Carter John: Building Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Carter John: Building Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:645;Page:14676] 
JOHN CARTER (National—Northland) 
: 
 Madam Chair I take this opportunity to congratulate you on your election to your high office and I hope you continue to beaver away in that position. I am sure you will do well in giving us the leadership we require. 
Jill Pettis 
: Whether or not she remembers your name. 
JOHN CARTER 
: In regard to this legislation— 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: He doesn’t remember his own name some of the time—eh Hone? 
JOHN CARTER 
: That is all right; I know when to punch and when not to. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Did Nick Smith hurt you when he hit you? 
JOHN CARTER 
: I beg your pardon? 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Did Nick Smith hurt you when he hit you? 
JOHN CARTER 
: I raise a point of order Madam Chairperson. I heard the member make that statement in the Chamber earlier and I take strong exception to it. Never has the member Nick Smith struck me or made any action towards me at all that I would take offence at; nor has he made any gesture to me in anger at all. I take strong offence at that member misleading the Committee. Nick Smith is an honourable member and indeed should be treated as such. I ask the member to withdraw that statement because it is absolutely incorrect. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Marian Hobbs) 
: Would the member consider withdrawing the statement. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: He can’t do that on behalf of another member. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Marian Hobbs) 
: No the member took exception to that statement being made. I ask the member to withdraw it. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: You are asking me to withdraw it? 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Marian Hobbs) 
: Yes. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I withdraw. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Marian Hobbs) 
: Thank you. 
JOHN CARTER 
: The unfortunate thing with this bill and with the Minister who is in the chair the Hon Shane Jones is that we are on Part 2 where clause 92(1) states: “For the purpose of determining the calculation of any relevant levy on building work the principal Act must be read” and it goes on and on. Subclause (2) states: “In this section relevant levy means a levy—” etc. If that Minister were on this side of the Chamber he would be berating us because this bill is just more words more bureaucracy and more costs and more bureaucrats will be needed to deliver it. In his heart of hearts the Minister in the chair knows that this bill will put more costs on to local government more costs on to the building industry and more costs on to homeowners themselves. This bill will do nothing to reduce compliance it will do nothing to reduce regulation and it will do nothing to reduce costs. Indeed it will do the very reverse of all those things. 
The Minister knows that the department he administers the Department of Building and Housing is out of control. This is the department that in 1999 had 31½ equivalent people employed in it. Today it has in excess of 385. Since that member has become the Minister it has grown by about 20 staff and it grows daily. The Minister knows that all that the department is doing is to create rules and regulations to the extent that they are having a seriously important effect. The Minister is having a meeting—I am not sure whether it is this Friday or next Friday—and he will hear all the stuff he has heard before. The Minister my colleague from Northland knows that people are going to be exiting the building industry because of these rules and regulations. Good competent builders have got to the stage where the rules and regulations are beyond their ability to meet them. There are local government bodies across the country that cannot meet the demands—the rules and regulations—of the Department of Building and Housing. This Minister knows that and so does his Government. This Government has imposed so many rules and regulations like this on to the building industry on to the country and on to homeowners that local government bodies are not able to keep up. They are bogged down in compliance. They are bogged down in red tape. 
This Minister has come from a background where things are straightforward and simple. When we hear this Minister speak he says it straight he says it as it is yet this legislation in his name is so crooked that we cannot even follow it. It is all upside down and back to front with silly words in it and it is doing nothing to help the problem. This Minister knows that we have a leaky homes problem in this country. This Minister knows that his Government was meant to address the leaky homes problem. This Minister knows that although the Department of Building and Housing was meant to address the leaky homes syndrome we are building more leaky homes. 
I turn to clause 92 and clauses 93 to 95 the transitional clauses. I want the Minister to tell me one thing that is going to stop the building of a leaky home in this country. There can be over 600 components in any home and the Minister’s department was meant to certify materials. The Minister and his “perma-colleagues” have been in charge of this department since 1999—nearly 10 years now. There can be 600 materials in a home. Does anybody want to guess how many materials the department has certified? Does the Minister know how many materials his department has certified? Who wants to have a guess? Of the 600 how many has it certified? Who wants to have a guess? 
Hon Member 
: Three? 
JOHN CARTER 
: It is four. The department has certified four. 
Hon Member 
: Three! 
JOHN CARTER 
: Well it has gone up one. Four materials is an absolute disgrace. 
I had someone come to my office the other day and say: “Here are three copper pipes.” [ 
Interruption 
] I am talking about transitional copper pipes Mr Chair! The point is that this gentleman came to me and said: “Tell me which of these pipes can be used in New Zealand homes.” We could use the whole three. He said “You tell me which one will fail.” I said: “I don’t know.” He said: “I’ll give you $50000 if you can guess.” so I tried but I could not tell him. He said “This pipe is from Australia and it’s certified for a life of 50 years minimum. This pipe is from England and it’s certified for a life of 60 years. This pipe is from Asia. It’s got no certification at all. We’ve tested it and it’s likely to last 7 years.” Those copper pipes are being put in homes in New Zealand right now. If this Minister thinks that he and his Government have presided over the end of leaky homes they should just wait for the future. We are going to reach the stage in another 10 years where someone will have bought a “spec” home the husband will flush the toilet and the wife will get a shower in the kitchen. The copper pipes are going to burst. It is this sort of thing that I would have expected this Minister to start addressing. Unfortunately and sadly it is not addressed in this bill at all. All we talk about is things like transitional provisions for the content of project information memorandum. 
I ask members what that is going to do to help us solve the leaky homes problem. What is that going to do to stop the rules and regulations that are pouring cost after cost ratepayer dollar after ratepayer dollar and taxpayer dollar after taxpayer dollar into the leaky homes problem that we have in this country? This Government put a bill before the House not so long ago entitled Affordable Housing: Enabling Territorial Authorities Bill. Well that is an absolute joke; not one local authority has given its support. 
The point is that the Government is trying to suggest that it is doing something about the whole issue of compliance regulation and the building industry and then this Minister comes along with this bill. It is probably the first bill in his name; I am not sure but I suspect it is. It is going to go through because the Government will support it. [ 
Interruption 
] Oh no it is actually in the name of Clayton Cosgrove. I wonder whether that will change. I do not know. 
Colin King 
: A hospital pass. 
JOHN CARTER 
: That is right. It is just as well he plays rugby. He knows how to take those. 
Chris Tremain 
: I never gave him a hospital pass. 
JOHN CARTER 
: No but he gave us plenty and he is sure giving the country a hospital pass on this one. The sad thing is that this bill is going to go through under his guidance. It will be the first bill that he puts through this House. All that people will remember and say is that he was the Minister who employed more bureaucrats in the Department of Building and Housing added more costs more regulation and more compliance and did nothing to address the building problem that we have. This Minister knows in his heart of hearts that this bill is not going to do anything to address the serious problem that we have in this country in regard to the whole issue of the failure in the building industry. 
I want to talk about the transitional provisions in this bill. The other day I had to apply for certification. I had to get a building certified. 
Chris Tremain 
: A building consent. 
JOHN CARTER 
: No not a building consent. I had to get my home signed off. 
Sandra Goudie 
: A compliance certificate. 
JOHN CARTER 
: It was a compliance certificate; that is the phrase I was looking for. I had to get a compliance certificate for the extension of my deck. The building inspector came along and said it all looked great. The rails were right the floor was right everything was tidy and the foundations were where the retaining wall is. The Minister knows the house I am talking about. But it did not get a compliance certificate. Do members know why this outside deck did not get a compliance certificate? [ 
Interruption 
] No no; because it did not have a fire alarm.