Goudie Sandra: Electoral (Disqualification of Convicted Prisoners) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Goudie Sandra: Electoral (Disqualification of Convicted Prisoners) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
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SANDRA GOUDIE (National—Coromandel) 
: 
 I speak to the Electoral (Disqualification of Convicted Prisoners) Amendment Bill. If the bill is enacted the law would revert to what it was prior to the implementation of the current Electoral Act 1993. All this bill does is remove the right of a person to register as an elector if he or she is serving a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than 3 years. The bill is very simple law. It says that if people do a crime they do the time and give up the electoral right that normal citizens have. The legislation gives supremacy to a person’s moral obligation not to commit a crime rather than to the moral obligation of that person to vote. The Labour Opposition is saying that it is a moral obligation to allow these people to vote. But do these people not also have a moral obligation not to commit crime? If they want to commit a crime they have to do the time and they have to give up all the rights and privileges that law-abiding citizens have. If they want to do the crime they give up those rights and privileges. Their moral obligation is not to commit crime; they have to have that responsibility in the first instance. If they want to continue to vote then they will not commit crime. If they want to give up their rights and privileges then so be it—they give up the right to vote. I would rather that the moral obligation not to commit crime had supremacy over the moral obligation to allow those people to vote. 
Members should look at all of the thousands of New Zealanders who went to war as David Garrett quite rightly pointed out to protect our democracy. The biggest part of that democracy is the right to vote. Well if people are going to commit crime which they have a moral obligation not to do then they can give up the rights and privileges that they can expect as New Zealanders. 
What do the Greens say? They say that that is an irrational approach—to expect New Zealanders to have a moral obligation not to commit a crime is an irrational approach! That is being just totally soft on crime. What is the Greens’ other interpretation? The Greens’ other interpretation is to call the law of locking up criminals extreme coercion. I mean you know duh! This is about keeping New Zealanders safe yet the Greens call the law of locking up New Zealanders extreme coercion. I guess if this were a communist country those members would be in the top seats but it is not a communist country; it is a democracy. We expect a moral obligation of New Zealanders not to commit a crime and if they commit a crime then we expect that the laws will deal to them in the appropriate way; this is just another way in which we can curb their rights and obligations. 
We need to send a very very strong message to people who might think about committing a crime. We need to make them think about all the rights and privileges that they would lose and we need to make sure that they do not enjoy their time in incarceration or in fulfilling their sentences. Of course we hear all about the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act and those people’s rights. Well in my view the moment they commit a crime they abdicate their rights. 
What about the rights of the citizens of New Zealand not to have crime perpetrated against them? We are not going to be like the Labour members. They said they are not going to not condone the actions of criminals so by definition that means they condone the actions of criminals. Labour members are clearly soft on crime but National members are sending a very strong message that we are not soft on crime. We want to make sure that every single criminal understands that they will get dealt to. If they want to break the law they will get dealt to. We have made very sure of that. 
We have totally supported the police with the changes that we have made under the excellent leadership of Minister Judith Collins who is Minister of Police and Minister of Corrections. We have given the police Tasers we have given them more police on the front line and we have given them more powers to deal with crime and methamphetamine. We have enabled them to act to recover the proceeds of crime; we have taken $7.2 million from that. Bring it on!