McNair Craig: Civil Union Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
McNair Craig: Civil Union Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:622;Page:17484] 
CRAIG McNAIR (NZ First) 
: 
 In speaking to Part 1 I ask members to suppose I am speaking to the title. I am not—but I ask members to suppose that I am. I would call this bill the “We Don’t Care About What You Think Because We Will Do What We Want and Push Through Our Liberal Lefty Agenda Bill” because this Government really does not care what the people of New Zealand think. The reason I say that is that as we have been speaking to Part 1 the referendum question has been put to the Government and to members supporting this bill many many times. The only answers that come back are basically that members opposite are saying they should make this decision because the decision should be in the hands of members of Parliament not the people. They are saying that they know best. They are throwing a lot of fancy arguments at us but at the end of the day they cannot get away with it. If they really believe that the people of New Zealand want this they would have no problem in putting this issue to a referendum—putting it to the people and asking them what they think. 
Nanaia Mahuta 
: Can’t make up your minds. 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: That member over there says we cannot make up our minds and that is why we want to put it to a referendum. Well what a load of hogwash! Wanting the people of New Zealand to have their say is a cop-out? I hardly think so. It is a ridiculous argument even to say that we know best and the people of New Zealand do not. That is why I will be supporting the amendment to have a referendum and I hope the members opposite do too. 
Another issue I want to allude to is that of referenda in the United States. In my last speech during the first reading debate I referred to the state of Oregon. That state has actually been one of the more liberal states in the US in terms of its make up its legislature and so on in the past few years. Compared with the conservative Bible-belt states it is a lot more liberal. It is closer to California and so on. 
The United States is more like us and that is why I use it as a comparison. If one wants to be realistic I would say that Oregon is probably more like New Zealand. But even that state said no to redefining marriage and to allowing a more loose liberal definition such as the definition in the Families Commission legislation. Oregon voted no to that definition. 
I believe that the people know better than the Labour Government and the Green Party that are just ramming this legislation through. I support the people having their say. Do members know what? I feel very strongly that if the Civil Union Bill were put to a referendum it would get voted down by the people of New Zealand. I have no doubt. Members should look at such polls as the TV3 poll that was held the other day. As the bill gets nearer to crunch point people are really asking themselves what it will mean for our society in the future—not for them and their children but for their children’s children. How will the bill benefit society? At the end of the day were people to get to that polling booth they would say no it is not good for society. If members disagree with me let us put it to a referendum and we will see. Let us give it a spin. Let us give the people of New Zealand a go. That is what New Zealand First says. Instead of being a party of minority we would be a party of the people. That is what I and New Zealand First members say very strongly. 
I want to raise another issue. I have heard Tim Barnett say that we discriminate if we vote against this bill.