Hodgson Pete: Trade Marks Amendment Bill Copyright Amendment Bill (No 2) — Third Readings 
Hodgson Pete: Trade Marks Amendment Bill Copyright Amendment Bill (No 2) — Third Readings 
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Hon PETE HODGSON (Labour—Dunedin North) 
: 
 I have listened with intent to the Minister of Customs and his contribution to the debate. It was as usual an informative contribution. We were told in some detail of the evils of counterfeiting and the fact that it is not a victimless crime the fact that one’s helicopter might fall out of the sky and so on. It was then the Minister of Customs’ pleasure to welcome the passage of the legislation and to say how keen he was to see it arriving and to see it arriving in time for the Rugby World Cup. 
Well Labour supports this legislation. My colleague the Hon Maryan Street said it was OK and therefore that is kind of how it is. So there is not going to be any difficulty in getting this legislation through the House today. But it is time to ask some questions of the Government. I am sorry that I am speaking after the Hon Maurice Williamson because he is very good at answering questions. However he cannot take a second call and he might be good enough to give answers to questions such as he knows them to another National speaker in order that we can have these questions answered. Here are the questions. 
Question one is probably a bit unanswerable but here it goes. What took the Government as long as this? 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: That’s a toughie! 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: It is a toughie. The Hon Maurice Williamson—[ 
Interruption 
] There is a person at the back of the House— 
Simon Bridges 
: You know my name. We’ve talked before. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Well you do. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Order! 
Jacqui Dean 
: That didn’t go well. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: No it is fine by me. 
Jacqui Dean 
: No it didn’t go well. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Rowdy little number. I ask what took the Government as long as this because the legislation came back to the House 2 years ago and since that time all manner of legislation has passed but not this. What took it as long as this? And that is a hard one as Maurice Williamson said. I think it is the hardest question. He might like to give an answer to a subsequent National speaker. 
The second question concerns prosecutions. In September 2009 a Ministry of Economic Development official made two comments in a press statement of 24 September 2009. The first was that the ministry would be trying for more prosecutions so that the offences would have the desired deterrent effect. “No-one is going to be put off”—this is the intellectual property team senior analyst Mr George Wardle—“trading in counterfeit goods until there are a few prosecutions.” So that was the ministry’s position and it seems to be a reasonable one. “We have a serious commitment” says a Customs Service operations manager Mr Dave Meredith one of the Minister’s officials “to intellectual property rights goods now and that’s going to get more intense when we can investigate and prosecute. We will be seeking to make a deterrent and we will be attacking it straight on.” I am reading verbatim the prosecutorial sentiments of officials from the Customs Service and from the Ministry of Economic Development. That was said 2 years ago in September 2009. They had just witnessed the legislation coming back into the House and presumably were expecting it to pass into law. 
They also said and here is another reading from the same press statement “There were no prosecutions under the 2002 Trade Mark Act.” I am assuming that that legislation was regarded by officials as being insufficient presumably because it is out of date to effect a prosecution and that they were looking for prosecutions once the new legislation came into place. So the second question is did any prosecutions occur between September 2009 and September 2011? My guess is that they did not. So we have Government members standing up and saying they are terribly keen on protecting copyright terribly keen on promoting trademarks and terribly keen on ensuring that this is not a victimless crime and the victims are therefore protected—but not passing the legislation even though they knew that the previous legislation was not able to be enforced. 
My third question is this: how come on the day before the New Zealand against Tonga match kick-starts the Rugby World Cup we think we can pass this law on to the law books and make it work? Surely all of the counterfeit goods that will be sold during the Rugby World Cup have already come across our border. Surely all of the interceptions that could have taken place have taken place. Surely if there are counterfeit goods being sold because of the Rugby World Cup they are being sold today were being sold yesterday and actually will be sold tomorrow. Tomorrow this legislation may not have received the Royal assent. The Governor-General may be busy. The officials may not have finished tidying it up. Typically they have to shift semicolons around for a few days before legislation is sent for the Governor-General to offer the Royal assent. So it seems to me that this legislation will not become law for at least some days yet. 
I think the idea that we are passing this legislation now because it is timely is fatuous. I think the Government is making it up. I do not think the passage of this legislation has anything to do with the Rugby World Cup. What I think— 
Jacqui Dean 
: Very grumpy. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: What would the member for Waitaki like to offer by way of an explanation? Will she be able to take a call? Will the good lady take a call and explain why it is that 24 hours before the Rugby World Cup gets under way this legislation will complete its third reading and that at any time in the previous 2 years it would not have been necessary because the Rugby World Cup had not started— 
Jacqui Dean 
: That member should not be so grumpy. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: I am grumpy? I am grumpy? I am merely asking questions. I am merely asking the dear lady questions. I would be interested to see whether she can answer them. In fact I might resume my seat presently. That is a good idea is it? I will do that. I will resume my seat presently and let us see whether the member for Waitaki will get up and offer joyous answers to these questions. I would love to hear what they are.