Woods Megan: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — In CommitteeText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWoods Megan: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — In Committee[Sitting date: 29 March 2016. Volume:712;Page:9947. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Dr MEGAN WOODS (Labour—Wigram): I would just like to take another short call specifically on the amendment that is in my name and the parts that pertain to Part 1 of this legislation. But I would just like to respond to a comment that the Minister who was in the chair the Hon Gerry Brownlee made when he said that the changes that had been made post the Local Government and Environment Committee consideration were minor.Well I think the Minister is being coy and that actually the Minister came in and cleaned up what was an inadequate piece of legislation that the select committee reported back to this House and that the select committee did not make the changes that were required to make this a piece of legislation that Labour could support. In fact we like other Opposition parties withdrew our support at the select committee because the bill was inadequate and we would like to have seen more. So I think that the Minister is being coy and kudos to the Minister for cleaning up what was a very messy process that occurred at the select committee.I want to talk to my amendment which inserts alphabetically into clause 4 and which is the interpretation clause “Hagley Park Management Plan” and defines the Hagley Park Management Plan. This is the first part that is required for a broader amendment that I am putting up that would ensure that we protect Hagley Park and make sure that Hagley Park has the kinds of protections that our forebears in Canterbury have given that piece of land in the centre of our city.All through this legislation Labour has consistently argued that it is not time for Canterbury to return to business as usual and that there are bespoke provisions that are required for these next 5 years in terms of how Christchurch moves forward. But what we are saying is that when it comes to Hagley Park and the protections that have been built up over that piece of land it actually is time to return to business as usual. When it comes to that particular taonga in the centre of our city we do need to be able to say “It is as if the earthquakes never happened and it is as if the bespoke legislation that is put in place to aid our recovery and our regeneration does not exist.” So in order to do that it is necessary in clause 4 in Part 1 to define the Hagley Park Management Plan.As I alluded to in my first contribution on this legislation it does get difficult in terms of defining geographical parts of the city but we are incredibly blessed I guess in Christchurch that we already have good statutory definitions of this area. The Hagley Park Management Plan “means the management plan adopted for Hagley Park in 2007 under the Reserves Act 1977.” So it is specifically that area of land that is to be protected—and in Part 2 I will speak more broadly to those protections—but this part of the bill does put in place those provisions.Hagley Park has something of a history of being protected. It was established in 1855 and people who tried to make changes to it pretty quickly found that it was very difficult to do so. In the 1860s it was considered that it would connect to Great South Road which is now known as Riccarton Road through to Armagh Street but that was a plan that fell over. Christchurch has only ever had two-term mayors and one of them tried to put a road through Hagley Park in the “road through the park plan” in the 1970s and Ron Guthrey soon found in 1971 that he was thrown out of office when he tried to connect Harper Avenue to Salisbury Street through Hagley Park. It was just not going to fly.Hagley Park is a special place for the people of Canterbury. It is protected and it has been protected for generations in our city. Labour is putting up an amendment and saying that it is time now for us—it is our responsibility—to carry on those protections that have been built up for generations and ensure that while our city recovers and we regenerate our taonga in the centre of our city remains dear and those protections for Hagley Park that have been built up endure for the next 5 years and beyond. Thank you.