Brown Peter: Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Repeal Bill Minimum Wage Amendment Bill — Third Readings 
Brown Peter: Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Repeal Bill Minimum Wage Amendment Bill — Third Readings 
[Volume:638;Page:8213] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 One day we will come down to this House and deal with a bill that deals with the working life of New Zealanders at large and the National Party will be absolutely positive about it—and I do not think we will be able to stomach it over here. I have listened to Dr Hutchison and Sandra Goudie and I have never heard such negativism in all the time I have been here. They were totally—absolutely totally—negative. Let me tell National members over there that the sector and the industry want rid of the 1960 Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Act. They want to get rid of it but the members over there have not got the message. They are totally and utterly negative. Why could they not find something positive to say? They could still vote the legislation down but say something positive about it. 
Let me say again that the industry—the sector—wants the repeal of the 1960 Act done and dusted right now. Well we cannot do it right now and one criticism of the Government is that it has taken far too long. I have read  
Hansard 
 and I might also correct National members on the fact that New Zealand First supported this legislation at its first reading in quite glowing terms as I see. I acknowledged the statement of the Minister Ruth Dyson when she said that it was better to pay people according to the work they did rather than the place they were employed. I complimented her when she said that. It is a belief New Zealand First shares. It is better to pay people according to the work they do rather than the place they are employed. We are 100 percent behind that. But it has taken an extremely long time to come to terms with this issue and that has caused us some frustration. 
When the legislation came back the other day we found that the sector was not happy with the time frame. The only word I can use is that we were “lobbied” by the sector. In fairness to the Minister we made those views known to her. We made the views known that 30 June 2007 just does not give enough time to bring everything into fruition. After quite some discussion checking and analysis of things the Minister came back and we reached agreement on a date of 30 November. That is 9 months hence and we are quite confident that by 30 November if not by 30 October we will have all the ducks in a row so that this legislation will operate properly and fairly in the interests of everyone. 
A second issue was raised by the sector and that concerned guidelines. Again we raised it with the Minister and again she looked positively on it. Apparently some guidelines are being written by the Department of Labour. I have not seen them but the Minister gave her assurance to us—New Zealand First—that they are being worked on and will be made available to the sector in the not too distant future. So in a very practical manner that will get the system going. 
Finally the third issue is funding. I have listened to National members over the last few days and weeks when they have been debating this legislation. They have been saying that there is no funding that all the workshops will be closed down holus bolus and that people will be virtually kicked out on to the streets. That will not happen. It was never intended that that would happen and it will not happen. Everybody knows that and it was really alarmist for National members to go around the country—or wherever they went—saying those sorts of things. It not only disturbed the individuals in these workshops but really upset their families. In National members’ hearts if they had given one iota of thought to it they would have realised that that was not going to occur. 
The biggest problem if the funding is not adequate—and I am quite convinced it will be—is that workshops will not be able to take people in at the level at which they should be taking them in and that will be disturbing. We have a Budget coming up and I am quite convinced that the Minister has spoken to the Minister of Finance and that there will be adequate funding to handle all that is required for this legislation to come into fruition by 30 November at the latest. 
 This is a good bill for decent individuals who really need us to speak for them. I cannot think of anybody else who really needs us in Parliament to speak on their behalf. I cannot think of a greater sector of the community that needs us to represent them and say: “Hey you’re not getting a fair deal and we’re determined to address it.” I stand here on behalf of my New Zealand First colleagues feeling very proud that we dealt with the Minister and came to some arrangement to progress this bill in a positive manner. On that note I say that New Zealand First is proud to address the issues of the sheltered workshops and the people they look after and care for and to ensure that those people get a fairer deal that they are currently getting. The sooner that this legislation is passed into law that the transition period goes through and that it takes place the better it will be for everybody. New Zealand First supports this bill with quite some pride.