Bennett GlenGLEN BENNETT (Labour—New Plymouth): Kia ora koutou. I rise with enthusiasm to support the Girl Guides Association (New Zealand Branch) Incorporation Amendment Bill. In my hours of research preparing for this short call this afternoon I looked into our family history. A long history we have and I looked at my grandmother and my great-grandmother and my mother and our family and I discovered that none of us including myself or my brothers have been members of the Girl Guides Association of New Zealand and I apologise for that. We were busy doing other things but I'll get to that later.So why am I standing here in support of this bill? What information and what knowledge do I bring to the House this afternoon?Angie Warren-Clark: Your love of the girl guide biscuit.GLEN BENNETT: Our love of the girl guide biscuits. I have to mention the girl guide biscuits because it seems like a requisite we all have to do in this bill today. But I've been part of many community organisations over the years been part of many volunteer groups many charities and a number of incorporated societies and trusts and I know the challenges that they face. I know the hardship and the struggle to get volunteers in this day and age. The financial challenges when it comes to finding a treasurer who's willing to put their hand up or be the last person who comes into the room that afternoon and they're therefore voted on as treasurer. There's the financial challenges; there's the volunteer challenges which is time. We're living in a society where we seem to be very time-poor or that's the narrative that comes out often and it's a challenge to find leaders. It's a challenge to find leaders willing to give their time willing to run groups like the girl guides and to be committed to the trust to be treasurers and to do those types of things.Hon Simon Bridges: Why didn't I join?GLEN BENNETT: So we need to do all we can—well we're hoping to change legislation shortly so that you can but anyway we'll get there shortly. But we need to do all that we can to ensure and enable volunteers are able to do their work for free for things like allowing assets to be freed up in terms of finances. So that is why I think we should be supporting this piece of legislation and why we should be supporting the girl guides.Now for me I was busy growing up in the Salvation Army and while we were busy doing our community work and wearing our uniforms blowing our trumpets and singing in the choir I do note that the girl guides were busy volunteering doing their community service. They were tramping and camping. They were I'm guessing building fires and having damper by the fire. They were doing their community service fund-raising with those delicious biscuits sewing badges upon badges upon badges on blankets—well some people were and others had less but that's another story.So the girl guides' mission—which we've already heard a couple of times this afternoon—is a wonderful mission. It's to empower girls to take action to change their world" and we live in a society where we all need to be taking that up in terms of how do we empower each of us to change our world. So I think it's amazing that the girl guides are after all these years not only in New Zealand but around the world doing what they can to change their world which obviously changes ours. So I want to say thank you to Dr Duncan Webb for bringing this private bill to the House ensuring that the girl guides can enact their mission and can ensure that volunteers have time and space but also the funds and resources to serve the young women of New Zealand. Being a member of the community services and community select committee and social services—and I'm the deputy so I should know what it's called shouldn't I?—I'm really proud that we're going to be able to discuss this and unpack it more. Not the biscuits but this piece of legislation. It's been nice to see many members of the select committee in the House today and I look forward—we have a morning tea roster don't we? Angie Warren-Clark: We do. GLEN BENNETT: Challenge—hopefully—accepted as to what will that morning tea roster be when it comes to us unpacking this piece of legislation. So for me I am a supporter of the community sector I'm a supporter of our wāhine and I want to support this piece of legislation. I commend this bill to the House."