Peachey Allan: Electoral Finance Bill — In Committee 
Peachey Allan: Electoral Finance Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:644;Page:13668] 
ALLAN PEACHEY (National—Tamaki) 
: 
 I was particularly anxious after days of trying to get a call on the Committee stage of the Electoral Finance Bill because I want it recorded for all time in the annals of this House that I am one of those members who spoke against and voted against this attack on the democratic tradition of this country—and that is what this bill is. I ask the members opposite—the Labour members and the members of Labour’s coalition partners—to lift up their heads and listen to what is being said in this House and in this country. 
I will focus just for a moment on the commencement date of the bill. What is the rush? No sound democracy rushes this sort of change through its legislative process. If the Government is determined to pass this bill then what does it matter if it is delayed a little while in order to give New Zealanders a little bit more time to pause and reflect on it? 
Goodness gracious me! The United States Constitution—that brilliant document of democracy—was not rushed through almost in the quiet of the night by a desperate Government and its coalition partners. I have a message for those coalition partners. I say to those members of New Zealand First the Greens and United Future that they should understand very very clearly. This bill is progressing through this Parliament only because those members are voting for it. If it were not for the minor parties voting for this legislation then it would not be passing through this Committee at the moment. 
We know that it is part of the New Zealand tradition that on major matters of such significance the big parties talk and thrash it out. The reason the Government is not being required to thrash it out with the National Party is that the Government is calling on the votes of minor parties—[ 
Interruption 
] There he goes: the list member from New Zealand First. What is his name? Mr Woolerton is screeching and shouting and screeching and shouting instead of just stepping back and thinking about the harm he is doing to the electoral future of his party by supporting this socialist Government on legislation that undermines the democratic traditions of this country. 
In rushing the commencement date of this legislation what does the Labour Government and the screeching member from New Zealand First not understand? Let me tell members what Government members’ problem is. Their problem is that they are control freaks. They want to get control of every aspect of New Zealand life and they could never do that more effectively than by taking control of a nation’s democratic processes and using them in a way that brings them absolutely no credit at all. It brings no credit at all to the Government no credit at all to New Zealand First and no credit at all to the Green Party. It staggers me that representatives of small parties have been prepared to stand up in this Chamber and advance arguments that do no credit to them at all. 
New Zealand is paying a high price for the Labour Government’s need to control and dominate every aspect of New Zealand life. When will Labour members understand that just because things in a democratic process do not go their way and just because New Zealanders stand up and demand to be heard it need not be the case that it somehow becomes legitimate in their minds for them to use their majority—slim as it is—in this Chamber to undermine the democratic traditions of this country? 
R Doug Woolerton 
: What a load of hokum! 
ALLAN PEACHEY 
: Oh there he goes again—the boring member from New Zealand First.