Turei Metiria: Legal Assistance (Sustainability) Amendment Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeTurei Metiria: Legal Assistance (Sustainability) Amendment Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 16 April 2013. Volume:689;Page:9390. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green): I too just want to stand in opposition to this bill the Legal Assistance (Sustainability) Amendment Bill. I support the comments that have been made by Opposition parties today opposing this legislation. It does really make you wonder just how much money the National Government wants to suck out of the poor. How much does it really want to keep sucking out of the services to those who have the least so that it can keep shovelling it in great bucketloads to those who have the most? That is what this bill does along with a whole range of other National Party policies. It is just shovelling money into the coffers of the wealthy and taking it fromthose who need it most. This is just one more example of that policy of that unfairness of that meanness—that meanness—from this Government.I heard some of the Government spokespeople speaking about this bill. Yes it is true and I agree with others that they have taken a financial approach to this as opposed to one of access to justice. It does interfere with a major part—in fact a core part—of the social contract that New Zealanders that the community that citizens have with the State. I was a bit disturbed to hear one National MP—I do not know who it was or which of them it was—talking about how hard-earned taxpayer dollars are well spent. Their concern was that hard-earned taxpayer dollars are well spent. We have also heard tonight exactly what that means when it comes to denying justice to those who are entitled to it. What it means is shifting the cost—shifting the cost so that it does not turn up on the Government books in this form; it simply turns up on the Government books in other forms.What are those other forms? I will tell you. Those other forms will be the costs to women who are trying to be safe from domestic violence instances for example where they are not in a position to declare that in the Family Court. The Family Court legislation changes that are coming will actually undermine their ability to be safe. They will not be in a position to declare it so therefore they will not be able to get access to legal aid in order to support their claims. What will happen to them? We know what happens to them. We see the statistics of domestic violence in this country every day. That is where some of the costs will be borne—on the bodies of women and children who will bear the bruises because they are unable to escape dangerous situations because this Government is taking away from them the ability to escape from those situations. They will not have the legal representation they need to be able to get away from those kinds of situations and to protect themselves in the process. That is where some of the costs will be borne.There will be other costs borne in other places. You know there is a cost that is going to be borne in the jails. We are going to see the costs reflected in corrections. It costs more than $90000 a year to keep a person in jail. I was talking to lawyers about this bill when it first came to the House. I was talking to one lawyer who has a range of clients. They are difficult clients they are often in trouble with the law they have very few resources and they have very poor education. It is very difficult. She works with them in order to try to build up their skills so that they are less likely to get into legal trouble but they need her and her representation in court. If they do not get it—because they will not after this legislation passes—what will happen to them? They will not be trying to get on to courses they will not be trying to help manage their families and they will not be out there trying to get work. They will be in jail because they will not have had the representation that protects them and tries to move them away from a life of crime to a more sustainable and a more socially useful lifestyle.Just that little bit of extra support that those families and those people could use by getting legal aid to have decent legal representation is simply going to cost the taxpayer in hundreds of thousands millions and millions of dollars in corrections costs. That is what we are going to see happen. So this is not really about saving money; this is about just being mean. And it is no surprise to me at all that National would bring to the House legislation like this which is nothing but mean to the poor. Thank you.The question was put that the amendments recommended by the Justice and Electoral Committee by majority be agreed to.