Auchinvole Chris: Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Services) Bill — Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeAuchinvole Chris: Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Services) Bill — Third Reading[Sitting date: 14 November 2013. Volume:694;Page:14720. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]CHRIS AUCHINVOLE (National): It is a pleasure to stand for the third reading of this particular bill the Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Services) Bill. I felt that the Attorney-General Mr Finlayson gave a wonderful introduction to the third reading—Chris Hipkins: He thought so too.CHRIS AUCHINVOLE: —yes; indeed it is a very serious bill—and it was followed equally well by the speech made by the chair of the Government Administration Committee Ruth Dyson. It has been a pleasure to work with her as her deputy on this particular issue.I guess one could see this bill as a continuum—a continuum of change of updating of looking ahead and of bringing the services that we have in Parliament which are entirely for the nation to a level that is commensurate with modern travel modern working ethics and modern communications systems. Things change. In the past there have been all sorts of different ways of establishing processes procedures and entitlements for MPs.There used to be a time of course—and I am sure the Speaker can correct me if I am wrong; not that I am suggesting it is within his purview or memory—when MPs simply stayed here for a whole block of time during a year completed the business and then went back and worked in their electorates rather than the weekly business that we transact now. Who knows? With electronic communication we may well be able to change further in the future.This bill has been a refreshing bill to be part of and I am very pleased that we have addressed this during my time in Parliament and that I have been able to participate in the process. This Government is committed to having MPs’ and Ministers’ entitlements determined in a transparent independent and non-partisan manner. It is important that the public has confidence in the regime for setting entitlements. The bill puts more power in the hands of independent decision-makers appointed to do the job. The Speaker and the Government have already taken several steps to improve transparency around entitlements and this bill takes that a step further and sets it in legislation.One of the features that I think was particularly important was the select committee process. Members of the Government Administration Committee were particularly well advised during the process of this bill. The submissions came from a range of people with much experience in the matter of how Parliament runs and the officials available to the committee were drawn from several disciplines. I think I speak for all committee members when I say that the advice we received was uniformly of a very high calibre indeed.Changes were introduced to the bill as it progressed through the select committee. This is actually what select committees are there to do. There has been some criticism in some media that—gosh—the select committee has made changes. Well it would be of concern if the select committee did not make changes as a result of its consideration of the submissions it received. That is why we do not need two Houses of Parliament; we just have the one because select committees fulfil such an important part of the process.I might make the point that I think it is particularly important to have full involvement of all parties in the process that select committees go through. I am always a little concerned when everything seems to be completed in the select committee process which is the real place to have debate and parties then put forward Supplementary Order Papers. The select committee is the place to have the debate—when the committee is working together with the advisers and after the advisers have gone when the committee makes its own considerations. For parties to then come forward with Supplementary Order Papers that we have not had the opportunity to debate is a disappointment and it did occur with this bill. However the bill reaches its completion in the third reading and I am very very happy to give it my support. Thank you.