Cameron Mark; Mahuta NanaiaMARK CAMERON (ACT): Thank you Minister. As you'd be acutely aware I live in a rural community. Seventy-five percent of the Kaipara is on self-served water. You know this to rural people is actually a real concern. You've used the word abandoned"—"We're not going to abandon anyone". Well a lot of rural communities actually feel abandoned by this legislation in so much as what it proposes to do is firstly and I think the National member Barbara Kuriger alluded to the fact it doesn't give a carve-out for people in small rural communities or irrigation schemes which often have—like for example under 30 homes six homes seven homes and this is going to put huge amounts of fiscal onus on them which they don't actually need. Can the Minister speak to what financial penalties they might be facing if they get encapsulated by this scheme and who is that legal onus on? We've got irrigation schemes farm water schemes all over New Zealand that this piece of legislation takes the rights of ownership away from.Hon NANAIA MAHUTA (Minister of Local Government): At the fear of going right down the tunnel hole in the wrong direction in terms of the intent of this legislation can I say that the solution that we came up with in consultation with rural advocates who wanted to ensure a practical solution is something that goes along these lines. Firstly a supplier that chooses to comply with an acceptable solution doesn't need to have a drinking-water safety plan or a source water risk management plan. So the compliance issues that you're talking about largely relate to kind of some of those perceived challenges.In addition to that consumer complaints will not apply to very small suppliers only public suppliers. The registration process is intended to be simplified especially for small suppliers and made free. And there will be tailored online templates and guidance for small suppliers because we've heard the concerns from rural communities that if there is too much red tape around the way in which we're expected to engage with the legislation that would be problematic.The other area is that as I said Taumata Arowai by and large will work with the Ministry for Primary Industries especially in rural communities such as the member's to simplify any compliance issues that are unnecessary and not in keeping with the intent of the legislation again. The clear intention from the outset with the Water Services Bill is to tailor solutions for rural and small suppliers in a very practical way to ensure workability.MARK CAMERON (ACT): Minister just if I may just to get some clarity here can she give the rural community some certainty that those that are offering the service of supplying safe drinking water to half a dozen homes won't opt out of this piece of legislation and by virtue of doing so affect the wellbeing of half a dozen houses that are now effectively cut off because of this piece of legislation?Hon NANAIA MAHUTA (Minister of Local Government): I think the way that the question is framed is difficult because it's not an opt-out scenario. This is an opportunity where the Health Committee has argued and brought forward and I have accepted that the period of times for rural suppliers to be included into this regime should be extended. We have pushed that time frame out to around about seven years and we've ensured that Taumata Arowai will have some working examples of how to accommodate some of the challenges in the rural profile and the nature of how water is supplied to their communities so that practical solutions are achieved."