Peachey Allan: Immigration Bill — In Committee 
Peachey Allan: Immigration Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:657;Page:6762] 
ALLAN PEACHEY (National—Tamaki) 
: 
 I appreciate the opportunity to speak in support of Part 6 of the Immigration Bill. Part 6 provides for a streamlined deportation process that balances efficiency with fairness and that is really the thrust of the whole bill. The deportation process as outlined in Part 6 brings together numerous provisions from the Immigration Act 1987. Words like “removal” “revocation” and “deportation” itself are put into an ordered framework that sets out a person’s rights and just as important a person’s obligations. The deportation thresholds broadly reflect the status quo with enhancements to ensure that they are up to date and that they enable New Zealand to remove people who are not New Zealand citizens who do the wrong thing. A sovereign State must always have the right to remove people who do the wrong thing—in this case those who do not comply with the New Zealand immigration system or who do not comply with New Zealand law. 
A key change is that in most cases the bill allows a person with the exception of a foreign national who is unlawfully in New Zealand to remain lawfully in New Zealand while that person’s appeal against deportation liability is being heard. This means that if the conditions of that person’s visa allow it he or she can continue to work or study until that time—that is fairness. The bill allows for liability for deportation to be cancelled or suspended at the discretion of the Minister of Immigration and the Immigration and Protection Tribunal can suspend a deportation liability of residents. However a suspension may be used where the Minister wants to put a foreign national who is liable for deportation on to a form of good behaviour bond. Again there is fairness and balance. 
The Transport and Industrial Relations Committee which held hearings into the bill—although I was not a member of the committee when those hearings were held—recommended an amendment to allow the cancellation of a deportation order of a foreign national unlawfully in New Zealand. This will facilitate the voluntary departure of foreign nationals. The ability to cancel a deportation order has some protections built around it so that it does not become another avenue of appeal for foreign nationals seeking to defer their departure from New Zealand. Again this is balance and fairness. 
One change the Government is making is the provision that the Minister can order the early release from prison of any foreign national offender who is liable for deportation after having considered the safety of the community that the offender will be deported to. When an offender has been sentenced to 2 or more years in prison he or she may not be released for deportation until he or she has served the lesser of a minimum of 2 years or one-third of the sentence. The requirement that an offender spend a minimum of 2 years or one-third of his or her sentence in prison in New Zealand is a clear signal about the desirability of offenders serving their sentences. But in exceptional circumstances such as where the offender may have a serious medical condition and is being deported because of excessive cost to the health system or there are scarce flights available to deport an offender about be released such as during a busy holiday period the Minister has a discretion. I commend Part 6 to the Committee.