Carter David: Gambling Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
Carter David: Gambling Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
[Volume:611;Page:8498] 
Hon DAVID CARTER (NZ National) 
: 
 I thank the Minister for taking a call earlier with regard to the appointment process for the Gambling Commission. My concern is with the questions he did not answer and I have one very simple and direct question: will Derek Fox be appointed to the Gambling Commission? When I look at the criteria and summarise clause 196 I see that it effectively means that a commissioner must have skills knowledge experience etc. in gambling. I cannot think of a person who has more experience in gambling than Mr Fox who has been gambling with about $70 million of taxpayers’ money for some time—I note that Mr Horomia has now woken up and let us hope that he will take a call—and if he now decides to go back to his original intention of leading a political party he will become a danger. [ 
Interruption 
] No I am talking about clause 196 and the criteria for the selection of people as gambling commissioners. I want to be guaranteed that there is no intention— 
Jill Pettis 
: We’re going to stick Jim Bolger on it. 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: We have Jill Pettis giving the first bit of honest advice. Jill Pettis has announced in Parliament tonight that Jim Bolger has been selected. It has been determined that he will be one of the first gambling commissioners. He will probably be quite good at it but that is not the question I asked. I want an assurance from the Minister that Mr Derek Fox will not be appointed. There is no answer from the Minister in the chair the Hon George Hawkins. The Minister said there is nothing new in the way that political appointments are made. He said that the Government has been making them for some time as have previous Governments. But as I recall no Government in recent years has had the sort of history for political appointments that this Government has. I could mention names like Susan Bathgate and Ella Henry— 
Jill Pettis 
: What about Jim McLay? He would have a whale of a time on it. 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: Jill Pettis is coming out with another nomination. Jim McLay is now going to be appointed as a gambling commissioner. Well here are two; there are three more to go. 
I also note that the Minister said that the members of the Casino Control Authority had been appointed by political parties—and I accept that—and that the authority has done a tremendous job. But it struck me that it has not had a lot to do since that Minister and his Government have been appointing people. There has been a moratorium so it has not had a huge challenge before it. 
Brent Catchpole 
: Is it being paid? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: I am sure that the authority is being paid. It has been doing quite a lot of valuable monitoring. But the real challenge in that role is around those new applications for casinos and I think that even the Minister has to agree that his Government’s appointments to the Casino Control Authority have not been hugely challenged given that that Minister and his Government imposed a moratorium which meant the authority did not have a lot of work to do. 
So I am certainly not satisfied by the Minister’s suggestion that there will not be undue political influence in terms of who gets appointed to the Gambling Commission and I am certainly not satisfied that Derek Fox will not be somebody appointed to it. I do not know whether the Minister will be confirming the announcement made tonight by the junior Government whip Jill Pettis that Jim Bolger has been appointed but I tell that member that I think it is a fairly wise choice. I congratulate the Minister on making the Rt Hon Jim Bolger his first appointment to the Gambling Commission. I think he will do quite a sound job. But if the Government is prepared to announce its first appointment in Parliament tonight then let us hear the others. 
Jill Pettis 
: What about Jim McLay? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: I am not sure whether that is a confirmation or just a suggestion from Jill Pettis. It is interesting to note that she certainly does not have many people in her electorate whom she is nominating. 
Jill Pettis 
: What electorate do you hold? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: The member just keeps on chipping away with inane comments. 
Jill Pettis 
: What electorate do you hold? 
Hon DAVID CARTER 
: I represent all those farmers who were out on the steps of Parliament a week ago and who were doing a far better job than the member is.