Burns Brendon: Christ’s College (Canterbury) Amendment Bill — In Committee Procedure Third Reading 
Burns Brendon: Christ’s College (Canterbury) Amendment Bill — In Committee Procedure Third Reading 
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BRENDON BURNS (Labour—Christchurch Central) 
: 
 I am very pleased to speak in the third reading of the Christ’s College (Canterbury) Amendment Bill. I should just note that the previous speaker Nicky Wagner moved that the bill be heard a third time rather than read a third time. I am sure the House will take that in the spirit intended. In the first reading debate of this bill Labour made it clear that we had some concerns about the lack of checks and balances in respect of trust deeds in this bill. I am pleased that the Government Administration Committee under the very able chairmanship of the Hon David Parker has brought through some amendments to this bill that put in place the sorts of checks and balances that we as a Parliament would want to see. I want to discuss some of those and maybe one or two matters that we have left with the trustees to exercise some discretion on. 
Under clause 5 the House is supporting inserting a new subsection to allow trustees to vary the purposes of charitable trusts in certain circumstances though these differ from those set out in the Charitable Trusts Act which is the legislation that governs all trusts operating in this country. The committee was assured by the board of Christ’s College that in exercising its powers to vary the original purpose it will complete a detailed review of the trusts to ensure for the avoidance of doubt that the original purpose cannot continue to be met fully. 
That is an assurance the House would want. Trust deeds are sacred instruments. They endure for a very long time. I should note that this bill amends the Christ’s College (Canterbury) Act 1910. Here we are a century later dealing with a venerable institution and trying to assist it to I guess ensure that it proceeds into the next century in an appropriate and fiscally responsible fashion. I welcome that change because it is important that we signal that we want to see it made very explicit to trustees that where they make changes they have to be in situations where the original purposes where money was donated—often in situations such as families trying to honour somebody who had passed away—are honoured by the changes we make. 
The other thing I note is new trust purposes. There was a concern in the select committee and appropriately so that because the original bill talks about allowing a new purpose for a trust to be for the benefit of the college although almost all of the college’s activities are indeed focused on its educational outcomes there could be situations where the benefits might go to the college rather than to a charitable purpose. That is why an amendment has been brought forward by the select committee. 
I compare this bill with the Methodist Church of New Zealand Trusts Bill. There have been a number of bills amending trust deeds and trust legislation pertaining to the four major Christian Churches in our country—Anglican Presbyterian Catholic and most latterly the Methodist Church of New Zealand Trusts Bill of last year. In that bill we introduced an amendment that required the oversight of the Attorney-General where variations are made to original trust deeds. That has not come through in this bill through the select committee process. I guess we are putting some trust in the board of governors and the trustees of those trusts at Christ’s—and there are 20 or 30 of them affected by this bill. We know that in almost certainly every instance they will honour the intent of the original trust direct the finds towards a charitable purpose and make sure where there is a variation from the original trust because of passage of time that the original intent is still kept to—obviously for an educational and charitable purpose. It is really good to see that those amendments came through the select committee process. 
One of the things that came to my mind in question time today was in relation to a question to Minister Tolley about national standards. Christ’s College as a private school is not affected by national standards. 
Hon Ruth Dyson 
: What? What do you mean not affected? 
BRENDON BURNS 
: No private schools are spared national standards. 
Hon Ruth Dyson 
: Really? 
BRENDON BURNS 
: Yes it is an extraordinary thing is it not that all State schools are affected by national standards but private schools are not even though I know that a number of principals at private schools still question the value of national standards and shake their heads over why on earth national standards are being introduced without any attempt to pilot them in the State schools where they are being included. But that will not affect Christ’s College and this bill does not touch on that as has been noted. 
I was very pleased to visit Christ’s College last year with Phil Goff. One of the things I was very impressed with other than of course the wonderful neo-gothic facades of that institution which mercifully has come through yes with some damage but still standing was the broadband infrastructure of that school. I hope that as the trustees look at the future purposes they might direct funds towards those funds will no longer be used for such perhaps archaic past subjects as Greek. I will not say divinity as other members may because obviously that is still a very important framework for the school. It is very proudly a Christian school and that is part of its whole ethos. 
There is a fantastic infrastructure for Christ’s College by way of information and communications technology. It probably has the best broadband connections. While I was there with Phil Goff students were online with Scion forest research institute in Rotorua asking scientists about particular issues on forestry. It was fantastic to see that sort of engagement. It is probably already well ahead of many schools and I hope the Government’s initiatives on broadband will see every school in the country with the same sorts of connectivity. It is hugely important if we want to be a knowledge economy to provide that. I hope that Christ’s College having had the foresight and the funding to put in place that infrastructure might look towards continuing the advances it has provided to its students in terms of broadband. It is a fantastic technology for students to tap into at that sort of level. It will equip them very very well for the future. That is really important. 
I wrap up by saying that this bill has obviously been through the select committee process. The refinements that have been attached require that where there are variations to trusts trustees take note of the need for there still to be charitable purposes. I suppose there is a measure of trust provided. There is not a requirement for the Attorney-General to provide oversight as has applied for some of the church trusts. The trustees should take the sanction of Parliament that we have provided to them in a unanimous bipartisan way as a signal of the faith that this Parliament has in the fine institution of Christ’s College. That will ensure that the moneys that are now freed up—and we are talking about many hundreds of thousands of dollars across these 20 or 30 trusts so it is not inconsequential; it is a powerful sum of money—will be used for the best purposes: that is the future education of pupils at Christ’s College.