Peters WinstonRt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Deputy Prime Minister): I decided to make a speech here this morning because I've sat in my office and other committee meetings hearing these attacks on a party called New Zealand First from the biggest bunch of you-know-whats this Parliament has ever seen.Hon Dr Nick Smith: Answer the question.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Answer the question Mr Smith. I'll answer the question. That's a man who told Parliament that he'd made a declaration to the parliamentary commissioner excepting when I asked the parliamentary commissioner she wrote to me and said he did not. So in short did he tell the truth to Parliament? No he didn't.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Order! I really don't—I think that is against Standing Orders—Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: What is?CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): To accuse a member of deliberately misleading.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I didn't say that did I? That's your inference from my conclusion in my speech. I said except Margaret Bazley told me that he didn't." Now you infer from that he's a liar. Go right ahead but I didn't say it.Hon Gerry Brownlee: Point of order.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Well I'm sorry but just a minute. I am dealing with my concern about the comment you made following that which then accused Dr Smith of telling an untruth.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Read the Hansard.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Well I don't have to because—Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Yes you do.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): —I'm the Speaker.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: You've got to provide evidence like everybody else. You're not a law unto yourself here.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Excuse me. Excuse me. Actually I am in the Chair and I'm trying to deal with this. I would ask you to withdraw and apologise because you have made an unparliamentary accusation against a member.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Madam Chairperson I want to know what the accusation was that I'm meant to be apologising for.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): I've explained that to you.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: No no—you haven't madam. You've made the claim but you haven't provided the evidence and you in your position are required to do that.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): I am not. I am asking the member to withdraw and apologise.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I withdraw and apologise.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Thank you.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Mr Smith—Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Madam Chairperson. It might only be a few seconds—about 40 seconds—into the member's contribution to this debate but this is a debate about this electoral bill not about the past or any particular one member in this House. We've been all called to speak to the debate and we have and the Minister of Justice has answered questions that have been raised legitimately as a consequence of that debate and I think we should continue along those lines.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): I thank you.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Speaking to the point of order.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Look I don't need anything. I'm sure that the member is going to get to—Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I raise a point of order Madam Chairperson. You have sat here for the last hour and heard accusation after accusation about the past and now all of a sudden the defender of that behaviour gets up and says you can't mention the past. Surely he is gainsaid by his own colleague's action.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): I thank the member for that point of order. We are debating Part 1 of the bill in front of the House and I'm sure that the member is going to continue his speech and direct that towards the bill in front of us.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I raise a point of order Madam Chairperson. If that is the case how do you describe what you've allowed to go on here in the last hour of attacks against a political party baseless as they are and they will be proven to be so?Hon Dr Nick Smith: Point of order.Hon Gerry Brownlee: Point of order.CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Look I don't need any help—thank you. Thank you. First of all I have not been in the Chair for the past hour; I took the Chair at 10 o'clock. I have listened very carefully to the debate in that time and there have been questions asked of the Minister about parts of this bill before the House that might address concerns that have been in the media. Now that is entirely appropriate. That is entirely in accord with Standing Orders because they are addressing parts of the bill. They're asking questions of the Minister about the parts of the bill. I'm sure that the member is able to address those issues in relation to the bill.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Let me say that there was a speech last night made in this respect—CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Are we continuing now with your speech?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Of course I am continuing. Did I say point of order before I rose to my feet that time?CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): No. I just want to check that you have the right amount of time.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: No—well just follow the script Madam Chairperson. Even you should be able to do that.The reality of the matter is that there was a speech—Hon Member: He's riled up isn't he? He doesn't like the truth. He's not liking the truth now.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: No—of course I don't like it. I don't like people with a capital "H" as their major feature of their character. The people who are screaming out over there evince that. Last night there was a speech made in this Parliament that should have made the headlines all around this country. It was about a political party—and I want to know how this Part 1 is going to catch this sort of behaviour—that went offshore and raised $150000. Just one donation—one donation—$150000. All the emails and all the texts and everything associated with that arrangement were offered to this Parliament but not one of those people over there acting as though they're as pure as the driven snow asked for a shred of evidence. You know why? Because they're as guilty as sin and they're not going to win getting away with the kind of behaviour they thought to get away with.You can look as cross-eyed as you like Mr Penk but you're not going to win here. The fact is he was the one that shouted out last night. He shouted to Jami-Lee Ross. He said "But you did it." See? There he was a colleague of the very guy that did it and he's shouting out "But you did it." as though somehow that sort of behaviour or that sort of comment exonerates their attempt to get around in the most devious way the law of this country.Hon Dr Nick Smith: Tell us about your foundation.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I'm very happy to tell us about the foundation because it's based on the National Party's foundation. Isn't it amazing? It's based on the National Party's foundation. Oh no—these people are so born to rule—Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Madam Chairperson. Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: He did ask me.Hon Gerry Brownlee: That's true and I apologise on behalf of members on this side. We won't ask that member any more questions. But we do need to come back to the bill. On the substantive stuff I've already said quite loudly several times in this House today that everything relating to the National Party Foundation is available for scrutiny as part of public record. It's not our foundation that's not available for public scrutiny. We now should come back to the bill and perhaps the member the Deputy Prime Minister might like to explain why the Government doesn't want to have scrutiny on foundations. We welcome it; why doesn't he?CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): If I can respond to that point of order. First of all it wasn't a point of order; it was a debating point. Second of all we are not going to continue along this line because there were interjections asking questions and the member on his feet has every right to answer those interjections. So I'll now call the Rt Hon Winston Peters to continue with his speech speaking to the bill.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Speaking to the bill in Part 1 the reality is that all these matters should be transparent within the law. Can I say with respect to the last question from over the other side there in respect of New Zealand First this matter is being examined by the very authorities qualified to do so. But they don't include the biased media and they don't include the biased prejudiced and deceitful members of the Opposition. Simply this: it won't stop there of course because I've got senior National Party members contacting New Zealand First saying "Why on earth did they start this attack because it's going to rebound on us." CHAIRPERSON (Hon Anne Tolley): Could we talk about the bill?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Yeah well I want to know—if we speak to Part 1—how does the Minister feel about that? Is there going to be some sunlight—is there going to be the disinfectant of truth—shone on a certain political party that has had for years in excess of $100 million never disclosed ever. They have the gall and the audacity to rise in this Parliament and condemn by attempts by innuendo and slight a party that has behaved within the law and will be proven to be so. We are the ones who are volunteering to the Electoral Commission the information. We're not asked for it. No no—we're volunteering it. But here comes the rub: you're next Mr Brownlee."