Peters WinstonRt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First): Kia ora tēnā koutou katoa. Can I just say to the people of Taranaki who have heard all these statements out of this House these last 48 hours to consider some of the facts. The Minister in charge of this bill Chris Finlayson says he came here to do good—his very words. No he did not. He came here to make himself a Queen's Counsel by self-appointment on 13 December 2012. He used his office as Attorney-General to make himself a Queen's Counsel. He never got it from the profession and surely he wants—after this of course—to get a knighthood and be a judge as well but he cannot win a seat.Can I ask you this question—ask anybody in Taranaki mindful of the west coast leases and what the National Government then offered to the people of Taranaki back in 1997: a lousy $28 million. One party stepped up with its leader and said No we'll pay the full price $60 million." and we did. That is our record not National's. On the question of the Kermadecs—which is of interest to the people of Taranaki as well—what happened in the Kermadecs? Well the Government went down and sold out the total legal right right under your nose and the Māori Party was asleep. So before you hug your whānau from around the country find out the Government's record. Mr Finlayson told my colleagues—Tim Macindoe: This is outrageous even by your standards—absolutely outrageous.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: —and I do not want to hear from that flyboy from Hamilton who would not know a Māori if he fell over one. Just keep quiet—you sir know nothing about the Māori world. I am talking about bills that I have been aware of since I was a young lawyer in the early 1970s. I do not want to hear from a schoolteacher like you who knows nothing.Back to my point—back to my point. Mr Finlayson told my colleagues he said: "Don't worry about this provision in the bill. It's identical to the Local Government Act." He said it is identical to the Local Government Act. At that point my colleague pulled the Supplementary Order Paper on his assurance. Mr Finlayson that was false and I will prove it to you. That was demonstrably false and the whip can get up and make any comment he likes but the reality is that I will prove on the documents today that what he said was false.Todd Barclay: Sit down.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Here are the documents—oh no I am not sitting down. I will be here long after you have gone sunshine. Ha ha! I will be here long after you because these Māori people up here are not going to be sucked in by your words of integrity and honesty and how you feel all the passion. Boy I have been around in the Māori world a long time and the last thing I am going to believe is you—make no bones about that.Do you know what the Local Government Act says—hear these words: "The members of a committee or subcommittee may but need not be elected members of the local authority and a local authority or committee may …". If you go the bill that he said was identical—this "Blackstone of the Antipodes" this leading legal mind alongside Lord Denning from the Commonwealth. He told everybody on the Māori Affairs Committee that it was the same but listen to these words: "The Council must appoint …"—Todd Barclay: Talk about the bill.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: This is the bill sunshine. I am reading from the bill—dummy from Gore. I am reading from the bill. The man whose—half his electorate organisation walked off and joined New Zealand First and you can see why. In the deep south they like the truth. They like honesty.Here we go: "The Council must …". Is "must" the word "may"? Are they the same? Mr Finlayson are "must" and "may" the same? Well do not go to the select committee and pull a whole lot of flannel and think that you are going to get away with it. You are found out sunshine. He gets into a right little hissy fit. Did you hear him this morning? All the venom—"I came here to do good." Oh really? What did he do about the Kermadecs? Go and ask the people of Ngāpuhi. What did he do about the Kermadecs? Ask Ngāi Tahu. You thought you could walk through there without the member finding out. Well thank heavens they have got a party called New Zealand First. They have got a party called New Zealand First and we keep the system honest.Tim Macindoe: Speak about the bill.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: This is the bill idiot features. Here we are page 50—all right—clause 99(3). This is what is in the bill; I am reading it to you. That is how familiar he is and that man is the whip. He is the organiser. You can see why National is falling in the polls because that is the kind of "loony tunes" disorganised twit it has got organising the National caucus. But here we go—here is Gerry Brownlee—Tim Macindoe: Absolutely outrageous behaviour—horrible even by his standards.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Oh lighten up sunshine I could eat you for breakfast. Tim Macindoe: No not for you.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Ha ha! I could eat you for breakfast. Listen to him—loud-mouth.Here was Gerry Brownlee on Morning Report—he gets asked this: "How many National MPs were going to be there on Friday?". Do you know what he said? "Ah look I can't go into that because I am not the whip." He is the Leader of the House. There is Tim—that is the whip there. I know you find this incredulous. I know you find this unbelievable that he could be a whip. But Gerry had not even consulted with him and perhaps he had an excuse there. But he said: "I am not the whip and don't have that info in front of me. But it would have been in the vicinity of sort of 40 people." Right so if he has got 40 and we have got 12 what is the problem? Come on let me ask you this question. If we have got 12 and they have got 40—according to Gerry—plus the Māori Party plus the Greens and plus Labour then why are we not here tomorrow on this bill? Those members shut down your right. They shut down your entitlement. They pulled—The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Order!Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Gerry Brownlee pulled the vote. "Mr Whip" your bulbous loud-mouthed behaviour does you no good at all. I have the transcript here of the Business Committee's workings and its diary and it says that you are telling bulldust so leave and go somewhere else—thank you very much. The House has got better all of a sudden. Ha ha! Look the interviewer is on to it. She said: "If there were 40-odd wouldn't that—hang on a minute Mr Brownlee. If there was 40-odd wouldn't that give you the numbers?". This is from the Morning Report interview this morning—a direct transcript. Guess what Gerry said—he said: "I think you're missing the point here." What point would that be? Could the House sit tomorrow—yes or no? Today he says you are missing the point. But this is the point though: "If you had 75 percent of the MPs here which I think is about 44 members in National's case then would you have had the numbers?". Listen to this one here—I know the people in Taranaki have heard too much bulldust over the years to fall for this sort of flimflam from them. Guess what Gerry said: "No because"—The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Order!Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Oh Mr Brownlee sorry.The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Thank you Mr Peters.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I apologise. The erstwhile Mr Brownlee: "No because there is a formula for how you cast your vote." What formula would that be? The people of Taranaki are being taken for a ride right now. Pray tell me the next speaker from National what formula would that be? [Interruption] Do not laugh. Oh they are looking down now are they not? Ask the genius—the genius the "Blackstone from the Antipodes" the man who thinks he is up there with Lord Denning. What formula Mr Minister would that be? Caught out—he has been caught out by his own words.Let me say this here: there is nothing to stop this legislation passing today and tomorrow. My party would be here to make sure it happens as we said we would. I understand that every other party would have been as well but National and the Māori Party briefly saw a chance to try to make some mileage. Well it is not going to cut it—[Interruption] Do not shake your head. I know why you do that because that is how you were born—with that stupid look.Can I just say very clearly that what matters is that in the dark of the night the Government sneaked a provision into legislation that had been voted down dramatically in New Plymouth in May of last year when 83 percent of people in the Taranaki area came out and said they did not want race-based appointments to the council. There were 83 percent who said that but not this National Party. Having campaigned on "Kiwi not iwi"—which got it in here—it is now going back to an apartheid-type system where it wants under this law to appoint six people paid for by ratepayers on to the council and none of them would be elected.This is the home of Sir Peter Buck. Sir Peter Buck one of the greatest people ever came to this Parliament. Māoridom still has that capacity in this Parliament and what you are seeing today I might tell you—whether you agree or not—is this: there is a party in this Parliament where Māori do not regard themselves as being pigeon-holed being second-class citizens or being tabulated by people like the Attorney-General. That party is called New Zealand First and that is why we are making the stand we are making now."