Mapp Wayne: Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Bill — In Committee Procedure Third Reading 
Mapp Wayne: Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Bill — In Committee Procedure Third Reading 
[Volume:626;Page:21030] 
Dr WAYNE MAPP (National—North Shore) 
: 
 What an extraordinary speech that was! It was absolutely contemptuous of victims of crime in New Zealand. 
Darren Hughes 
: The member wasn’t listening. 
Dr WAYNE MAPP 
: I was listening. We witnessed the new love affair between Labour and the Green Party—the party that loves the dope. I guess United Future has been spurned by Labour. After one little rebellion by United Future it has been spurned in a most contemptuous way. It has been absolutely amazing. 
Today the Government is codifying into the law into statute the right of prisoners to sue for compensation. The reality is that it is putting that into statute law. Previously that right to the extent that it existed at all rested on a High Court decision only. What has the Government done? It has taken that decision of the High Court and put it into the supreme law of this land—the laws of this Parliament. The Minister for Courts the Associate Minister of Justice has completely misinterpreted  
Baigent’s 
 case. That case concerned an entirely innocent citizen whose home was invaded by the police. The police recognised their error at the time they did that. They said: “Oh we’re here now so we might as well execute the search warrant even though it’s not for you.” It was on that basis that that innocent family sued and it got compensation. Who on earth could be surprised by that? Was it extraordinary that National did not repeal that decision in those circumstances? Obviously we would not do that. Who would possibly think an innocent citizen should not have some remedy? Instead what this Government has done is accept a High Court decision enshrine it into the law of this Parliament under urgency and ride roughshod over the rights of victims. It is lamentable. 
The Deputy Prime Minister was in the House earlier. He was part of a Government that in 1989 put a specific reservation into the relevant international convention that stated that prisoners would not be able to sue for compensation. Apparently that means nothing. Talk about respect for international law! Clearly the Government does not even understand its own previous practices. 
There was another way. I spoke of my sister who received compensation for a violent assault in New South Wales. She received it from a proper victims’ fund. I am pleased to hear that members across this Parliament recognise that that is a good system. The Government has had a whole year since the decision of the High Court to do something about it. This bill took months to be introduced—in December last year. We are now in June and it is being reported back after submissions. The Government could have established a victims’ code. What we should be dealing with today in this House if we have to pass legislation under urgency is legislation entitled the “Victims’ Compensation Bill” not a bill that gives statutory codified rules for prisoners’ compensation. Those were the real options. Now the Government says: “Ah well we could do that. We could hold an inquiry.” It is after all something it thinks it might be able to do. Well it has had a whole year to do it. 
I want to make this point in relation to the cost of victims’ compensation. Clearly some money is involved. Australia is able to do it. It is really an issue of choice. We could spend $250 million on a wananga for instance and get whatever value we think we might get out of that $250 million—a quarter of a billion dollars—or we could spend some money on victims. Those are the kinds of real choices that confront Governments. This Government has had a whole year to wrestle with this issue. Has it done anything about it? What work has Mr Alexander been undertaking with the Government to achieve that particular outcome? That was one of the choices before it. 
I am disappointed that in a sense we are debating the wrong bill. We should be debating the “Victims’ Compensation Bill”. If we had been doing so National would be happy to support such a bill. Instead we are debating a statutory code of compensation for prisoners. The Government says: “Oh well of course if a prisoner sues and gets some compensation the victim can then get some money.” But that is completely round the wrong way. It puts the victims in the incredibly difficult position of hoping that the rights of a prisoner are infringed so that the prisoner will then sue the Crown and the victim will get some money. Frankly that is just absurd. 
The Government has had a whole year to deal with this problem—and I recognise that it did have a problem. Why do we not have a “Victims’ Compensation Bill” coupled with—and I think this matter has the consent of every party in the House—a bill that establishes an independent inspectorate of prisons? We could have been doing that today but we are not. Every party in this Parliament has spoken in support of an independent inspectorate of prisons. It was put in the select committee report by members months and months ago. What has happened? Nothing. All that has happened is some sort of inquiry. Well Governments are elected to do things and that is one of the things this Government could have done. This is a sad day because it is a day of lost opportunities—lost opportunities for victims who could have been getting a new code of compensation today. Mr Garth McVicar would have issued a press release in support of the Government if that kind of bill was being debated today. A bill giving victims a statutory code of compensation—and it exists in Australia—would have been supported today. 
Hon Mark Gosche 
: That’s another one he’s going to pay for out of tax cuts. 
Dr WAYNE MAPP 
: That is exactly the point Mr Gosche completely misses. He would rather see $250 million of funding go to a wananga and be absolutely wasted. We in contrast would sooner be supporting victims. It is all about choices. The Government makes the wrong choices. That is the real problem here. Fundamentally the Labour Government has its headspace in the wrong place. 
Hon Georgina te Heuheu 
: The public knows that. 
Dr WAYNE MAPP 
: As my colleague says the public knows that. So National is opposing this bill today because it is the wrong choice. It is not a requirement of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act that we pass this legislation. It is not a requirement of international law that we pass this legislation. This bill is an insult to victims who deserve a proper code of compensation. It is fundamentally based on a wrong premise and for that reason we are voting against it. We are proud of that because we will do justice for victims when we are in Government.