Upston Louise: Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
Upston Louise: Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
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LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupo) 
: 
 This Government is focused on the things that matter. The Canterbury earthquake recovery is top of everyone’s agenda right now. I was very proud to be part of the parliamentary committee that heard evidence over the last few days and it was very ably chaired by Chris Auchinvole. 
We have heard in this House that Labour members will not be playing petty politics but I have to say that I have been enormously embarrassed to be a member of Parliament having witnessed the behaviour of some of those members in the past few days. Their pathetic posturing has been embarrassing to me as a member of this House. When submitters take the time to appear before us and provide evidence they want to know that they are being taken seriously. Members on this side of the House take them seriously. We know that timelines are tight and that is to be expected in a time of emergency. The Prime Minister was in the Taupo electorate last week and the resounding comments when members of the public came up to him acknowledged the Government’s strong leadership in this time of crisis. One submitter yesterday acknowledged the fact that there was a short time frame for public submissions. But that was clearly preferable than having all readings of this bill at once. So instead of the petty politics that some of the Labour members engaged in today I want to bring the voices of those submitters to this House. 
The Christchurch City Council supports the bill. It accepts the need for a single Government-funded agency to coordinate the recovery in Christchurch and it is grateful for the leadership provided by the Government. If we look at Environment Canterbury we see that it is supportive of the direction the Government has taken in setting up the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority. The Legislation Advisory Committee had some very useful things to say to us. At the start of its evidence it went through a checklist of the principles when emergency laws are being put together and it was able to tick all of those boxes with this bill. The New Zealand Law Society acknowledged that the extraordinary events in Canterbury need an extraordinary legislative response. Ngai Tahu’s words have been brought to this House already and I want to stress the fact that they said that extraordinary powers were in this bill but they are not unchecked. They also talked about the fact that natural disasters demonstrate very clearly the need for dedicated leadership for the clear distribution of responsibilities between entities for clear accountabilities to the people and business of Christchurch and for funding and resources from central government. 
The Canterbury District Health Board also came before us and talked about the importance of the ability to prevent illness and for people to stay healthy largely being determined by how they live their lives. It stressed the importance for us to focus not only efficiently and quickly but also holistically on rebuilding Canterbury. Orion also recognised the efforts that the Government is putting in by responding quickly and effectively. The very able member for Selwyn Amy Adams has spoken about the fact that her district council has worked incredibly well to recover from the first earthquake and it is also supportive of the concept envisaged in the provisions in the bill. Waimakariri is also supportive. 
I think it is very clear that the voices of the submitters who gave evidence yesterday recognise the fact that this is emergency legislation recognise that these are extraordinary times and that extraordinary powers are being given and recognise that we need those powers. I am very proud to be part of a Government that is committed to rebuilding Christchurch and Canterbury. It is a Government that is focusing on the issues that matter and not playing petty politics in this House. We are focused on getting things done. This is what matters to Christchurch. This is what matters to the country. I am very proud to be speaking in support of the second reading of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Bill.