Davis Kelvin: Local Government (Auckland Reorganisation) Bill — In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee 
Davis Kelvin: Local Government (Auckland Reorganisation) Bill — In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee 
[Volume:654;Page:3642] 
KELVIN DAVIS (Labour) 
: 
 I am happy to take a call to support clause 101 in new Part 10 which is in the name of Carol Beaumont. There are three points that I would like to make in this debate. Firstly I will talk about the Auckland Council and the Auckland Transition Agency being good employers. My second point will be about the aims and aspirations of Maori. My third point will come back to the fact that this is all about democracy and transparency. 
In respect of the Auckland Council being a good employer I point out that it is really about caring for and protecting the rights of workers. When I was a school principal we had a framework saying that any employer or teacher who was dictatorial and lacked support would breed a resentful child. This is what I see in the legislation that is being pushed through. We are being dictated to and there is a lack of support which will breed resentment in the community. 
This issue is also about the aims and aspirations of Maori people. I say to members that Maori aspire to be heard in their workplaces to be influential. I struggle to see what is wrong with recognising the aims and the aspirations of Maori the employment requirements of Maori and the need for greater involvement of Maori in Auckland public affairs. I wonder why it is such a hard issue to deal with why it is so hard to debate why we have to push this bill through so quickly and why Maori people do not have an opportunity to participate in any sort of debate on an issue that really does affect them and to participate in settings that allow Maori to be heard. To have public meetings is fine but I just wonder how many public meetings will be held on marae and I wonder how many public meetings will be held at times when whanau can get to those meetings and actually contribute. It is really important that the aims and the aspirations of Maori people are not overlooked in this whole debate. 
One of the greatest aims and aspirations of Maori is simply to get a job. When we see that our unemployment rate is up at around 11 percent which is higher than that of most groups aside from the Pacific Island population we realise that it is really important that Maori rights and Maori conditions at work are considered and looked after. Again this comes back to democracy. We hear National members say they are listening. But I ask whether they have heard what the people are saying. There is a big difference. When those members sit in a meeting and simply listen to what people are saying and then move on in their own direction they are not hearing what people are saying. People do not like the direction that all this is heading in. 
To come back to the issue of the Auckland Council being a good employer I say that this is about people having an opportunity to be selected. What we are seeing here is that the Minister of Local Government will base his selection criteria on individuals or groups that support his ideology. That ideology is quite intimidating for the Maori people because our values are totally different from those of the Minister. We have a fear that the people being selected will be mainly male mainly wealthy and mainly Pakeha. Let me tell members now that Maori are certainly not Pakeha. We are certainly not generally wealthy and we certainly do not live in the suburbs of Remuera Pakuranga Howick and those other places. We tend to be the people who live in west Auckland Glenfield Otara and Mangere. 
Moana Mackey 
: They need a code of practice. 
KELVIN DAVIS 
: They do need a code of practice. The Minister must notify the House and make a workforce transition code of practice. 
Moana Mackey 
: Why do they oppose that? 
KELVIN DAVIS 
: Indeed—why do they oppose having a code of practice?