Swarbrick ChlöeCHLÖE SWARBRICK (Green): Tēnā koe. I just wanted to speak to a few points that were raised by the Hon Michael Woodhouse. It is the Hon"—that is correct?Hon Member: Absolutely.CHLÖE SWARBRICK: OK cool. Excellent. Thank you. So I just wanted to speak to the points around the demarcation between decriminalisation and what is actually contained in the clause that we're debating tonight but also to speak to the points that he's raised around the expansion of those who would be able to access the criminal defence but also to the points that he made in summarising around dependency.On the point around decriminalisation this is something which we've heard continuously throughout this debate: that this bill is somehow decriminalisation of cannabis by stealth. I would like to reiterate that simply all that this bill actually does do is create a criminal defence for those who are receiving palliation who in turn—CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): I just ask the member to relate that to clause 4.CHLÖE SWARBRICK: (1B).CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Clause 4.CHLÖE SWARBRICK: Yes clause 4. Contained within clause 4 is new section 2(1B) Madam Chair on page 3 of Supplementary Order Paper 177: "In this Act a person 'requires palliation' if in the opinion of a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner the person has an advanced progressive life-limiting condition".Forgive me Madam Chair because I also just want to refer to my phone which was the only item of research that I had available on my person at the time when the Hon Michael Woodhouse was raising his concerns with regard to the definition of palliation and palliative care.I just wanted to refer him to that well-known organisation the World Health Organization who defines "palliative care" as "an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problems associated with life-threatening illnesses through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems physical psychosocial and spiritual."—i.e. this is for people in their final days and literally on their deathbed. I would just like to refer again to the point raised earlier in the debate by the Hon Michael Woodhouse that police aren't going out there currently arresting people who are on their deathbed for smoking a joint and if that's the case there should be no concerns or qualms whatsoever with the National Party in including this criminal defence.I also wanted to speak more fully to the point that was made around decriminalisation by stealth because this palliation exemption is solely opening the door to a criminal defence—i.e. still having to be dragged before the court to prove how sick they are—to 25000 New Zealanders who are currently in palliative care. Decriminalisation of users would go far broader and it is indeed something that I have advocated for as has been brought up in a number of pieces of research and evidence as the best way to actually ensure that we're using public health funds as sensibly as possible but also actually reducing problems as far as addiction and abuse go which brings me to my final point which was raised by the Hon Michael Woodhouse around the problem of dependency and how we are somehow going to foster people's dependency—those people who are also in palliative care i.e. those who are literally on their deathbed.That we're somehow going to foster some sense of dependency among the people who are in palliative care who do have this criminal defence for using medicinal cannabis—on that point I really just wanted to raise the question with the member and indeed with the rest of the National Party Opposition MPs about the facts that pertain to other medications that are presently prescribed to people who are in immense pain. The likes of opiates for example notably carry far more risk with regard to the ability to overdose but also as far as addiction goes. Notably this extension to palliation—this extension to criminal defence for palliation—requires certification from the medical practitioner or a nurse practitioner that this person is requiring that palliation. So we are very much in support of this extension from terminal illness to that of palliative care and hopefully I have clarified that for members of the Opposition."