Hayes Joanne: Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Bill — First ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHayes Joanne: Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Bill — First Reading[Sitting date: 13 October 2015. Volume:709;Page:7130. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]JOANNE HAYES (National): I rise to take a short call on the first reading of the Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Bill. After sitting and having to endure the load of rubbish that came across from the Opposition just recently—and I am sad to see that the previous Labour speaker has actually left the Chamber. Honestly when someone gets up in here talking about this bill and says “Why did the Government intervene? Why did you do this? Why did you do that?” well I think he forgets that Labour actually had it on its radar to do exactly what this National-led Government did.I can also tell you the reason why our Government stepped in. The reason was that it was invited to come in by the councils. Of the 10 councils there were six councils that came to Government to ask for intervention because things were going wrong and that is why the previous councillors from Environment Canterbury back then actually got removed. It was because they were not performing in the roles that they were put into and that were voted on by the people who actually put them there and that is why we are here today.We are here today to put forward this bill. The main component of this bill—and I do want to take a little bit of time just to talk about this—is to establish a mixed-model governance body. People ask: “Oh who wants a mixed-model governance body?”. Well local government wants it—local government. Six out of 10 Canterbury councils supported the mixed governance model—that is Ashburton Timaru Hurunui Mackenzie Waimakariri and Waitaki—as did Ngāi Tahu the iwi of the South Island and TrustPower Genesis Energy and Irrigation New Zealand. They wanted this mixed-model proposal.Federated Farmers also support the phased approach towards this mixed-model governance arrangement. What William Rolleston the president of Federated Farmers said was that “the commissioners had made difficult decisions that balanced the needs of farmers with environmental concerns”—that is the hard work of the commissioners of today capably led by the amazing Dame Margaret Bazley. That is where they have got to and they will carry on until October 2016.When I heard the member say that the people of the Canterbury region will not have an ability to elect—of course they will have that ability to elect in October 2016. The Government is making sure that with the people it is selecting to go on there it is keeping up the experience and making sure that everything that has started now will continue over so it is about keeping that experience there. The regulatory impact statement from the Department of Internal Affairs and the Ministry for the Environment states that they support the mixed-model governance for 2016—a 3-year local government term—because by 2019 that will expire. That is about giving the power back to the people of Canterbury.In closing I do want to reiterate the hard work of the current councillors of Environment Canterbury. I think that Dame Margaret Bazley has done a wonderful job—an absolutely wonderful job—of being able to shepherd her way through all of the issues that the previous Environment Canterbury councillors could not do would not do or perhaps did not have the experience to do.So I stand in support of this bill. I support the work that the Hon Nick Smith does for the environment especially in this bill and I look forward to it coming to our Local Government and Environment Committee. I look forward to hearing what people have to say and to it coming back and passing through the House. Kia ora.