Bond Ria: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — In CommitteeText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBond Ria: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — In Committee[Sitting date: 10 May 2016. Volume:713;Page:10937. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]RIA BOND (NZ First): I would like to remind those people who are listening or watching tonight what the intent of this particular bill is. The purpose of this bill is “to cancel the 2016 triennial general election of the Southern DHB in order to provide until the repeal date for the continuation of the term of office of a commissioner for the Southern DHB.” I would also like to point out that this bill would extend the term of office of a commissioner until the day that elected members of the Southern District Health Board come into office after the triennial general election in 2019. I want to point out that just this afternoon in question time I tabled an amendment that I and New Zealand First absolutely believe will help find a solution to the position that we are currently finding ourselves in. But I will get to that shortly.It has been no secret that New Zealand First has not supported this bill. We have absolutely opposed this bill in the first and second readings. There were some amendments made through the select committee process that were good amendments and that we felt out of those eight submitters were good amendments.I want to bring back the statement that the Ministry of Health made which was recorded at the select committee in March 2016. The ministry was quoted as saying: “While the impacts on local democracy are noted we consider that this is balanced by the need to provide time for the Commissioner to drive the necessary improvements which will benefit the district in the medium to longer term.” In other words what this Government is saying really is that it is prepared to sacrifice the democratic rights of southerners under the guise of being fiscally responsible.New Zealand First does not support this position and we continue to not support this position. We refute the need to strip back democracy while alternative solutions exist. This is when I will come to my amendment that I tabled today. For those people who are listening and watching tonight my amendment proposes in clause 4 to replace the word “cancel” with the words “integrate a commissioner within the bounds of the 2016 triennial general election of the Southern DHBin order to provide until the repeal date for the continuation of guidance of a commissioner for the Southern DHB.”Another change that my amendment is proposing is to clause 7 “Cancellation of 2016 election of Southern DHB”. I have proposed that we remove clause 7(1) and replace it with a new clause 7(1): “The following provisions of the 2000 Act shall apply to the Southern DHB in relation to the triennial general election of 2016 explicitly (a) Clause 16(1) of Schedule 2 (which provides for the Minister to appoint persons to hold positions on the board of that DHB that would otherwise be held by elected members); and (b) Clause 16(3) of Schedule 2 of the 2000 Act does not apply to the Southern DHB triennial general election of 2016.”In the explanatory note that I have put with that amendment it says that “The purpose of the SOP is to preserve democratic process in the triennial general election for the Southern DHB while simultaneously promoting a reasonable time frame for the commissioner appointed in 2015 to continue the scope of work. This SOP recognises the need for both elected members and an appointed commissioner to best address the complexity of issues facing the Southern DHB without stripping the right to democratic elections of [our board representatives].”I believe that once again New Zealand First has come to the House offering an olive branch a solution given the very fact that the Minister himself supported this in his original intent when he sacked the board and that was reported in the paper. So I am calling on the Minister and that National-led Government to stick to what the original proposal was and do not strip the people of Invercargill Otago or Southland of their right to vote. I see my amendment as being a win-win situation not only for the Minister and also for the commissioner and her sub-commissioners but also for the people of Southland and Otago who deserve their right to vote for their elected health board members in the 2016 election.I have had many constituents come to me since the first and second readings and they were rather happy that the two elected MPs for the National Party in the Invercargill electorate and the Clutha-Southland electorate made a short call in the second reading. What I got overall—Hon Ruth Dyson: Do you mean they knew who they were?RIA BOND: They did—they did. They took their time to look. The constituents in Invercargill truly believe that they do not want to see their democratic rights stripped away under this National-led Government. History tells us unfortunately that it is quite quick to actually get in there and fire a board and make promises like it did with Environment Canterbury. I mean we were told that the people of Canterbury were going to be given back their right to vote and in the House just recently we have been told that that must be delayed again and that was really disappointing. That is what we in Southland do not want to see.We do not want to see that we are being given a promise and it actually turns out that it is not fulfilled by the Minister and that is a huge concern for us not just in Southland but also in Otago. When people have come up to me in the street and said “Good on you for fighting for our right to vote.” I do not think that we should downplay the importance of what it means to Kiwis to have their right to vote. My amendment and I thank the Labour Party and I thank the Green Party for agreeing to support my amendment supports the right—and we do recognise that there have been some deficit issues on the Southern District Health Board. We would be allowing everybody to win with my amendment which is actually to the betterment of not just the Minister and not just the commissioner or the board but actually ultimately of our community.We have been taught that in order to work together we should not work alone—that we should join together as a group. I am listening to the constituents in Invercargill and I am listening to the people of Otago when they have supported me in ensuring that I would be the voice to stand up for their rights and have the guts to say: “Do not take the rights of Southlanders or Otago people away by implementing and supporting this bill. Take note of my amendment and recognise that we can actually all work together for a better outcome and make sure that we do not lose the voice of our right to vote.” I think that is something that is really important and should never be downplayed—never—in this House. Thank you.