Smith Nick: Care of Children Bill — In Committee Procedure 
Smith Nick: Care of Children Bill — In Committee Procedure 
[Volume:621;Page:16698] 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH (National—Nelson) 
: 
 I am not surprised that the Labour Party under urgency is trying to shut down debate on one of the most critical areas of New Zealand life which is the area of family law. This bill is a radical experiment in social engineering. It is about undermining the critical role that parents play in children’s lives. What this bill does—and we can talk about the detail of it as we have over this morning and last evening—is to increase the legal rights of the child of new partners of social workers of lawyers of judges and of the police and to improve the legal rights of iwi family groups and hapu. Every time we do that we take away the legal rights of parents. 
I was just astonished that when the Government introduced this bill the Minister had the audacity to say in this Chamber that Labour was interested only in parental responsibilities not in parental rights. It is interested only in parental responsibilities not in parental rights. Is that not interesting? How many speeches have we heard from Labour Party members talking about gay rights workers’ rights and indigenous people’s rights? They are interested in all those rights but when it comes to parents’ rights they do not give a toss and that is a disgrace. It was interesting for me that again the Minister in charge of the bill David Benson-Pope said that we have a simplistic view in the Chamber that it is a parent who raises a child and that that is wrong—that it is the community that raises a child. Do members know what my wife said about that? She asked whether the community would come around and change my son’s nappies at midnight. Will the community ensure that my child receives his food and receives the love and care that is needed to bring him up? Of course not! That is political garbage and this Minister and this Labour Government are imposing that on our country. 
The Labour Party somehow believes that the family—a mother and a father who are bringing up children—is dead. I say to Labour members that the institution of the family predates the Labour Party predates this Parliament and predates the very philosophies that may drive them. The family is a lifelong institution that will survive. The people of New Zealand know that the only way they will stop this sort of PC nonsense is to sack the Labour Party at the next election. 
Hon Mark Burton 
: Oh! 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: I wonder whether Mark Burton told his constituents in Taupo that he wanted a law that stated women could be fathers. Did Mark Burton tell his constituents in Taupo that he believed that in this country women can be fathers? Did that member tell his constituents that the momentary de facto partners of this country will have all the legal rights of guardians? Well we will be telling the people of Taupo that which is one of the reasons that the member for Taupo will be out on his tail at the next general election. The people of New Zealand know that we cannot separate children’s best interests from the best interests of families. The most important thing for children is the family. What we should have is a families bill that states how this Parliament will support the work of families in order to ensure that children get the very best deal. 
I say that the National Party looks forward to being in Government when its members can put in place some laws that will work for children. We on the Opposition side of the Chamber understand that parental rights are important and sit right alongside parental responsibility. In contrast with the Labour Government which wants to water down both rights and responsibilities we on the Opposition side of the Chamber say that parental rights and responsibilities go hand in hand and that children’s interests are best served when this Parliament recognises that it is parents who are the most important people in children’s lives. But sadly that will not occur without a change of Government.