Cosgrove Clayton: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Cosgrove Clayton: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:674;Page:20388] 
10. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Labour—Waimakariri) 
 to the  
Attorney-General 
: Does he stand by his statement in response to Oral Question No. 8 last Wednesday regarding legal representation for earthquake victims’ families that “the better analogy here is not with Pike River; it is with the Victorian royal commission in which counsel assisting the commission liaised with families in order to assist those families through that particular process”? 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (Attorney-General) 
: 
 Yes. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: How is the Victorian royal commission a better analogy when a state-backed organisation called Bushfire Legal Help was set up to among other things “promote direct participation of people affected by the bushfires in the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission”? 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON 
: Bushfire Legal Help was a consortium of lawyers. It was formed a couple of days after the disaster in Victoria and its aim was to provide a wide range of free legal services to bushfire victims in their communities. Those involved in this organisation were Victoria Legal Aid the Public Interest Law Clearing House the Victorian Bar— 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: State-funded. 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON 
: —the Victorian Bar is not state-funded at all—the Victoria Law Foundation the Law Institute of Victoria and the Federation of Community Legal Centres. It was a largely unfunded partnership that was primarily resourced by its members. I think what the member is referring to is the assistance provided to the community law centres by the federal Attorney-General’s office. It was a limited sum. It was provided shortly after or in the very initial stages of the Bushfire Legal Help’s work. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: Before refusing to provide independent legal assistance to victims’ families was he aware that the Prime Minister had personally assured quake families in the days after the February earthquake that the Government would do everything it could to assist those families; and upon the families’ first request would he acknowledge that the Government refused any support? 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON 
: I am certainly aware of what the Prime Minister said and I think it is unfair to say that there is a refusal. The royal commission has itself met with these families as I told the member last week. There is a families’ liaison person and counsel assisting is providing very useful help to these families in their plight. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: When his Cabinet colleague the Hon Gerry Brownlee provided information to Cabinet—of which this Minister is a member—regarding the necessity of paying among others Jenny Shipley more than double the standard rate to sit on the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority review panel does he regard that information that he received as entirely accurate and does he consider that this reflects badly on the Government which at the same time is refusing to provide independent legal representation requested by victims’ families to those victims’ families? 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON 
: Yes I am aware of that information. I have no reason to doubt the accuracy of that statement but I do emphasise to the honourable member that very substantial assistance is being provided to the families. This Government is determined to help these people and through the royal commission very good assistance is being provided. I would hope he would not unduly politicise this very important issue.