Williams ArenaARENA WILLIAMS (Labour—Manurewa): Thank you Mr Speaker for the opportunity to speak to that motion.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O'Connor): Oh the question is that the motion be agreed to.ARENA WILLIAMS: Labour opposes this motion because the appropriate amount of time for the select committee to consider this bill is the ordinary length of time which is six months. The reason for our opposition to the 14 March report-back date is that this bill contains a number of technical changes to the definitions which would apply to the vehicles in question. It also contains some ratings about weights which the committee should be hearing from experts in order to balance the policy decisions which are being set out by the Government.On this side of the House the Labour members do not oppose the work that the Government is undertaking on this and we appreciate the need for pace. However six months is the appropriate time for the select committee to come to what could very well be a consensus-based position on the appropriate way to take this forward. Because Labour members also see the need for an appropriate way for road-user charges to be levied on light electric vehicles and heavy electric vehicles but what is in the bill currently may very well need the House to revisit it and use House time again to consider what has been set out in the bill.The only other opportunity to do that would be in committee of the whole House stage. At this point it would be inappropriate to do that because Government members do not have the benefit of the advice to take to that committee stage in order to propose amendments to some of those technical changes like the definitions and like the weight ratings. There is no ability for Government members to do that currently. We need the select committee process to be able to do that and four weeks is not a reasonable amount of time to get the information that we need to be able to do that technical work from the officials or from the public who should be able to be involved.There is also some opposition to then the need to be sitting without regard to Standing Orders 193 195 and 196. If there was an appropriate amount of time given to these changes then there would be no need to disregard those long-held Standing Orders which allow members to conduct their electorate work—their important constituency work—alongside the work that they are expected to do in this House. Essentially you have Opposition members who are technical experts in this—and I tip my hat to the Hon Julie Anne Genter who will be asked in the select committee stages to weigh in on a number of technical matters which she knows about. But she is being asked as are my colleagues in the Labour Party to give up what would otherwise be spent representing the constituency work when that is purely because the Government has not allowed enough time in its legislative agenda to progress these changes in the normal democratic way.The Labour Party is proposing that the Minister reconsider the motion and put a six-month report-back date in it. Then we will be happy to vote for it through to select committee and to participate in a completely bipartisan way. It is impossible for us to do that on the current motion and so on the current motion we will have to oppose it.