Auchinvole Chris: Electronic Identity Verification Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Auchinvole Chris: Electronic Identity Verification Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 07 February 2012. Volume:677;Page:142. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
CHRIS AUCHINVOLE (National) 
:  
May I begin as the previous speaker did by congratulating you Mr Assistant Speaker Robertson on the position that you hold as returned Assistant Speaker to the House. I am sure many other members will enjoy the careful and considered way you fulfil your responsibilities so congratulations on that.  
I am particularly pleased to follow the Hon Ruth Dyson on this particular bill the Electronic Identity Verification Bill particularly as she spoke so positively and in such a considered way about this bill. It is not new to this particular committee the Government Administration Committee it is new to me because I am a new member of the committee. I think it bodes well for the passage of this bill through the select committee to hear such a positive approach being taken by both sides of the House.  
I am very pleased to be taking a call on the Electronic Identity Verification Bill which is the latest step in National’s programme of better public services. This is an excellent step forward for online Government services and for all the reasons so far canvassed by Minister Adams and by the Hon Ruth Dyson it augurs well for the future.  
The world of technology moves very quickly and occasionally Governments are accused of not keeping up with that changing world. That criticism cannot credibly be levelled at this Government. We are rolling out high-speed broadband to schools homes and businesses across the country and we have improved our cyber security. Under the new Minister the Hon Amy Adams our communications and information technology infrastructure will continue to grow as New Zealand begins to benefit from the transformative effect of what we have achieved thus far in this area. It is appropriate that as we are transforming New Zealand with some of the highest broadband speeds in the world we also establish online Government services that match the best in the world.  
This bill establishes the Electronic Identity Verification Service. The service will be responsible for issuing individuals with an electronic identity for use across multiple Government agencies with an online presence. It does away with the need to verify one’s identity repeatedly often with original hard-copy documents or copies of those documents when dealing with multiple Government departments. As a practising justice of the peace in a rural area I can sympathise with the comments made by the Hon Ruth Dyson about the difficulty people have in obtaining verification of copies of passports and other things—it puts them to some considerable degree of trouble to get these things done in a rural situation.  
The bill’s objectives are achieved by authorising the Electronic Identity Verification Service to create electronic identity credentials. These credentials will contain limited core identity information about an individual. The core information can include the full name the gender the date of birth and the place of birth of the individual. The electronic identity credential will ensure that a Government agency with an online presence can identify individuals with a great degree of accuracy which is necessary when dealing with sensitive Government services. This is particularly the case for example when dealing with those services related to identity such as the issuing of passports.  
By centralising the verification of online service users’ identities we will not only provide a high degree of efficiency for both the users themselves and the Government agencies they deal with but also provide a consistent level of security across agencies. This whole-of-Government approach to identify verification is in line with National’s goal of providing better public services.  
The Hon Ruth Dyson did ask that I take the opportunity to canvass with the Minister why we are using New Zealand Post in particular. Basically it is a matter of providing a contract which New Zealand Post has contested for and has secured. It gives one measure of control so that we do not lose measurements of efficiency by having random providers and also it is a national organisation and most people have access to a post office service within a reasonable distance from where they live. Basically those were the contributing reasons for that choice.  
I would like now to focus on the principles set out in this bill in clause 4. These are the principles that must be taken into account by every participating agency. I concur with previous speakers when I say that it is very comforting to see the degree of preparation that has gone into the drafting of this bill because it has not avoided what we could call public perception issues which are going to be a feature of this sort of thing.  
Again I find myself agreeing with previous speakers who say that there will be public apprehension particularly perhaps amongst people who are a little older and not au fait with modern technology. I think that most of us if really pressed would find it hard to give an absolute assurance of the net being a very secure sort of organisation. Indeed most of our institutions would caution care when using it. But basically it is the controlling principles that will decide on the protocols that control this service and these are the principles that must be taken into account by every participating agency. These principles provide a strong defence in my mind against any kind of misuse of this new important tool.  
When considering an online service that involves the Government collecting personal information about individuals for use across multiple Government agencies one’s first concern must be for the security and appropriate use of that information. Information is power. Once somebody has it it cannot simply be taken away. So this bill has been structured from the point of view that in receiving that information there are safeguards over its use. I am pleased to see that any concern on that score is well and truly put to bed by the strong safeguards in this bill.  
I will quote from clause 4 “Principles” if I may: “(d) an individual’s consent to the supply of his or her personal information to a participating agency must be obtained before the Service can supply the information to the agency and even if the consent is obtained the Service may supply only the minimum amount of personal information that is necessary for the agency to act as part of a given transaction or series of transactions:”.  
The safeguards in these principles are comprehensive. They clarify that at no time will an individual be forced to use this service. Nobody can be forced or coerced to apply for an electronic identity credential and nobody can be forced to use it. Importantly—and I think this is important—no Government agency can make this the only way in which to access its services.  
The system is a good one. It will provide a high level of convenience to the users of Government services. However there will of course be individuals who prefer not to make use of it for all sorts of reasons. The principles of this bill make it absolutely clear that that decision is at their discretion and will not prevent them from accessing Government services.  
In addition individuals are entitled to check the information on them held by the Electronic Identity Verification Service and to view the usage of their electronic identity credentials. This is the level of service you can expect from most privately run online services and it is good to see that this bill will ensure that people can expect that level of service from their Government-run services.  
When dealing with online information security of information is of the utmost importance. Safeguards in this bill are comprehensive and they seem to me to be an appropriate level of security for the information that will be held. I am sure this is an area that will be thoroughly scrutinised when it comes before the Government Administration Committee and I too look forward to working on it there.  
The Electronic Identity Verification Bill brings our online Government services into the 21st century. It does so in a way that comprehensively safeguards the security and the privacy of those who use those services and for those reasons I fully commend this bill to the House.