Coleman Jonathan: Coroners Bill — Third Reading 
Coleman Jonathan: Coroners Bill — Third Reading 
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Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN (National—Northcote) 
: 
 It is a pleasure to be speaking in the third reading of the Coroners Bill. Many of my colleagues on both sides of the House have given the issues a pretty thorough canvassing and they have been well summarised. 
I know that this bill seeks to put some structure around the profession of coroner but I think it is fair to say that the country has been very well served by the people who have carried out the coronial function in a very professional manner for decades and decades. It is extremely worthwhile that we in this Chamber pay tribute to the men and women who have held the position of coroner over the years. We currently have 54 coroners most of whom work on a part-time basis. As we know they come from a range of professions and backgrounds—from the police and from the professions of law and medicine. But now with the appointment of 20 full-time coroners many of those people will be forced to reapply for their positions. Obviously most of them will not be successful in doing that. 
There is no doubt that our society has changed since the original Coroners Act was drafted and it is important that the coronial function actually reflects the needs of the society it serves. We live in a modern and dynamic society and the new legislation reflects that. More considerations have to be accounted for around the coronial process in the country we live in now than once might have been the case. 
This bill aims to ensure that the coronial system responds better to the needs of bereaved families. It aims also to address the cultural and spiritual needs of all New Zealanders. New Zealanders need to be reassured when they are confronted by extremely sensitive circumstances at what for most people would be a disastrous stage of their lives—when a loved one or close relative is the subject of a coronial inquest—that wherever they go in New Zealand there will be a consistency of process. That is what this legislation will provide. 
I know that in past years there have been issues for many New Zealanders around the release of bodies to families in time for funeral services to be performed. That has created a great deal of distress for people. Now under this legislation there will be certainty and standardisation. All New Zealanders will know what they can expect when they deal with a coronial office. 
The purpose of this bill really is to help prevent deaths and to promote justice through investigating and identifying the causes and circumstances of sudden or unexplained deaths or deaths that occur in special circumstances. This legislation will allow coroners to make recommendations or comments with the aim of reducing the number of further deaths in similar circumstances. 
The bill has a number of key elements. Firstly it will establish the office of a chief coroner—a position we have not had before in this country. The appointment of a chief coroner is something that is probably long overdue. A key function of the position will be to oversee the performance of and the standardised procedures carried out by the 20 new full-time coroners. The result is that there will now be rigorous processes around coronial inquests and that a consistency of service will be offered across the country. 
This legislation will set down guidelines for professional standards to which coroners will adhere. Of course coroners have performed their function to the highest standards of professionalism but the terms under which they operate and what may be called their practice guidelines have never really been established. A further key element of this legislation is to ensure that families are notified at each step of the coronial process. When people are in distress over the loss of a loved one the timeliness of the inquiry can often make a huge difference to how they deal with the grieving process. 
But as members have already heard the National Party is concerned about the unconstitutional nature of the idea of justice missing the existing coroners. Two clauses in schedule 3 of the bill are particularly relevant. Upon repeal of the Coroners Act 1988 every former coroner will have to vacate office. What is worse the new bill ensures that no former coroner is entitled to compensation for loss of office. People will be told after years of service that they are no longer required and that they will receive no compensation when they go. 
It is important to note that under the existing Act coroners are appointed by the Governor-General by warrant. They had tenure until the age of 68 and that was later modified to the age of 72. Now their warrants are being cancelled and the Ministry of Justice is comfortable with that. The National Party view is that particular care needs to be taken in respect of such constitutional provisions. One would expect that people make their arrangements and commitments on the basis of security of tenure—a tenure that will not be served out for the majority of them as the pool of coroners is reduced from 54 to 20. We think this is harsh treatment indeed and we have grave reservations in this regard. It would be not unreasonable for coroners who are not being reappointed to receive some financial compensation. 
The second element that the National Party takes some issue with but is supporting—although we will continue to watch it with a sceptical eye—is that of the reporting of suicides in the media. As has been reported in the media recently there has been a 20 percent increase in suicide attempts in the last 7 years and a 45 percent increase in attempted suicides amongst young women aged 15 to 24. If members look at the actual outcomes of mental illness they will see that this is a particularly clear and measurable outcome. It is something that we really do have to be concerned about. 
Although I do not think it is clear-cut that it is in the public interest to restrict the reporting of suicides I accept that this bill will give coroners the discretion to do so. That is a very good thing because there is no question that we have a suicide epidemic in this country. However a point to make is that in no other jurisdiction in the Western World are the rules around the reporting of suicide as stringent as they are here in New Zealand. For that reason this is something we will have to keep under review. 
We have to look at how people in those young age groups actually communicate. People in the 15 to 24-year-old group now get a lot of their information through the Internet or by text messaging and not necessarily through the print media. So making parents and family members aware of issues around youth suicide may actually be of greater overall benefit to society as a whole. 
I think we need to be really quite cautionary in saying that we are keen to have a long-term blanket ban on media reporting of suicide. There was of course last year in Gore a situation of seven youth suicides spread over a space of just a few short months and that was shattering for that community. There was some speculation as to whether media coverage might have played some role but I think on balance there is benefit to having media transparency. 
In conclusion the National Party supports this legislation and sees it overall as a step forward. In doing so we pay tribute to those who have served and who continue to serve as coroners. We still maintain that the dismissal of many of the existing coroners is unconstitutional and we will be maintaining a sceptical watch on provisions around the reporting of suicide in the media. 
Bill read a third time.