Mark RonHon RON MARK (Minister of Defence): Thank you Madam Assistant Speaker. Well I think over the years this year has been blessed with people who have sat on the Government benches who have seen a practice that is wrong and have sought to right it. Over the years MPs have on occasion taken note of the scurrilous activities of a sector in the business community who sought to take advantage of their position and to use undue unfair practices to cause distress—both financial and emotional stress—to members of the public. In the past there have been issues like tow truck drivers. In those days I recall when there was a bit of a wild west out there for tow truck drivers and the Government of the day intervened and decided to regulate it. There have been issues around landlords and we still have these conversations even today about the unscrupulous practices of certain landlords who don't understand their responsibility to their tenants. We've had debates in this House around unscrupulous moneylenders. This is an issue that this Government is particularly focused on as well and I know that the last Government tried in some ways to deal with those matters. We've had the issues of rogue security guards or bouncers" as they were called back in those days and Governments accepted the need to regulate and do something about it. Today we are dealing with rogue wheel clampers. Being blessed and living in the provinces myself in the lovely Wairarapa—Kieran McAnulty: Yep. Hon RON MARK: —in Carterton I can say that we are a little immune Mr McAnulty and I from the things that plague the city streets of metropolitan New Zealand because we don't have wheel clampers in our district—not that I've ever seen them Mr McAnulty. Kieran McAnulty: We don't have a National MP either. Hon RON MARK: We don't have a resident constituency MP either Mr McAnulty but that's off the subject so I won't go there. Kieran McAnulty: Oh go on. Hon RON MARK: Oh well later. But we have listened—New Zealand First has listened—Hon Jacqui Dean: You lost mate—you lost. ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Poto Williams): Order! Order! Hon RON MARK: —to the concerns and the stories that we've heard and the distress. We've noted the distress felt by families as they've not only come back to find their vehicle clamped but have been confronted with a bill of in some cases $600 to $750—Mark Patterson: Outrageous. Hon RON MARK: —which seems to us to be quite outrageous. Mark Patterson my colleague is quite right—it's quite outrageous. I know that down in Gore and down in Clutha they don't have wheel clampers down there either do they? No they wouldn't tolerate that sort of behaviour.So there's a lot that could be said—and I think most of it has already been said by the preceding speakers—but this Government does believe that the practices have been unfair. They do believe that they have inflicted harm upon citizens and have caused distress. Charges of around $700 for a family on an average income of $45000 a year is quite stiff and I seriously have no idea how some families in Auckland would ever pay such a fine to get their car released. So I think it's entirely appropriate that this Government has stepped forward and decided that we're going to cap those charges. I note that for those who might be concerned that that's too low and that they're not able to recover their costs—for the operating costs of their business that might be too low—I do note that the bill allows for changes in time through regulation. But right now this is a case of getting the bill to select committee; letting a select committee do its work; recognising that it is time it's over for these people and their quite unscrupulous behaviour; and it is time to bring an end to it. So New Zealand First is quite proud to support this legislation through its first reading and off to select committee looking forward to seeing the work of the committee looking forward to seeing the bill come back to the House looking forward to seeing the end of this behaviour which is thoroughly unacceptable in a market which is—it is absolute profiteering; it goes beyond that. For some of us we cannot really get our head around how one could be clamping the car of some of the families in Auckland in particular who struggle to pay the rents that they pay who might have two or three jobs just to keep their head above water and then are slammed with the $700 bill. I just simply can't get my head around that sort of practice and that sort of behaviour. We think it's unfair unreasonable and it should be brought to an end in this piece of legislation. I want to congratulate the Hon Kris Faafoi. He does tremendous work both in this portfolio and in his civil defence portfolio. I want to congratulate him for bringing this legislation to the floor and we look forward to supporting it further in the third reading. Thank you."