Connell Brian: Public Finance (State Sector Management) Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Connell Brian: Public Finance (State Sector Management) Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Sitting date: 14 December 2004. Volume:622;Page:17898. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
BRIAN CONNELL (National—Rakaia) 
: 
 I take the call on Part 5 of this doorstop of a piece of legislation. I want to help out my colleague Mr Key. He asked a very good question of the Minister. The question was: when can a Minister give direction to a Crown entity? It appeared from my reading of Part 5 that there were contradictions in the legislation so I thought I would help my colleague out. I went to page 166 and looked at the definitions of statutory entities Crown entities and Crown entity subsidiaries. I thought that if I cleared this matter up for my colleague he might go to bed tonight with a smile on his face because I knew it would keep him awake otherwise. 
If we look at the definition of “Statutory entities” we see there are three different types. The first is a Crown agent. I say to Mr Key that the subtle difference here is that Crown agents “must give effect to government policy” autonomous Crown entities “must have regard”— 
John Key 
: What’s the difference? 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: The member should save his questions. Independent Crown entities “are generally independent of government policy”. So there is the distinction. The independent Crown entities “are generally independent” the autonomous Crown entities “must have regard to government policy” and the Crown agents “must give effect to government policy”. I wonder whether that has cleared the question up for Mr Key. 
John Key 
: No. 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: Well I do not know how to explain it more clearly because I have read the explanation from the bill itself. What I suggest we do now is ask the Minister who is the architect of this legislation to get to his feet and enlighten the Committee at 3 minutes to 12 on Wednesday—no it is Tuesday the 14th—so we can all go down to the press gallery party have a drink and relax in the knowledge that this issue has been cleared up and my colleague Mr Key can sleep well tonight. 
Before the Minister does take that call I also want to ask him to answer the question as to the difference between the entities whose definitions I have just read out and Crown entity companies. This is particularly important as to when a Minister can give direction to a Crown entity. I will pause and let the Minister take that call. Will the Minister enlighten us? No I see that he will not. I will direct members then to look at clause 157 “Crown entity to be a good employer”. This bill because it contains a whole lot of repetitious arrant nonsense is so heavy that it is no wonder a strong man like me can hardly lift it. We dealt with the nonsense—the nonsense I am about to talk about again in clause 157—when we debated Part 3. This clause deals with exactly the same issues we dealt with then. It states that a Crown entity must be a good employer. Well hello that is news to us! A Crown entity must be a good employer and it must operate a personnel policy. Now that is earth-shattering news. I am sure the Minister could not wait to draft that line and get it into legislation. Then we get to the issue that my colleague— 
Simon Power 
: There’s no Minister in the chair. 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: No Minister in the chair! I thought he was on his feet to take a call. I ask members whether the Minister was on his feet to take a call and answer my questions. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: When the member sits down. 
Simon Power 
: No don’t sit down. 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: No I was not going to—not until the bell rang anyway. 
Debate interrupted.