English Bill: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
English Bill: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:633;Page:5057] 
5.  
Hon BILL ENGLISH (National—Clutha-Southland) 
 to the  
Minister of Justice 
: Did the Chief Electoral Officer write to New Zealand Labour Party General Secretary Mike Smith on 2 September 2005 warning him that in his view the costs of the Labour Party pledge card were election expenses under the Electoral Act 1993? 
Hon MARK BURTON (Minister of Justice) 
: 
 As I said to the member’s colleague in response to question for oral answer No. 5 on Wednesday 23 August I am aware of the letter but I was not a recipient of it and cannot comment on its contents. 
Hon Bill English 
: Can the Minister confirm that having received that letter from the Chief Electoral Officer with its warning about election expenses the Labour Party then proceeded to spend over $500000 on advertising in the last 2 weeks of the election campaign despite the fact that the expenditure took it over the legal limit for election spending? 
Hon MARK BURTON 
: Perhaps I could clarify for the member. I am aware of the letter but I was not a recipient of it and therefore cannot comment on its contents. 
Hon Bill English 
: What confidence can the New Zealand public have in the laws the Minister is administering to regulate election spending when the Government of the day ignores the advice of the statutory officer designated by Parliament to enforce the law then after the election proposes to pass retrospective legislation to validate its illegal actions? 
Hon MARK BURTON 
: Considerable confidence—given that under the Electoral Act of 1993 the Chief Electoral Officer is responsible for the preparation and conduct of parliamentary elections and the supervision of candidates’ election expenses and donations. It would be inappropriate for me under that Act to comment on what are legal interpretations by the said officer. 
Hon Bill English 
: Has the Minister sought advice from the Ministry of Justice about who is right over the issue of the pledge card—advice as to whether it is Helen Clark and Dr Cullen who believed that it was not an election expense; or advice on the views of the Chief Electoral Officer the Auditor-General and the Solicitor-General that it was an election expense? 
Hon MARK BURTON 
: Given that I am not a recipient of the correspondence nor of any correspondence that the Chief Electoral Officer may have had with other political parties such as the National Party about election expenditure I would not expect to be copied into such correspondence. It is therefore not appropriate for me to comment on a legal interpretation given by the Chief Electoral Officer. 
Hon Bill English 
: In the Minister’s capacity as Minister of Justice can he tell the House what credibility there now is in our electoral law when the Government of the day was able to ignore the advice of the Chief Electoral Officer was then able to slip that past a police investigation and then come to this House promising to pass legislation to retrospectively validate its actions and why should any political party now take any notice of the Chief Electoral Officer and the sections of the Act he administers? 
Hon MARK BURTON 
: Firstly the member is incorrect to assert that I have ministerial responsibility for political party expenditure. I explicitly do not. As to the law as I have informed the House on previous occasions I am indeed undertaking a review of the electoral finance regime focusing on electoral expenses advertising and broadcasting which of course is within the purview of my ministerial responsibility unlike the expenditure of political parties at the last election. 
Hon Bill English 
: Can the Minister tell us whether he will be the Minister promoting retrospective legislation if it is brought to the House given that he is the Minister who is responsible for the electoral law that governs election spending? 
Hon MARK BURTON 
: I am hardly about to commit to or otherwise any legislation on an as yet unproduced report. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: I seek leave to table the following documents all of which were issued in June 2002 within 3 months of the 2002 election: a letter signed by Bill English then leader of the National Party outlining key National Party policies which is on parliamentary letterhead paper; a pamphlet featuring Mr English on parliamentary letterhead on penal policy; a pamphlet from the Leader of the Opposition on parliamentary letterhead which deals with penal policy; a pamphlet from Mr English on parliamentary letterhead which deals with Treaty of Waitangi claims; a newspaper advertisement featuring Mr English and with parliamentary letterhead featuring Treaty of Waitangi claims; and a letter from Mr English—obviously a form letter—on superannuation and related matters clearly calling for people to vote for the National Party in the 2002 election also on parliamentary letterhead. 
Documents by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Hon Bill English 
: I seek leave to table a document from Nielsen Media Research Ltd showing the Labour Party’s expenditure on press advertising in the last 2 weeks before the election in 2005. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.