Sowry Roger: Companies Amendment Bill Insolvency Amendment Bill — Third Readings 
Sowry Roger: Companies Amendment Bill Insolvency Amendment Bill — Third Readings 
[Volume:616;Page:11950] 
Hon ROGER SOWRY (National) 
: 
 The National Party totally opposes this Insolvency Amendment Bill—a bill that Labour members would have New Zealanders believe is a relevant little bill that will protect workers by giving them redundancy payouts when businesses they have been working for are made bankrupt. Labour members conveniently ignore that paying for redundancies out of a business that has become insolvent means that a whole lot of other small businesses will not get paid. The small electrician the small plumbing business the guy who owns the digger doing the earthworks—all miss out when a large firm goes bung. The workers in that large firm get redundancy payments but the small-business guy gets nothing and his staff get nothing. That is the tragedy of this bill. 
Labour members just sit there with their mouths open wide and say that that is OK. They do not give a toss about small business—not a jot. John Tamihere the Minister for Small Business has not said a thing on this bill. I expect he will come into the House and say he has let small business down—just like he did on the Holidays Bill. Once that was passed he came down to the Chamber and said: “I guess I should have said something on it. I’ve let them down.” Where is he on this bill? We have not heard a word from him. Where is the new business friendly we are told Minister of Labour on this bill? Where is Paul Swain? Why is he not standing up and saying to the business community that this bill is good? He has not said a word about this bill. In fact when he is challenged on it by business he says: “Oh it’s a member’s bill not a Government bill.” He is voting for it but he will not speak on it. Where is the Prime Minister on this bill? “Bring it on!” says Helen Clark. Where is she? What is she saying about this bill to business around the country? She says nothing about it at all. 
I say to Labour members that when a big business gets into trouble and is made insolvent it will be no good any Labour member prancing around the town saying: “I’m here to look after people. Don’t worry I’m here to watch out for them.” because now there will be a whole lot of small creditors who used to get their money or a portion of it having to line up behind the redundancy payments. So the workers not only will get their holiday pay and any wages they are due—and they should get those—but will now get a redundancy payment over and above payments due to someone who has supplied goods and services. That supplier is left to go under. The small businesses are left to go under. The fact they have done the work and supplied the materials counts for not a jot in the minds of these Labour members. 
I bet by the time we reach Christmas that there will be Labour members out in their electorates saying they are very concerned and worried about a business that is going into receivership and that they will do all they can. I tell those members that we will be saying to those businesses that suffer and lose out under this bill that the Labour Government has passed legislation to make sure they miss out. How many Labour members have been to the small - business love fests Labour has been running around the country? They have not talked about this. I have talked to business people who have fronted up at those meetings and they say that Labour members tell them: “We’re really interested in your views. Yes we understand the Holidays Act is an imposition on you but you know it had to be changed. It was a long time coming. We had old legislation.” When they are challenged about the Employment Relations Law Reform Bill they tell them to make a submission. Just this afternoon I had in my office some people from a business that has a staff of 9000 nationwide. 
Darren Hughes 
: Who was it? 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: It was Spotless Cleaning. Does the House know how long the Labour Party has given that business to make a submission? It has given it 5 minutes—and that business has a staff of 9000. That is outrageous. Quite frankly that business should not bother to come and make a submission. 
Hon Member 
: That’s an insult. 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: I am glad New Zealand First members are outraged by it because they voted for the bill—and I hope we can change their minds about it. They will not talk to their Labour members who are telling them: “Make a submission and we’ll look at it afterwards. We’re too busy to see you now.” What arrogance! If a firm that Spotless Cleaning is doing any cleaning for goes into receivership staff members of that firm will get their redundancy payments and Spotless Cleaning will get zilch. Spotless Cleaning will have to stand in line behind the redundancy payouts. So who will miss out? The staff of Spotless Cleaning will miss out. 
Hon Rick Barker 
: Not true! 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: I ask Mr Barker how they get paid. He does not know. Those staff do not get paid. 
Hon Rick Barker 
: Will the member yield? 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: Has the Minister taken a call? No he has not. He should take a call. Those people will not be paid. Redundancy payments will be made before the cleaning staff who work for a contractor get anything. That will not help the cleaning staff at all. 
So how can this bill help any of the people the Labour Party purports it will help? I bet that the first time this is pointed out to Labour members in the community they will say: “Well Parliament voted for it.” Everything is always in the third person with the Prime Minister and with Labour members. It is always other people who have done things and they just happen to be swept along. New Zealanders can see through that. They are sick of the arrogance. They are sick and tired of being told: “9000 staff 5 minutes to make your case—but we really care about you.” 
People are sick of the fact that the Minister for Small Business never talks about small business and they are sick of the fact that the Prime Minister is too busy ever to come out to justify the Government’s programme. She never speaks in favour of Government bills in this House. She never comes down here to say a word about them. It is all a bit beneath her. She is so regal. She never has the time to come down to this Chamber to debate issues. That is outrageous; it is arrogance from this Government and it is arrogance from this Prime Minister and the public can see through it. She will take a poll on it not guided by principles but by a couple of public relations opinion polls. This legislation is even worse. I agree with what Richard Prebble said. This is Government legislation that it is too gutless to bring in. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: The member is a longstanding member. He knows that he cannot use that phrase. Would he please withdraw and apologise? 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: I withdraw and apologise. The Government is too weak to bring in this legislation under its own steam; instead it has a member’s bill to bring in its programme so that its Ministers can say they did not do it. They are voting for it and that is outrageous. We oppose it.