Brown Peter: Gambling Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
Brown Peter: Gambling Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
[Volume:611;Page:8502] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 I have sat here listening to this debate with interest. It is a complex bill and the Supplementary Order Paper tends to make it a good deal more complicated. Before I get into my speech I want to acknowledge that the Minister offered my colleague and myself a briefing the other evening. We were very appreciative of that. 
Judith Collins 
: He never gave me one. 
PETER BROWN 
: I can understand that with due respect. We thought it was very worthwhile. The officials in particular highlighted some areas and put our minds to rest. I tell the Minister in all sincerity that New Zealand First has debated this bill again as a result of that briefing. However we are still opposed to it; nevertheless it was an enlightening briefing. 
Clause 217A“Gaming machines and remote interactive gambling excluded” bans Internet gambling. The select committee sent it back. It is quite clear and categorically bans Internet gambling. I listened to Sue Bradford with interest and I have spoken to her since. I understand from the Greens that the Australians banned Internet gambling and the Americans are trying to do the same. 
Judith Collins 
: Ask me; I’m the expert. 
PETER BROWN 
: The member says that she is an expert. How many other countries ban Internet gambling? 
Judith Collins 
: I will take a call. 
PETER BROWN 
: The member will take a call. I ask United Future people why they think they are greater than average New Zealanders. This bill came back from the select committee process banning Internet gambling. United Future members have put their hands up and said: “That’s not necessary; we will support this and we will amend it in the Supplementary Order Paper; but to hell with the public: we won’t even have to go out to the select committee. We will support this willy-nilly.” United Future members will put their hands up and support it without any criteria or input whatsoever from the public. I ask United Future members whether that is what they mean by common sense. Is that what they mean by family values? 
Gambling in this country has the ability to turn moderately wealthy people into poor people and it frequently does. It has the ability to tear families apart and to split them up. Here we have United Future members coming into this Parliament greater than anybody else in this country saying: “Throw clause 217A out. We’re not in favour of banning Internet gambling. The Australians and Americans are but we’re not and we will reverse what the select committee said.” They will do that willy-nilly with no consultation and will support the Government on its Supplementary Order Paper. I ask the Minister how the dickens he convinced United Future members. I think they must have been on cannabis. I think they have been smoking pot in the secret chamber somewhere around here. 
Jill Pettis 
: That’s not appropriate. 
PETER BROWN 
: Well maybe Jill Pettis will stand up and explain how she justifies a select committee coming back banning Internet gambling and she wants to reverse it. Will she explain that—because I am at a loss to explain it? I am also at a loss as to how a party that supposedly stands for the principles and ideals that United Future do can come and just sit in this Chamber with only one person taking a call and saying that this is good enough for New Zealand and it will be imposed upon New Zealanders. 
Internet gambling will do a huge amount of damage to some of the families in this country—mainly the not so well off—Maori families and Pacific Island families but there will be a few non-Maori families amongst them. It will split families. It will turn the moderately wealthy into the poor and we come to this Chamber and see people who I thought had higher expectations and ideals for New Zealanders just passing the legislation through without any consultation with the public. 
That is not good enough. If the Government wants to make drastic changes like this the bill should go back to the select committee. I do not know whether United Future people have read this press release put out today by the New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services but they should read it and take it on board. It is put out by people who I thought supported them.