Sowry Roger: Customs and Excise (Alcoholic Beverages) Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
Sowry Roger: Customs and Excise (Alcoholic Beverages) Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:608;Page:5404] 
Hon ROGER SOWRY (Deputy Leader—NZ National) 
: 
 This part talks firstly about the commencement date which is why we are here at 12.35 a.m. debating this bill. A part of the bill will come into force immediately upon its carriage: the extra tax on sherries ports and other drinks that elderly ladies primarily drink. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: And Madeira. 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: That is right. The other clause in this part is the purpose clause. The Minister in the chair Jim Anderton explained to the House that the purpose of the bill was to stop young people from drinking. We have already heard today that this bill will do nothing of the sort. In fact it will transfer young people from buying alcohol and mixing drinks to buying ready-made drinks. 
I have just come off the phone from talking to one person who has been listening to the debate. As a mother she tells her daughter that if she is going to drink she should buy the ready-made drinks because at least they have not been tampered with and are safer to buy. That mother encourages her children if they are going to drink to buy the ready-made drinks. That seems like the sensible thing for that parent to do in order to keep her daughters safe and to make sure that nobody is tampering with their drinks. She is distraught to know that those drinks will not be taxed any extra at all despite Government members thinking that they will be. That mother rang in to find out who was right and who was wrong and I assured her that Helen Duncan Mr Anderton and the rest of the Government members were wrong. 
Firstly I ask whether Mr Anderton will take a call to stand by the speech he gave in the opening part of the debate. Will he take a call? 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: I am perfectly happy to stand by my speech. 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: That is good. He said he was perfectly happy to take a call. 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: No to stand by the speech. 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: We will wait to see whether he takes a call. I understand that he is now saying that he will not take a call so he will not stand by his speech. That is understandable. Secondly Labour members— 
Hon Jim Anderton 
: Don’t mislead the Committee. 
Hon ROGER SOWRY 
: I am not misleading the Committee. That member is the one who has misled and lied to the House not me. 
I want to ask Mr Anderton whether what Labour members are saying around the building at the moment is true. Labour members are saying that this bill has to come in so as to get $17 million of extra revenue that will go to the Ministry of Economic Development because that was the only way the Labour caucus would agree to new money going to that ministry. Labour members know that that is a waste of money. Apparently after the debacle with the shipbuilders in west Auckland Labour members have said that no new money would follow Sovereign Yachts. Mr Anderton said that if the price of alcohol for young people was put up and he did it even though the bill is in Rick Barker’s name he would take the flack. It is his last term here so he said he would take the flack for this measure if he could get some extra money for the Ministry of Economic Development. That is what Labour members are starting to say around the corridors of Parliament; that is what they are saying.. 
I want to know whether Mr Anderton will take a call to deny that. He will not take a call to deny that. That member is wearing the can; he gave the speech in the House. He is prepared to wear the can for a bill that is in Rick Barker’s name. Mr Anderton is prepared to sit there in the chair because that was the only way he was able to get any extra money from the Budget. He had to wear the unpopular move of increasing the tax on alcohol so he dressed that up to United Future and they fell for it. The only questions United Future asked were how many votes they would have to vote with Labour on—that was it. There was no question about whether the bill covered alcopops or about anything like. United Future did not ask any questions. It has given one speech tonight saying how pleased it was that the bill covered ready-to-drink products only to find out that it does not.