Street Maryan: Tasman District Council (Validation and Recovery of Certain Rates) Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Street Maryan: Tasman District Council (Validation and Recovery of Certain Rates) Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 20 February 2013. Volume:687;Page:8067. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon MARYAN STREET (Labour) 
: 
 I am somewhat surprised at the debate that has been going on over the Tasman District Council (Validation and Recovery of Certain Rates) Bill and the contributions that have been made. I want to pick up one of the points that my colleague the Hon Damien O’Connor made at the outset which was that he introduces this retrospective legislation in the case of the Tasman District Council with reluctance—with reluctance. Yet there does not seem to be much of a frisson of concern in this House for what is actually happening with this bill. 
We will support it. I have for the last 5 years been living and working in Nelson. The Nelson electorate boundary incorporates part of the Tasman District Council. I meet with the Mayor of Tasman District on a regular basis—I will be meeting him on Monday—as I meet with the Mayor of Nelson on a regular basis. So I am familiar with some of the players in this. The areas that Damien O’Connor has talked about of course—Tata Beach and Ligar Bay—are over there in Golden Bay. As other members have attested of course it is a beautiful part of the country but nobody loves it more than the people who live there. 
I have a concern about this bill and I urge the Local Government and Environment Committee to treat this issue very seriously. I have a concern that in fact the Tasman District Council is wearing the embarrassment of its mistakes and taking what it sees to be the easy way out. Paul Wylie who was at the time the chief executive officer but is no longer was quoted in the  
Nelson Mail 
 as saying that this is the cheaper of the options. Do not fight it out in the courts with the local residents because that will get too protracted and too expensive; go to Parliament and use the big hammer to beat the little people and let us make what we did wrong for a number of years right by the stroke of a pen. Why are more members in this House not concerned about that? I think that is serious. 
I will support the bill. The member for West Coast - Tasman has brought this bill forward in good faith to help repair a situation that has been affecting constituents in his electorate but let this be a lesson to every local council in the country. They cannot simply and easily resort to the big hammer of Parliament to correct their bungles. Sometimes they might simply have to pay for them. I wonder whether there are grounds for the Clerk’s Office to consider whether or not in fact Parliament should charge more than it does for local bills to come before Parliament. It does charge a sum and I wonder whether there should be at times some disincentive applied. 
I raise these points because of the concern I have about retrospective legislation. It was a concern expressed by the sponsor of the bill and he is doing this really to help his constituents and not to relieve the Tasman District Council of embarrassment because embarrassed it should be—embarrassed it should be. I could refer to other instances when in fact the Tasman District Council has treated constituents in the electorate that I work in with some disdain and in a cavalier way. The movement of the Maitai Lodge is one case in point but that is not what we are discussing tonight. 
 So this should be a lesson not only to the Tasman District Council but also as Andrew Williams said previously to all local bodies around the country to make sure that they have scrutinised the advice they are given. I understand that councillors act in good faith on advice that they are given but let this be a lesson to all of them. This bill will get support but I hope the people of Ligar Bay and Tata Beach bring their concerns to the select committee and get a decent hearing there as well. Thank you.