opportunity to sign this agreement with the UK. So again I'd like to commend everyone who worked hard on this and made this possible. It's a good day for New Zealand it's a winner for New Zealand and I commend it to the House.
6. Question No. 6—Commerce and Consumer AffairsNAISI CHEN (Labour) to the Minister of Commerce and Consumer AffairsQuestion No. 6—Commerce and Consumer Affairs6. NAISI CHEN (Labour) to the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs: What announcement has he made about increasing competition in the banking sector?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs): Today I announced the good news that the Government will move to increase bank competition and deliver a better deal for New Zealanders through the introduction of open banking. Open banking allows customers to shop around for the best deal. It means banks will also have to work harder to retain their customers leading to savings for consumers.Naisi Chen: How will open banking work?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: Under open banking if someone wanted to re-fix their mortgage at a lower interest rate they could ask their bank to securely share transaction information with a competitor. They could also instruct their bank to share specific data with a financial adviser of their choice meaning more tailored and timely advice. We believe consumers should have the power to shop around for better deals and make sure they're getting the best bang for buck out of their investments.Naisi Chen: When can we expect to see open banking in place?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: It's anticipated that work to implement open banking will take up to two years. This is not an overnight fix.Chris Bishop: No it certainly isn't.Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: We cannot flick a switch and turn on open banking because we need to get it right. Mr Bishop might believe in imposing extra costs of regulatory burden on business but on this side of the House we understand how to do legislation and regulation properly. ICT systems have to be built. Security needs need to be baked in. We need to understand which form the data is going to be shared. We need to have an accreditation regime in place. We need to have a registry. We need to have monitoring and a disputes resolution scheme. Overseas it's taken a bit longer than it's taken here but we believe that we can be a fast follower and get this in place.Naisi Chen: What are the banks saying?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: Just like the Government the banks want open banking to be implemented safely. In a statement earlier today the New Zealand Bankers' Association said we've told the Government that banks need time to enable quality products that will excite New Zealand consumers. This will take some time to implement." In the interim and I want to reiterate this—I've said it before—there's nothing to stop the banks acting in more competitive way right now."
4. Question No. 4—JusticeARENA WILLIAMS (Labour—Manurewa) to the Minister of JusticeQuestion No. 4—Justice4. ARENA WILLIAMS (Labour—Manurewa) to the Minister of Justice: What changes will be made to improve the anti-money laundering and countering financial terrorism regime?Hon KIRITAPU ALLAN (Minister of Justice): On Monday I announced that the Government is strengthening its regime to combat the harmful effects of money-laundering and financial terrorism while making it easier for small businesses and consumers to comply. Our country is a safe and easy place to do business and we want to constantly improve that whilst also doing as much as possible to disrupt the criminal economy.Arena Williams: What changes are being made to ease compliance requirements for businesses and charities?Hon KIRITAPU ALLAN: We've listened to businesses and charities and heard what wasn't working for them so we will take immediate action to improve the regime's effectiveness by extending the time frame for businesses to submit prescribed transactions reports and exempting registered charities from the obligations they are under when they are providing small loans.Arena Williams: What changes are being made to ease compliance requirements for rural communities?Hon KIRITAPU ALLAN: Addressing verification is commonly identified by rural communities and businesses as a source of frustration and a requirement which makes it hard for many people to access the formal financial system. We are making changes to relax the requirement on businesses to verify the addresses of most customers and for customers which are trusts.Arena Williams: What are the next steps for this work?Hon KIRITAPU ALLAN: The statutory review of the Act which was tabled on Monday suggested a range of further recommendations that address areas of known risk or vulnerabilities and improve compliance with international money-laundering standards. Consultation and engagement with the private sector was a core focus of the review and this will continue with co-design of options—in partnership with industry NGOs and rural communities—which we intend to take to wider public consultation next year before further decisions are made.
Natural Hazards Insurance Bill — Second Reading (resumed)
Sosene Lemauga Lydia; O'Connor GregLEMAUGA LYDIA SOSENE (Labour): It's great to be final speaker on this bill the Natural Hazards Insurance Bill a Government bill and I wish to take a short call to take the opportunity to thank the Minister and thank the committee members—I wasn't a member of the Finance and Expenditure Committee. I would like to also acknowledge and thank the submitters and the officials who have carried out the work.Basically the purpose of the bill aims to make it easier to recover from natural hazards and particularly I want to acknowledge the Nelson community and the Canterbury community. The bill also clarifies the role of the commission that is covered and provided by the legislation and lastly its purpose is to enhance the ability and flexibility of the legislation. I commend the bill to the House.DEPUTY SPEAKER: This debate is interrupted and is set down for resumption next sitting day. The House stands adjourned until 2 p.m. on Tuesday 15 November. Thank you for your work. Debate interrupted.The House adjourned at 4.57 p.m.
White HelenHELEN WHITE (Labour): I was on the Finance and Expenditure Committee which heard this and it started under the chairpersonship of Dr Duncan Webb and moved to the wonderful Barbara Edmonds. Dr Duncan Webb had been in Christchurch of course and had practised in this area. So it was a very helpful addition that we had somebody with that kind of grounded experience in what it was like. But it was probably reinforced for me when we went to Christchurch and we heard submissions in Christchurch and we went and had a look at some of the sites there. One was actually a sandspit and was not related to the earthquakes but it was also in trouble because of climate change. So we had a really interesting situation there. What I found was that the submitters on this bill were fantastic. They were well informed. They were detailed-oriented often out of the experiences that they have had and so I really do think that some of those definitions and the thought that we put into them was probably focused by those submitters quite frankly. We had seen what can go wrong if you don't get the detail right and this was a very careful process. I am very glad we went through it so cooperatively and we really did come up with an excellent result.I'd like to thank Dame Silvia Cartwright whom I admire enormously and who has done the work in the inquiry and really put recommendations to us which we could work into an Act that will affect other parts of the country and other kinds of hazards. In Auckland of course we have to worry about things like volcanoes. We all have to worry about the impact of large storms these days. So I thank the committee for its work and I thank the submitters for the really wonderful submissions which we built on in terms of the changes that were made. I thank the officials for the work that they did. I've learnt a lot through this process and I'm very proud of the work that we did as a committee. I commend this bill to the House.
Halbert ShananSHANAN HALBERT (Labour—Northcote): Kia ora and thank you Mr Speaker. It's a great opportunity to speak as one of the Finance and Expenditure Committee members on the Natural Hazards Insurance Bill. Can I kick off by just acknowledging the Hon David Clark the Minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission and all of my fellow Finance and Expenditure Committee members for the work that they have done on this particular bill.This bill intends to improve the existing Earthquake Commission scheme so that by taking into consideration the learnings from the last decade future New Zealanders don't have to go through the same traumatic experiences the people of Canterbury did. These improvements include laying down rules for mixed- and multi-use buildings simplified excesses and calculations clarifying regulations on repairing buildings and land following a landslip or other land damage as well as the introduction of a claimant code and a standing dispute resolution service.This bill is the product of years of efforts and hard work to reform the really impactful part of our insurance sector particularly in this age of climate change knowing the climate change challenges that we face and the increased risk that natural hazards and disasters take place.Albeit on a much a smaller scale than the Christchurch earthquake you might have heard recently of course that we had a big slip in the suburb of Beach Haven in the electorate of Northcote. It was quite a problem for a number of people and it was the first point of awareness I guess where we saw the impacts of climate change upon our local coastal area in Auckland. That happened because of the unexpected heavy rain that battered Auckland Tāmaki-makau-rau over that long period and hundreds of cubic metres of land clay dirt sandstone and vegetation fell away from a family's new home that they had built.I guess on this short call this afternoon that it is important that we continue to make progress and I acknowledge the work that has been done on this particular bill. Without further ado I'd like to commend it to the House.
White HelenHELEN WHITE (Labour): Yes I would like to note the irony of having had the last eight minutes of my life lost to a rant about how we're wasting time when in fact we all unanimously support this. People have given a thorough look at these things and I have got great confidence in the Governance and Administration Committee which did its work. I would like to thank them for doing it. I would like to commend the bill to the House and I'd like to get on with the next bill. Motion agreed to.Bill read a second time.
Leavasa Anae NeruDr ANAE NERU LEAVASA (Labour—Takanini): Thank you Mr Speaker for the opportunity to take a brief call on Statutes Amendment Bill second reading. I haven't had the privilege of sitting on the Governance and Administration Committee but again I would like to thank the members of the committee the chair and also the Minister for bringing it to the House—Aupito William Sio. You've heard from many of our colleagues of what the bill consists of: amendments to Acts—being an omnibus bill 64 proposals that will amend 41 Acts. I thank the submitters—the 16 submissions that have come through. Just looking at some of them some that support parts of the bill and those who question some other parts but overall a good support there for the bill. I just want to make comment on a couple of the amendments on the Table that we received. And again just looking at the wordings and the technical amendments done—one of them being the Care of Children Act 2004 as we look at replacing the words domestic violence" with "family violence". I think it's just modernising the language that the Ministry of Justice uses. Also the Land Transport Act (LTA) 1998 looking at replacing the reference to "medical practitioners" with "health practitioners"; as we see in the current days it's not all about doctors it's about broadening the skillset of our medical profession. So therefore using "health practitioners" makes it easier for those who have the scope to do the work under this LTA. I support this bill to the House."
Roberts AngelaANGELA ROBERTS (Labour): Thank you Mr Speaker. It's my pleasure to stand and take a call on the Statutes Amendment Bill as a non-lawyer—one of the few in the House it feels sometimes. I'm always really impressed by the level of detail that comes through in pieces of legislation like this. But as you know I'm always looking for a teachable moment and I think that this is going to be fantastic as a piece of evidence for history students in the future because what this work does is it helps us to move along and remain nimble and responsive. I think there's some really interesting evidence when we go through the amendments of how life changes. Everyone's picked up little bits and pieces that they found intriguing or interesting and when you look at the Railways Act 2005 and removing the reference to registered post" I think it's a really interesting marker that we have moved on because of course the service is no longer offered. So I think this will be something that I'll be passing on to my former colleagues in secondary schools when they're looking at how we mark the progress of our society.This bill helps us to remain nimble and responsive and helps our legislation to stand the test of time. I think we need to take note of all of the work that goes into the very detailed scrutiny and the bill that has turned up in response to that and so I commend this bill to the House."
Uffindell SamSAM UFFINDELL (National—Tauranga): Thank you Mr Speaker. We will support this bill. As we noted it's just minor amendments across a range of Acts 42 Acts and that comprises this omnibus bill. So there are 62 amendments in total. Most of them are minor technical and—as my colleagues across the House have noted—non-controversial and in their own right would not otherwise be prioritised or progressed. We note that the Governance and Administration Committee unanimously supported this bill noting that there were two amendments—and these have already been discussed but I will go through them. There was the Unit Titles Act—the removal of Part 40 which relates to a provision to allow people to attend body corporate meetings remotely via an audio or an AV link. This provision is no longer required since the bill was introduced. An amendment giving the same effect has already been made via other legislation. We'd also comment on the Ngāti Manuhiri Claims Settlement Act of 2012 where Te Arawhiti recommended inserting Part 25A into the Statutes Amendment Bill which would remove any unnecessary encumbrances on a group of identified properties in the South Mangawhai Forest where the encumbrance is not relevant. So we support this bill; it improves the quality of our legislation. And as noted these amendments are non-controversial they are technical in nature—and hence why they are included in the Statutes Amendment Bill. So I'd like to commend all parties involved in this—so the people on the committee the people who were engaged in this and also the different ministries for making these technical and necessary updates. I'd probably also encourage the other side of the House too to look at other reforms that could be necessary to improve the functioning of our society. I know there are a number of troublesome bills out there—Angela Roberts: We do that every day!SAM UFFINDELL: —I was doing so well wasn't I until then—where we could improve the function. We could look at the Resource Management Act: I expect the Government to do that but I do hope in doing so that there is close discussion with the National Party to make sure that it is as effective as possible and as enduring as possible because I would hazard a guess that we will probably be back here at a later point reorganising what the Government has put through.So just summarising on this: this is a fairly non-controversial Statutes Amendment Bill and the second reading will progress from here; it has the unanimous support of all parties in the House and as a National Party member standing to speak on it I will commend it. Thank you Mr Speaker.
McLellan TraceyDr TRACEY McLELLAN (Labour—Banks Peninsula): Thank you Mr Speaker. As several people have already said during the course of this debate on the Statutes Amendment Bill at this second reading it's essentially housekeeping and tidying up bits and pieces. Many are making the type of technical short non-controversial amendments to several Acts—41 Acts I think as Toni Severin has just reminded us—many of which if we considered them in isolation by themselves probably wouldn't necessarily receive sufficient priority to have those changes being made on an individual basis. That therefore is the beauty of an omnibus bill: so those things can be cobbled together and these changes can be made.I'm not a member of the Governance and Administration Committee but this is the committee that has examined this bill and done so quite rigorously I should imagine. As has been said they received 16 submissions—interestingly no one in particular wanted to be heard in person and that probably reflects the non-controversial nature of these changes. The committee itself recommended that this be passed with just a couple of amendments.It has already been noted that at least one of them was amending the Unit Titles Act 2010. For simplicity that essentially just means that another bill came through this House earlier on in the year and made those amendments so that's no longer necessary. The other one is making an amendment to the Ngāti Manuhiri Claims Settlement Act 2012 so that the statutory encumbrance can be removed from a discrete particular part of that forest area so that they can take the opportunity of the development opportunity that has come their way.There are several other specific examples but without going through them all I think the one that caught my eye yesterday was for instance the Dog Control Act 1996: removing the requirement for a registered veterinarian to provide some sort of written declaration that an imported dog is not a breed listed as a disability dog and various other examples of things like that. So it is essentially an efficient way to use this House's time to make small and necessary changes. I commend this bill to the House.
Severin ToniTONI SEVERIN (ACT): Thank you Madam Speaker. ACT supports bills that have problems to be solved and to make legislation clear for New Zealanders who are affected by these Acts. So the Statutes Amendment Bill does exactly this: it cleans up it's an omnibus bill it's a house-cleaning bill that we spoke about back in the first reading. It dots the i's and crosses the t's and this actually goes over 41 different Acts.I'd like to thank the 16 submitters that were from interested groups and individuals but I also would like to thank the officials the Ministry of Justice and the Office for Māori Crown Relations and especially the Office of the Clerk—they were very great at helping us through all these different bills that we have that come before us—and of course the Parliamentary Counsel Office with their assistance with drafting this bill.As we said it's a house-cleaning and tidying-up bill and as we said there were 41 different Acts that were put in here. And my fellow colleague here Julie Anne Genter said about the Unit Titles Act that because of so many different changes in our lives over the last couple of years we've had to rethink how we do business.Then also there's little mice as we were saying as the likes of—was it here? Where is it here? Here it is. Part 15—one of the 41 Acts—is the amendment to the Evidence Act 2006. Clause 36 Principal Act" states: "This Part amends the Evidence Act 2006." Clause 37 "Section 202 and cross-heading repealed" says "Repeal section 202 and the cross-heading above section 202." I would gather that those that know about this would be probably very happy about it but I mean for myself I'm unaware of what it really means. Or Part 32 "Amendments to Railways Act 2005". Clause 99 "Principal Act" says "This Part amends the Railways Act 2005." Clause 100 "Section 94 amended (Notices)" says "(1). In section 94(1)(b) and (d) delete 'registered'. (2) In section 94(2) delete 'or registered post'." We don't have registered post. So these are the sorts of things that this bill amends.But also I found one really great one that goes back to 1957—65 years old. So this one is Part 26 "Amendment to Oaths and Declarations Act 1957". Clause 80 of the principal Act states: "This Part amends the Oaths and Declarations Act 1957." Clauses 81 "Section 9 amended (Declarations made in New Zealand)" says "After section 9(1)(e) insert: (ea) a Registrar (including the Chief Registrar) or Deputy Registrar of the Māori Land Court; or." So being an omnibus bill as you can see it covers many different statutes on many different issues. And a lot of the issues that were found in this bill have been well-thought-out because of times changing in New Zealand and things moving on to the new forms of communication as well as keeping it up to date so that we can make sure that our laws and legislation are current and that people understand what they are entitled to do. So again ACT supports this bill and we like to have all those things—all those house-cleaning bills—put through. And I'd once again like to thank everyone that was involved in these 41 Acts to make sure they were cleaned up correctly. Thank you Mr Speaker."
Salesa Jenny; Genter Julie AnneSTATUTES AMENDMENT BILLSecond ReadingDebate resumed from 27 October.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jenny Salesa): Kia ora members. As we continue the second reading of the Statutes Amendment Bill we are now on call No. 6 which is a Green Party call. Hon JULIE ANNE GENTER (Green): Tēnā koe Madam Speaker. Tēnā koutou e te Whare. The Green Party is supporting this Statutes Amendment Bill at the second reading. As I'm sure many people watching this debate at home will know statutes amendment bills are the sorts of omnibus bills that clean up a whole lot of little things and different bits of legislation. There's quite a bit that we could talk to about this but one of the key changes it makes that people might be interested in is to the Unit Titles Act. Under a temporary provision in the Epidemic Preparedness (COVID-19) Notice 2020 it allowed people to attend body corporate meetings remotely via an audio or audiovisual link. Part 40 of the bill as introduced would amend section 88 of the Unit Titles Act 2010 to make this provision permanent. So it's just one of those examples of realising during the pandemic that actually people being able to attend body corporate meetings via phone or Zoom or other audiovisual link made sense. So this bill will make that change.It also makes some changes with respect to the South Mangawhai Forest which was a commercial redress property transferred to the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust through the Ngāti Manuhiri claims settlement. So this proposed amendment removes an unnecessary encumbrance on a group of identified properties in the South Mangawhai Forest that do not contain protected sites and for which no right of access exists.There are a few other little rats and mice dealt to in legislative scrutiny and ultimately these statutes amendment bills usually only come to the House if there's agreement about the changes that are made I think across the parties of the House but that could be wrong or at least from—yeah. So yeah the Green Party will be supporting this bill at second reading.
Special Debates — Inquiry into Congestion Pricing in Auckland — Report of the Transport and Infrastructure Committee
Rurawhe AdrianPETITIONS PAPERS SELECT COMMITTEE REPORTS AND INTRODUCTION OF BILLSSPEAKER: No petitions have been delivered to the Clerk for presentation. Ministers have delivered papers.CLERK: Office of the Children's Commissioner statement of performance expectations for the financial year ended 30 June 2023Social Workers Registration Board annual report 2020-21.SPEAKER: I present an erratum to the report of the Office of the Ombudsman entitled Strategic Intentions 2022-27. Those papers are published under the authority of the House. Select committee reports have been delivered for presentation.CLERK: Report of the Economic Development Science and Innovation Committee on the 2020-21 annual review of the Accreditation Councilreport of the Finance and Expenditure Committee on the Companies (Levies) Amendment Billreport of the Health Committee on the 2020-21 annual review of the Nelson Marlborough District Health Boardreport of the Primary Production Committee on the Dairy Industry Restructuring (Fonterra Capital Restructuring) Amendment Bill.SPEAKER: The bills are set down for second reading. The Clerk has been informed of the introduction of a bill.CLERK: Fair Trading (Gift Card Expiry) Amendment Bill introduction.SPEAKER: That bill is set down for first reading.
Hipkins ChrisBUSINESS STATEMENTHon CHRIS HIPKINS (Leader of the House): Next week legislation to be considered will include the first reading of the Sustainable Biofuel Obligation Bill the second readings of the Companies (Levies) Amendment Bill the Dairy Industry Restructuring (Fonterra Capital Restructuring) Amendment Bill and Te Rohe o Rongokako Joint Redress Bill the committee stage of the Security Information in Proceedings Legislation Bill and the remaining stages of the Electoral (Māori Electoral Option) Legislation Bill. There will be an extended sitting on the morning of Wednesday 16 November. On Thursday 17 November there will be a special debate on the report of the Environment Committee on the emissions budgets published in 2022 and the first emissions reduction plan.
Salesa JennyTHURSDAY 10 NOVEMBER 2022The Speaker took the Chair at 2 p.m.KARAKIA/PRAYERSHon JENNY SALESA (Assistant Speaker): E te Atua kaha rawa ka tuku whakamoemiti atu mātou mō ngā karakia kua waihotia mai ki runga i a mātou. Ka waiho i ō mātou pānga whaiaro katoa ki te taha ka mihi mātou ki te Kīngi me te inoi atu mō te ārahitanga i roto i ō mātou whakaaroarohanga kia mōhio ai kia whakaiti ai tā mātou whakahaere i ngā take o te Whare nei mō te oranga te maungārongo me te aroha o Aotearoa. Āmene.[Almighty God we give thanks for the blessings which have been bestowed on us. Laying aside all personal interests we acknowledge the King and pray for guidance in our deliberations that we may conduct the affairs of this House with wisdom and humility for the welfare peace and compassion of New Zealand. Amen.]
Wednesday 9 November 2022 - Volume 764
VoteA party vote was called for on the question That the Electoral (Right to Switch Rolls Freely) Amendment Bill be now read a first time. Ayes 12Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand 10; Te Paati Māori 2.Noes 107New Zealand Labour 64; New Zealand National 33; ACT New Zealand 10.Motion not agreed to.
Electoral (Right to Switch Rolls Freely) Amendment Bill — First Reading
VoteA party vote was called for on the question That the Companies (Directors Duties) Amendment Bill be now read a first time.Ayes 76New Zealand Labour 64; Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand 10; Te Paati Māori 2.Noes 43New Zealand National 33; ACT New Zealand 10.Motion agreed to.Bill read a first time.
VoteA party vote was called for on the question That the motion be agreed to.Ayes 64New Zealand Labour 64.Noes 43New Zealand National 33; ACT New Zealand 10.Motion agreed to.
10. Question No. 10—PoliceDr JAMES McDOWALL (ACT) to the Minister of PoliceQuestion No. 10—Police10. Dr JAMES McDOWALL (ACT) to the Minister of Police: How many if any businesses in Hamilton have had assessments completed under the Retail Crime Prevention Programme and of those how many have had installations of protective equipment completed if any?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Minister of Police): I'm advised that as of 9 November New Zealand Police has visited at least 18 stores across Hamilton as part of the Retail Crime Prevention Programme. Sixteen of those stores are eligible to receive assistance under the programme and they've had their assessments completed. Twelve of those stores have had quotes received and approved for protective equipment. Additional quotes are due to be received. My understanding is that none of those businesses have had the work completed at this point. Hamilton City accounts for around 15 percent of all of the jobs that have been assigned to contractors as part of the programme to date.Dr James McDowall: Is he aware that businesses in Hamilton with more than two physical stores have been told by Police that they are ineligible for funding despite having been the victims of repeated ram raids and smash and grabs and if so is this consistent with the intent of the programme?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: The intent is to support small retailers. One of the things that the Police do take into account in conducting their assessments is whether or not a business qualifies as a small retailer. The range of criteria include the number of staff they employ and it also does include the number of different outlets that they have.Dr James McDowall: Will the Minister consider enabling the retail crime prevention programme to reimburse ram-raided businesses who have had to privately source and install protective equipment considering the delays or non-existence of getting protective equipment put in?Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: Reimbursement's not currently part of the programme.
7. Question No. 7—Social Development and EmploymentTERISA NGOBI (Labour—Ōtaki) to the Minister for Social Development and EmploymentQuestion No. 7—Social Development and Employment7. TERISA NGOBI (Labour—Ōtaki) to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What updates has she seen on the take-up of the Training Incentive Allowance?Hon CARMEL SEPULONI (Minister for Social Development and Employment): The Government's Training Incentive Allowance (TIA)—which was a manifesto commitment and reinstated as part of Budget 2021—has had an overwhelming response with an over 600 percent increase in uptake from 1 January to 30 June 2022 compared to the same time last year. Since the allowance's reinstatement 4848 people have been supported 90 percent of recipients are female just under 80 percent are sole parents 42 percent identified as Māori and 7 percent as Pacific. Almost three-quarters of TIA recipients are in courses level 4 or higher—for example certificates diplomas and bachelor's degrees.Terisa Ngobi: Why is the Training Incentive Allowance important?Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: The Training Incentive Allowance is one tool amongst many in our Government's tool box that we are using to support people off benefit and into work. The additional benefit of the Training Incentive Allowance is that it is a tool that is also supporting people into jobs where there are skill shortages. The reports to date show that the majority of recipients are going into social service areas including nursing midwifery and social work. This is great for the beneficiaries and their families but also a fantastic win for our workforce.Terisa Ngobi: What work has been done to make sure people know this support exists?Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: The Ministry of Social Development have been running promotional campaigns on the allowance and working hard to ensure people know where and how to access it. They've also sought to make the application process more accessible for clients with processing standards made permanent to create a more seamless interaction for those wishing access the allowance. Our Government is all about putting ladders in place; not pulling them up behind us.Terisa Ngobi: What other updates has she seen on people being supported into employment education or training?Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: It's pleasing that last week's household labour force survey shows that unemployment remains at a near-record low of 3.3 percent in the September quarter. Particular highlights also include a big growth in Pacific employment with over 25700 more Pacific people in employment compared to a year ago; youth employment increased strongly the NEETs rate fell by 0.7 percent; Māori unemployment remains low; and jobseeker work-ready numbers continue to fall quarter on quarter. We absolutely know there is more to do which is why through our suite of employment initiatives such as Mana in Mahi He Poutama Rangatahi Māori Trades and Training Fund Flexi-wage and Apprenticeship Boost—to name a few—we are doing just that.