Cosgrove Clayton: Copyright (New Technologies and Performers’ Rights) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Cosgrove Clayton: Copyright (New Technologies and Performers’ Rights) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
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Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Associate Minister of Justice) 
: 
 I rise to support my colleague in respect of the Copyright (New Technologies and Performers’ Rights) Amendment Bill in its second reading. I thank Mr Fairbrother for his very complimentary comments; I am a humble servant compared to that member. 
It is a fundamental human right for citizens to protect their own intellectual property. I do not believe that anybody in this House—there may be one or two—would argue with that. In a former life I was occupied as an employee in the telecommunications industry and I know that in that industry the nature of copyright protection of intellectual property has changed very much because as we know technology evolves. Unlike for instance the written word—the book—technology evolves day to day. One minute it is CDs then it is DVDs then it is hard disks. Computer technology and telecommunications technology is changing by the day—as is latent artistic talent—so it is timely that this bill which amends the Copyright Act 1994 has been brought forward and promotes as has been noted a legal framework that will provide protection in the use of copyright material. 
One could cite various breaches of fundamental copyright and intellectual property. For instance— 
Russell Fairbrother 
: Sadly so—sadly that’s the case. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: My colleague a learned lawyer says that is sadly the case. For instance as an example of what this bill will remedy one could make an argument that the National Opposition has breached copyright. One could argue— 
Bob Clarkson 
: What? Why you can talk! 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: I say to “Sir Les Patterson” over there who is interjecting that one could argue that National has breached copyright because it has adopted—and I am sure Mr Brownlee would agree with this—a large number of the policies of this Government. I am no lawyer; I know Mr Chauvel— 
Gerry Brownlee 
: That would be right! 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Neither am I a woodwork teacher like Mr Brownlee. Unlike Mr Fairbrother I am not a legally trained person but one could I think make a cogent argument— 
Gerry Brownlee 
: What are you? What are you then? 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Mr Brownlee is so light that he could tap dance on a chocolate éclair—after he had eaten it of course. 
But one could make an argument that the National Party in adopting KiwiSaver which it was against in a legal sense—and I do not know; I ask learned colleagues—could have breached the intellectual property rights of the Labour Party and the Labour Government. One could argue that members of the National Opposition in saying they were against climate change and then saying they were for climate change and effectively adopting the Government’s policies could indeed have breached intellectual property rights. We know that the policy of interest-free student loans was a policy they vehemently opposed day after day and then they adopted the Government’s policy. One could make an argument perhaps in a different place that those members have breached intellectual property rights and the copyright that is the Government’s because those policies were and are very popular Government policies. 
It is likewise with the nuclear-free policy. That is an intellectual idea—therefore it is intellectual property—adopted promoted and cemented down in our legislative framework that was bitterly opposed for years and years by that crew over there then suddenly in a road to Damascus experience it was adopted by the National Party. One could argue that that is a breach of copyright. 
Then we come to a more precise example that I think is probably even more germane in a technological sense. 
Chris Auchinvole 
: That’s a big word! 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: For Corporal Jones over there or Captain Mainwaring “and” would be a big word. “But” “ah” or “um” would be big words for that member. But I say to him that a very high profile breach of copyright occurred in this House. It was in respect of new technology that is used every day so it is a very germane example to illustrate what will be an effective policing and legislative regime under this legislation. The breach was when the National Party in the form of Mr Key released its infamous DVD which I think hit the “worstsellers” list. I think the DVD was called  
Ambitious 
 or something like that. I am told that the DVD used a song by a group called Coldplay. Mr Hughes who is a lot younger than me and a lot more hip savvy and trendy could I am sure elucidate for hours on this band; I had not really heard of it. 
Hon Member 
: What? 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: It was a band called Coldplay and that band called Coldplay apparently had a song called “Clock”—and I pronounce that very precisely for very obvious reasons. Apparently what happened was that the National Party released the DVD— 
Gerry Brownlee 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I have been listening to this member for quite some time now and although most of what he said passes without much comprehension because it is incomprehensible I did pick up the word “clock” in his comment. I ask you to look at the clock because he has been talking so long I am convinced the clock in this House has broken. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: That is a powerful point of order from that member. 
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER 
: There is no comment on that; it was a correctly sought point of order because it was on procedure. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: On your behalf Mr Deputy Speaker and the House’s behalf I would like to thank that genius—the intellectual giant Gerry Brownlee—for his massive massive contribution. It is the greatest irony in the House that Gerry Brownlee is the National spokesperson on energy; that is the most ironic thing I have ever heard. 
I will get back to the example of a breach of intellectual property. The National Party released a DVD that as was seen had a piece of music from a band called Coldplay and the piece of music is apparently called “Clock”. But learned members may ask why that would be a breach of copyright. It was apparently because— 
Hon Annette King 
: “Clocks”. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: The title is “Clocks” I am told by the trendy member from Rongotai. Apparently it is a breach of copyright because if one publishes something that belongs to others—an original idea; in this case a piece of music—and does not seek their permission to use it one effectively flogs it or steals it and that is a breach of copyright because one does not have their permission to use it. 
Often with copyright of course come royalties. If one seeks a musician’s permission to play a piece of music in the way the National Party did with that promotional item normally one would pay a royalty—but not these guys. They are too mean of spirit and mean of character—and mean full stop. So the National Party did indeed breach a copyright of intellectual property. It did not seek permission from that band called Coldplay. It used the song “Clocks” in the strange DVD that nobody really takes any notice of anyway. 
Hon Annette King 
: It had to be withdrawn. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: It had to be withdrawn by the man who is ambitious for New Zealand but cannot understand what the law means—and that was a breach of intellectual property law that this legislation seeks to remedy. 
The legislation is flexible however. We do not want iron-clad laws because Mr Brownlee—who I am told as a band member of the “Minetti Brothers” might have put out a CD—may want to copy that DVD on to his iPod; I am sure he has. This legislation will allow him within the privacy of his own dwelling as it were to copy his Steve Martin records or whatever. It will allow people for their own use to copy from a tape or a DVD to their own iPods. It will allow people to do that without committing a criminal offence. It will not allow anyone to copy a disc and then provide it to others for their use but it will allow a person to do that for his or her own use. Of course Mr Brownlee objects. Mr Brownlee is the No. 3 - ranked member in a party that was so knowledgable about intellectual property rights and copyright law that it breached that law very simply by putting without permission without royalties being paid a tune by Coldplay on its DVD. So listeners and members can— 
Hon Ruth Dyson 
: Coldplay is a good name for them. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Yes it is a good name for those members my colleague says. 
Gerry Brownlee 
: Look if I wasn’t here you wouldn’t have a speech. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: No but the pantry would be a lot fuller in Bellamy’s. So the point is that members can take the word of Mr Brownlee the resident expert on copyright—whose party breached it—or they can look at this learned piece of legislation that is designed to prevent those breaches protect our artists our musicians and others so that they get their fair share—[ 
Interruption 
]. I thank the orange roughy in the corner squawking away. Maybe we could copyright that sound. I do not know whether anybody would want to copyright that sound or whether there is any intellectual property right to protect us from that member. I doubt it. 
But this law—and it is a sound law—seeks to bring us as Mr Fairbrother said into the 21st century in order to protect those artists and to protect the rights of people who generate ideas so they can gain from them in a legal sense. So I say in closing that I support this law. I look forward to the National Party making an intellectual contribution. I look forward to Mr Clarkson of course and to others making an intellectual contribution. Then we shall see whether they will elucidate and tell us how they managed to breach the law of copyright.