Mitchell MarkHon MARK MITCHELL (National—Rodney): Thank you Madam Chair. Firstly could I please acknowledge the Minister in the chair. We came to this Parliament together in 2011 and although we mark each other off now in the justice portfolio—him as justice Minister—and there are obviously things we don't agree on he is a man of integrity and I know that he is finding it very very tough to have to shepherd this bill through the House. I mean that because I don't believe for a minute that unless they had a coalition partner that brought this to the table he or the leader of his party would be putting a bill like this into this Parliament. He doesn't fundamentally believe in it. He's doing a very good job of looking in the mirror and convincing himself but that's about as far as it goes.Actually the proof of the pudding in this bill—it's very interesting—is that we have not heard one call from a Government member. Jamie Strange has tried to make a contribution from his chair. Look he's a new member a junior member. It's highly unlikely that he'll take a call because they've been told not to. But the Hon Willie Jackson he's a street fighter. This guy—he is not afraid. He will not be silenced so I would be very surprised if he doesn't after I sit—I'd love to see him take a call. I'd love to see the Minister take a call as well.I just want to raise one point and I would like the Minister genuinely to stand and respond to this point. It is new section 55A in clause 5 setting out that vacancies apply to all members of Parliament other than members who are elected as independent members. I would argue that although I am a proud member of the National Party I will exercise independence if I need to as the member for Rodney. If my own party was governing and there was legislation or a proposal put up that was going to materially harm my electorate then in fact I know that I would have the character and the intestinal fortitude to stand up and fight for the electorate that voted me in and sent me to Wellington to represent their interests and advance their interests as part of a great party the National Party.Darroch Ball: Would you leave the party?Hon MARK MITCHELL: I hear again an interjection from Darroch Ball. I would ask him to take a call. Please—you are able to take a call. Please take a call and share what your thoughts are and we will respond to them. We will listen to them carefully and we will respond to the issues that you are raising. So I just invite him to please take a call because the pattern that seems to be emerging is that the Government members are very quick to yell and make comments from their chairs; they don't actually have the courage to stand up and take a call. Sorry Madam Chair. I won't repeat that. I would encourage them to stand and take a call. Make your points.If we're talking about proportionality—this is why I want to come back to section 55A because it relates to independent members. We've seen several times around the world Governments that have been formed with a coalition of independent members—and Australia is a classic example. The Government would not have been formed and it would not have governed without a coalition of independent members and I think that it was four or five independent members. So my question is quite simply this: if the Labour - New Zealand First coalition with the Green Party in support had formed a Government and needed the support of three independent members that also became a part of that Government and that coalition Government went to try and pass legislation that either one two or three of those independent members took a very strong position against because they felt that it was going to be economic vandalism or it was going to be nanny State - type legislation that was being introduced and they decided to leave that coalition then is the proportionality of our Parliament—has it been distorted? Has it been changed? There are two sides to that question. The first one—and I accept this I accept that really this is driven by—Kiritapu Allan: What part of clause 5 mate? Just want the specific section.Hon MARK MITCHELL: Again if Kiri Allan's got a contribution to make I'd ask her to make it. It's probably a genuinely good one but at least stand and make it rather than sit there and shout across the Chamber because the people at home can't hear what you're saying so stand and take a call.Chris Bishop: It won't be in the Hansard. Take a call.Hon MARK MITCHELL: That's right. Take a call. Put it on the Hansard. If you believe in what you're saying take a call and put it in the Hansard. So my question—[Time expired]