Paraone Pita: Manukau City Council (Control of Street Prostitution) Bill — First Reading 
Paraone Pita: Manukau City Council (Control of Street Prostitution) Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:628;Page:654] 
PITA PARAONE (NZ First) 
: 
 I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. I think you are aware that New Zealand First will be taking a split call? 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Ann Hartley) 
: I will give you a bell at 4 minutes. 
PITA PARAONE 
: Thank you. I stand on behalf of New Zealand First to say right from the outset that we will support this bill going to a select committee. Again I will comment on the original legislation that has led to this bill coming before the House at this time. I can recall that three New Zealand First MPs two of whom were list MPs from South Auckland stood in this House to oppose that legislation for the very reasons that previous speakers have talked about. Although I commend the Manukau City Council for sponsoring this bill I find it very ironical that it asked one of the very members who supported the original legislation to bring this bill to the House on its behalf. The three New Zealand First MPs who opposed the legislation at the time were not even asked to consider this bill. 
In spite of that as a ratepayer and resident of Manukau City I support the bill. It is certainly a reflection of just how wrong the original legislation was. I can recall speakers who supported the original legislation saying that it would bring safety to those who chose to enter that particular industry. I ask those members just how much safety the legislation brought to the two young ladies who since its passing have lost their lives. I think this bill will certainly go some way towards addressing that issue. 
The bill recognises that street prostitution is not conducive to any of the aims of the Prostitution Reform Act which was sold and debated on the basis of safeguarding the health and safety of sex workers and of limiting the age of sex workers to 18 years and over. This bill recognises the impact of street prostitution on local residents and business owners and the negative effect it has on the community. 
Each community and local body has the responsibility of ensuring that the terms of the Act are implemented. I believe that this bill signals the difficulty that all local bodies—not only Manukau City—have in ensuring that the terms and intent of the Act are met. Although some of us have some concerns about parts of the bill we believe that by referring it to a select committee we will give the opportunity to members of the wider community to make a contribution. It will also provide the opportunity for other local bodies to express their views if they share a concern about this issue with Manukau City. 
The Act has clearly failed to control street prostitution and it provides no legal mechanism to do so. Manukau City should be applauded for taking the initiative to control behaviour that is having an adverse impact on the people of that city. The bill also provides the police with powers to request information to issue instant fines and to arrest and prosecute suspected offenders. Sadly a lot of my relatives reside in the part of Manukau City that has been identified in some of the summaries of this bill and I am sad to say that unfortunately some of my relatives are actually involved. It will be interesting to see the stance the Maori Party will take if we take into consideration that its leader supported the original Prostitution Reform Bill. I will be very interested to see those members’ response to this particular bill.