Dean Jacqui: Easter Sunday Shop Trading Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Dean Jacqui: Easter Sunday Shop Trading Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 21 February 2007. Volume:637;Page:7599. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
JACQUI DEAN (National—Otago) 
: 
 Before the battle commences—as I am sure it is about to do; I can see my colleagues over the other side of the House winding themselves up to enter the fray—I just want to take a moment to apologise to the House for not being here earlier today to speak to my own bill. I thank Chris Tremain for stepping in so well for me. Just to pray for an apology I was detained on a personal matter. 
Having got that out of the way let us let the games begin by acknowledging that the issue of Easter trading will always be and has always been utterly utterly contentious. I am acutely aware that I am just one in a long line of members of Parliament seeking a reform of legislation around Easter trading—seeking to bring some sense into the  
Groundhog Day 
 situation of retailers being prosecuted every year year after year for opening their doors on Good Friday and Easter Sunday. 
The arguments against the reform of the legislation have not changed much either. They range from freedom to trade to have a choice of when to open one’s doors for business— 
Mark Blumsky 
: You still pay rent on your lease! 
JACQUI DEAN 
: —yes whether or not one’s doors are shut—to the economic benefits that one might get out of trading over Easter versus concern to acknowledge a religious festival arguments of preservation of family life and preservation of just a few holidays in the working year and indeed arguments that traverse protection of workers. Each argument for or against the liberalisation of Easter trading has its merits of course and each argument needs to be taken into account when this House passes legislation. 
What we have—we cannot run away from it and we cannot ignore it—is a persistent call for liberalisation. Like it or not—some of us do; some of us do not—we have to deal with that. I am sponsoring this bill because the Wanaka Chamber of Commerce asked me to help it. The Wanaka Chamber of Commerce represents Wanaka retailers that trade over Easter and have done so for a number of years. Wanaka retailers trade over Easter because there is a huge demand for them to do so—largely because of the Warbirds over Wanaka International Air Show which comes to Wanaka every second Easter and attracts up to 100000 extra visitors to the Wakatipu Basin. 
The hard part for the Wanaka Chamber of Commerce and its retailers is that just over the hill in Queenstown retailers have an exemption to trade both on Good Friday and on Easter Sunday. So all the benefits go to Queenstown—where retailers can trade and have a good day scot-free—whereas year after year the Department of Labour prosecutes Wanaka retailers. It was telling that in the last round of prosecutions the judge when sentencing a particular retailer convicted him but declined to fine him commenting that it was about time Parliament got its act into gear. This is why I am very pleased to be finally speaking to the House this evening. 
I am promoting this bill as I said because the Wanaka Chamber of Commerce asked me to help it. Steve Chadwick is representing the interests of Rotorua. Many chambers of commerce and retailers’ associations are keen to see this matter settled so that they can get on with doing business without the annoyance of the annual Easter trading prosecutions. 
I acknowledge the work put in by all members of the Commerce Committee when considering this bill and Steve Chadwick’s bill the Shop Trading Hours Act Repeal (Easter Trading) Amendment Bill. It was acknowledged by us that notwithstanding all the objections the retail sector and many many members of our society are looking to us for leadership. They are looking to us in Parliament for a solution to the anomalous situation we have now with Easter trading. I also acknowledge the large number of submitters who took the time to write and to speak on their submissions. My thanks go to them for the high-quality and well-reasoned suggestions that many of them made for a way forward in this difficult issue. 
I acknowledge that for some people Easter trading is incompatible with the celebration of their faith. I acknowledge that some people feel that working over Easter cuts into family life. I would argue that no one is forced to go shopping and no one is forced to work over Easter. 
Hon Member 
: Yeah right! 
JACQUI DEAN 
: I thank the member for biting right on cue. Several unions are concerned at worker protection issues and amendments to the bill in the select committee from members right across the political spectrum have resulted in several slight changes to both bills. No one can be forced to work over Easter and there can be no penalty for declining or refusing to work. 
I also note that many retail workers are young and work part-time. They value the extra hours and the opportunity to earn extra money. I asked a lot of retailers in Wanaka about this issue because it is an issue that we should all be concerned about. Retailers in Wanaka advised that they have no trouble finding people to work over Easter and generally the young people who are working in the retail sector in tourism towns are those who work during the day so that they can party all night. I do not see terribly much wrong with that. 
A number of historical privileges add to the anomalies and inherent unfairness of the shop trading legislation as it stands. Picton and Queenstown have exemptions carried over from the Shop Trading Hours Act Repeal Act 1990. Both those towns can trade on Good Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. with no other restrictions. Section 4(2)(a) of the Act provides that the general prohibition under section 3(1) of the Act does not apply to a shop being closed at any time on any day if “On the 31st day of July 1990 there was in force in respect of the area in which the shop is situated an order under section 20 of the repealed Act”. So these historical privileges exist for shops in Picton on Good Friday and Easter Sunday in Queenstown on Good Friday and Easter Sunday and in Taupo on Easter Sunday only but not for other similar tourism areas such as Rotorua or Wanaka. In other words it is a legislative dog’s breakfast and an uneven playing field. We already have Good Friday and Easter Sunday trading but not on a fair basis. 
I turn to some changes I propose for the Easter Sunday Shop Trading Amendment Bill. The provision in this bill for a general exemption for Easter Sunday by way of a schedule remains unchanged. Schedule 2 contains a list of every territorial local authority. In effect should this bill be passed it would become the business owner’s decision whether to open on Easter Sunday. 
I want to signal a change to the bill that I will introduce as a Supplementary Order Paper at the Committee stage should the bill pass its second reading. The general exemption applying to Good Friday would go. It would be replaced with the following: “The bill would enable a territorial authority to decide whether shops in its district may remain open on Good Friday if a significant event were occurring in the district on that day.” I believe that this is a much more focused approach. Only those districts like Wanaka which holds Warbirds over Wanaka every second year would be interested in applying for an exemption to trade on Good Friday. So what I am effectively doing is defining the scope of Good Friday right down to those areas that specifically want it. If Rotorua or Tauranga for example were planning a major event for the Easter weekend and if their chamber of commerce supported it they could apply to the city council for an exemption to trade on Good Friday. Wanaka would apply for an exemption only every second year for the year that Warbirds over Wanaka is held. 
It became obvious during the hearing of submissions on Easter trading that although there was broad support for liberalisation of trading on Easter Sunday there was not the same level of support for Good Friday—although a number of submitters did indicate their support. Yet some credible solution needs to be found if we as a Parliament want to be seen as credible. We have the opportunity to get this legislation right. I would like to see the House send this bill through to the Committee stage. Thank you.