Webb DuncanHon Dr DUNCAN WEBB (Labour—Christchurch Central): I move That the motion be amended by adding the words but not on Saturdays despite any Standing Order to the contrary."I move this amendment because I am aware that good legislative practice requires the full attention of members and this Government has been pressing us rather hard. It's under Standing Orders: committees can in fact meet at any time other than when the House is sitting and under Standing Order 48 which talks about the House—I'm assuming that extends to committees not meeting on a Sunday. So what we have by this instruction is the ability for the chair of this committee the Transport and Infrastructure Committee to call a meeting at any time including a Friday after the House has sat which under the select committee Standing Orders is set aside essentially as a day of pause perhaps for constituency work. But not only that it could also under the general Standing Orders call a meeting for the Saturday. Whilst you might still set Sunday aside for a day of rest it is my contention that given the fact that for example we'll more likely than not be sitting to midnight on Wednesday night and sitting extensively on Thursday the committee will then also quite likely be sitting on Friday notwithstanding that it is a sitting week and then quite possibly Saturday. That's just not good legislative practice—not only that but it's actually not good for the health and wellbeing of parliamentarians.So I have moved this amendment—and I won't speak to it for a great deal longer—for essentially both those bases: so that the quality of scrutiny given to this piece of legislation is up to the standard that the New Zealand public can deserve so that members of Parliament can have some respite from their legislative duties and come back to it fresh at the appropriate time.Now I gave a nod when perhaps I shouldn't have because this motion as tabled does not in fact extend the time but I would suggest that if the House is happy with this amendment—and I hope it is. I have never been to a select committee that met on a Saturday but then again I've never been through a period of urgency such as this Government has imposed upon us.As my colleague Megan Woods said this bill is substantive and important. It's closely linked to our climate goals—emissions deserve the full scrutiny of the select committee. How are we going to truncate that into the period of time—nine days I believe—that we have without sitting in truly extraordinary circumstances such as sitting on a Saturday I don't know.So my amendment is a very brief one. I would suggest that when the leader of the House or Ministers in charge of legislation come to these select committee instructions it would be appropriate not only to say "We can include this" but also to rule out days such as Saturday to rule out meeting after 6 p.m. on a non-sitting week when people are in their constituencies perhaps and try and have some family time. Show that we can achieve both those objectives: the objective of good quality legislative scrutiny not scrutiny by exhaustion and also looking after our members so that they can return to their important legislative tasks and their important constituency tasks with the appropriate degree of energy and attention.So I won't trouble the House any longer with debate on that amendment but I do hope that the Minister will seriously consider it. It would be extraordinary to sit on a Saturday and it's not really much of an ask for the Minister and the Government to rule that out on that amendment."