Little AndrewHon ANDREW LITTLE (Minister of Justice): Thank you Madam Assistant Speaker. Can I just begin by acknowledging the Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the Minister of Justice Jan Logie for the work she has done not only on this bill that she's sponsoring but actually on domestic and family violence generally. The fact that we have somebody of the calibre of Jan Logie in that role in this Government is testament to the commitment that this Government has to seriously addressing domestic violence in New Zealand today. There's a good reason for that and that is that domestic violence and the occurrence of it in New Zealand today is an absolute scourge on this nation. If we want to be serious or get serious about addressing many of the social issues and the social ills that we have today we have to start in the home and we have to start in those homes where domestic violence occurs. It is regrettably not a small number. I have a particular interest in this as the Minister of Justice because I know that for many children exposed to family violence they wind up in the criminal justice system in a different capacity and for different reasons.Seventy percent of those who are in our prisons today have been exposed to or are victims of violence in their young lives and that's wrong. We have to get serious about doing something about it. That's why other legislation that Jan Logie is responsible for that's being shepherded through the House is very important but it's also why this bill is so important too.The last member who spoke the Hon Mark Mitchell I respect his experience as a former front-line police officer in dealing with domestic violence because that is the experience of pretty much every front-line police officer in New Zealand today—a large chunk of their time is spent dealing with domestic disputes and domestic violence. You talk to front-line police officers and they will tell you of the situations they are dealing with—the sheer terror that children live in the sheer terror that women live in—and we are working on giving police the front-line means to deal just with that issue more effectively. But I differ with the honourable member when he said we should not be kind of bringing it into the workplace because the reality is that the issue and the consequences of domestic violence are in the workplace across New Zealand already and this is about giving workers who are victims of domestic violence the confidence the means—in a sense the permission—from this Parliament to step up and say I need help from my employer." It is a message from this Parliament to all employers to say "We need your help in this battle against this insidious affliction on this great country of ours." I know the member referred to many of the submissions from employers—they came from larger employers—and the Hon Mark Mitchell is absolutely right. It is easier for large employers to absorb perhaps the inconvenience of somebody having to take leave and sort out their personal affairs while they deal with a situation that is not of their choosing. Victims of domestic violence do not ask to be victims of domestic violence like pretty much every victim of criminal offending but they need help and the truth is that the victims of domestic violence are not victims of domestic violence depending on who they work for or the size of their employer. Domestic violence and the occurrence of it do not discriminate on the basis of who you work for and so every employer does need to be brought into the fold and then we can ask ourselves "Well what will be the inconvenience to employers?" Well actually it's not all employers who will have a victim of domestic violence on their staff particularly small employers. But for small businesses who might worry about this the message to them is very clear: it is unfortunate for that business but actually this valued staff member needs help at this time. And what a great way to win the further loyalty and commitment of a staff member who needs help at a traumatic time in their lives for that employer to say "Look I know this is going to cause me inconvenience and personal inconvenience and perhaps some of your work colleagues but it is more important that you are able to deal with this incredibly difficult event or series of events in your life to help you come to terms to help you to make other arrangements so that you can come back and have a sense of peace and stability in your work." What a great message that is from an employer from a manager of any size of business and that's what this bill allows to happen.It is not unusual to hear from the employer community about worries about provisions of extra leave but this is leave that is triggered by the particular occurrence of domestic violence. And the honourable member is right too that not every victim of domestic violence will necessarily seek leave in these circumstances. Because of the nature of it and because domestic violence is often an insidious event it is accompanied by threats and intimidation and it reduces the victim's confidence and sense of personal confidence and so they don't want to disclose to very many people and sometimes don't want to disclose at work. But wouldn't it be right if we actually developed a culture and a set of values in this country where actually it is OK to disclose this and not feel as if you're being stigmatised—not feel as if you as a victim have done something wrong but that you can have the confidence to ask for help to ask for leave and to ask for the indulgence of the employer and your work colleagues so you can help yourself. Dr Duncan Webb: That's right—dignity. Hon ANDREW LITTLE: It is about treating people with dignity. We do have to take every step we possibly can to reduce—and wouldn't it be lovely to talk about eliminating—domestic violence in this country. We have to take every step possible and this is one small step about giving victims of domestic violence and those who support them the means the ability the opportunity to say "I need some help. I need some leave. Please help me at this time." because actually a good employer will allow that to happen. A good employer will see the sense in making sure that that employee can continue to live their life with a greater sense of peace and sort out those difficult sorts of issues.I've seen some of the excerpts from the submissions that were made to the select committee and these are from front-line NGOs dealing with this issue on a day-to-day basis. Surely this Parliament must stop and take pause and listen to what it has been told through the representations that have been made to the select committee and say "Now is the time." In the 21st century in this country at this end of the world this quite wealthy country that is otherwise peaceful that is otherwise a great country to live—now is the time for this Parliament and for this country to take this insidious issue seriously and do what we can to get rid of domestic violence to save the victims or those who would be victims in the future and create that culture and create that environment where victims can actually do something about it with confidence.For that reason the Labour Party supports the bill has supported Parliamentary Under-Secretary Jan Logie in the tremendous work that she is doing and will continue to do so and we know that this piece of legislation is just one of the important pieces of legislation that will help to deal with this issue. There are more systemic and structural issues we have to deal with and that will come in in the future Government-sponsored legislation that is just about to come back into this House.So this is important and this is an opportunity tonight for this House to rally together and say "We get it. We understand it. We have empathy for victims." We understand the challenges for employers but in the end this issue is too great and it is too important and it outweighs that sense of inconvenience and we must get this right if we are to help victims and future victims of domestic violence and if we are to reduce that insidious crime in this country."