Carter John: New Zealand Day Bill — First Reading 
Carter John: New Zealand Day Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:624;Page:19301] 
JOHN CARTER (National—Northland) 
: 
 The National Party supports this bill going to a select committee for further consideration and we do so for a number of reasons. The first is that there should be a day on which we celebrate what New Zealand is now—that is a society of many different cultures with many different backgrounds and many different days of celebrations. We should bring those together. The particular days can still be celebrated—for example the Chinese New Year which is a great day of celebration; the Indian day of celebration; or the Pasifika— 
Dr Richard Worth 
: The Indian day. 
JOHN CARTER 
: Absolutely! I have already mentioned that. There are a number of days including Waitangi Day that should still be recognised but we should set aside a special day where everybody who has a view whether it be Scottish heritage or whatever it may be can have a chance to say: “This is our ethnic background. This is where we came from and this is what we’ve contributed to New Zealand.” It should be a day when we all come together. 
Indeed one of the things that we will want to address in the select committee when we consider this bill is whether the suggestion in it that merely moving the commemoration of 6 February to the Monday most closely associated with 6 February will do enough to achieve that outcome. If we are to have a day of celebration recognising what this country is I think that we would need to seriously consider whether it would not be more appropriate that Parliament and the public of New Zealand pick another day—a fresh day—that does not have any association with any linkage of the past in that sense. We could pick a day where everybody can say: “Well it has no particular association. This we will make New Zealand Day. This is the day we can all come together. We can all celebrate our diversity and our uniqueness and our unity.” That is probably something the select committee would want to give serious thought to. 
The problem we have at the moment is that Waitangi Day is considered our official day of celebration as a nation. There are a number of reasons why that has historically been so. But the tragedy of it is that the protest—the “honour the treaty” issue—has become such an issue that it has taken away from the celebration of Waitangi Day our day of recognition as a country. When I look at Waitangi Day and go to Waitangi Day celebrations as I have done regularly for a number of years now it disappoints me to see on the news that night and the next day that what is portrayed as being what happened at Waitangi was that it was a day of protest and a place where people went to make their different points—which they do. But what is overlooked is the fact that many people go there to enjoy the day. They do not get involved in the day of protest or have issues that they want to raise but merely go to have a day of enjoyment and that still happens. The day is actually a fun day. In Northland 6 February is a fantastic day for anybody who wants to go and enjoy it to participate in the celebrations and to see what Northland can portray and what is portrayed on behalf of New Zealanders. It is a day on which we can enjoy the uniqueness of our country. But sadly it is overshadowed by what the media portray of what they see of the day because somebody stands up and says something about the Treaty of Waitangi. 
For that reason we need to take the day of New Zealand away from Waitangi Day. If there is to be protest then let it happen but let it happen because of the Treaty of Waitangi not because it happens on New Zealand Day. Let us choose another day. This bill gives us the opportunity to debate that issue. 
I want to make one other point. The thing that worries me with Waitangi Day is that it is an opportunity for the Prime Minister to go to Waitangi and start politicking. We must take that opportunity away from the Prime Minister Helen Clark. 
Debate interrupted.