Hide Rodney: Charities Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
Hide Rodney: Charities Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:625;Page:19981] 
RODNEY HIDE (Leader—ACT) 
: 
 The message from this Government to the charitable sector is a simple one: “We won. You lost. Eat that!”. Here is a Government rushing through legislation under urgency that Sue Bradford who is an expert in this area says she does not understand and the charitable sector does not want. But what does this Government care? 
We heard the Minister responsible Judith Tizard give a speech—actually saying “speech” is dignifying it. She stood up in this House and gave the worst speech I have heard her give. She just mumbled into the Prime Minister’s handbag. I do not know what was going on—whether it was that she was so embarrassed by this bill. Then we heard Jill Pettis whom John Tamihere has nicknamed “Paint Stripper” because of her voice— 
Hon Member 
: What! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: I know she knows. I have news for the Labour Government! John Tamihere is talking to the media again. It is going to be great. He is actually giving “on the record” interviews again about his colleagues and repeating everything so there will be some fun in the weeks ahead. But we heard from Jill Pettis— 
Jill Pettis 
: I think you are obsessed with me. [ 
Interruption 
] 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Order! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: I am not sure I can go on. Could I take a minute to recover? 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Yes you can. I have not taken it off your time. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: That is a shocking shocking thing to say. I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I take deep offence at the comment that Jill Pettis made. I consider it to be an insult and offensive and I ask that you ask her to withdraw and apologise. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Sorry Mr Hide. At what point did she make that comment? 
RODNEY HIDE 
: The thought that I could be obsessed by her. 
Opposition Members 
: Obsessed with her. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Oh the thought that I could be obsessed with her! That is deeply insulting and offensive and I take offence. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: You have taken offence? 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Yes. I have a reputation to protect. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: The member has been offended by what Jill Pettis said. I ask her to withdraw. 
Jill Pettis 
: All right I apologise. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: God knows there are girls in Parnell who could be listening! 
What we have heard from this Government tonight absolutely backs up what John Tamihere has been telling us and telling the nation. Mr Gordon Copeland got up and said that he does not like this legislation but will vote for it because he hopes that if he does vote for it Dr Cullen will lift the tax-free threshold for charitable donations. That is what I understand Mr Copeland to be saying—that he would vote and hope. 
Then we heard from the Minister in charge of the bill Judith Tizard. She got up mumbled away into the Prime Minister’s handbag and said that the reason for this bill is so that the Government can collect information about the charitable sector. That is very interesting. What is the Government going to do with this information? [ 
Interruption 
] She went on to explain I say to Mr Copeland that it is to figure out how much it would cost if it lifted the threshold for tax-free donations. She is nodding her head—that is exactly what she was saying. Gordon Copeland is voting for this legislation in the hope that the Government will gather up information figure out what lifting the tax-free threshold will cost and Michael Cullen will then reward the charitable sector with some extra tax perks. That is the basis for Gordon Copeland’s vote. It is a case of vote and hope—let us collect the data and hope. I think Mr Copeland has been duped. [ 
Interruption 
] He says there is nothing wrong with being duped. Well he may think that but I think there is a problem with being duped. 
Hon Rick Barker 
: That member would know about duping people. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Is that not great! Here is the Labour Party talking about my duping people. This is coming from a party that has Steven Ching at No. 42 on its list. Talk about being duped! 
Hon Judith Tizard 
: Where was Donna Awatere Huata on your list? 
RODNEY HIDE 
: She is gone—that is where Donna Awatere Huata is on our list. After the Labour Government gave her $2 million we got rid of her. Where is Steven Ching? He is coming in and he is a man who lies to people— 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Order! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: —and obstructs justice. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Order! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: What is that Mr Assistant Speaker? 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Was the member referring to a member in the House? 
RODNEY HIDE 
: No—Mr Ching. He lies. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: All right but can I in that case explain— 
RODNEY HIDE 
: He is a total liar and a total crook. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: I ask Mr Hide to make some reference to the bill. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Yes—we are talking about being duped. 
Hon Paul Swain 
: Let’s talk about Fiji. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Do we not just love Mr Swain! He wants to talk about Fiji. Labour’s line is this: “Let’s talk about Fiji but when it comes to John Tamihere we want to put a line under it and move on!”. Mr Steve Maharey says that he did not get an apology or a retraction. John Tamihere called Steve Maharey “smarmy” and he hates that. He considers John Tamihere to be a liar and now he says he just wants to put a line under it and move on. That is what Mr Maharey No. 3 on the list says. 
I can understand the concern that those in the charitable sector have. They are saying that if someone comes into one of their organisations and he is a crook that person can actually get the whole charity deregistered. I want to explain to the Labour Party how easy it is to get members who are crooks coming into a charitable organisations. The Labour Party should know should it not? Labour has Steven Ching at No. 42 and I can tell the Labour Party members that they will learn a lot more this Sunday about their No. 42 Mr Steven Ching the man who was selling seats to sit beside Helen Clark for thousands of dollars. 
Judith Collins 
: They want their money back! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Yes. Then there was the matter of obstructing justice. Did the Labour Party know about that? Did Labour members know about the fact that John Tamihere had pleaded guilty in the High Court to two counts of forgery and two counts of uttering? 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: We are debating the Charities Bill. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Yes and what we are talking about—and it is right on; this is a third reading speech—is wrongful behaviour. I am just saying how easy it is for a charity to get someone on board who is less than savoury. I ask members to look at the Labour Party. It has got itself stuck with John Tamihere and it has got itself stuck with Mr Steven Ching who is No. 42 on its list. If that is what can happen in the Labour Party we can imagine what can happen to for example the New Zealand Prisoners Aid and Rehabilitation Society. It could happen there and that society could end up being deregistered. I think Mr Maharey knew all along what Mr Tamihere was like. He nods his head. He knows exactly what Mr Tamihere is like. 
We have a bill here that affects the charitable sector—37000 charities. It is true that about 500 of them were set up by Mr Tamihere. But 37000 charities are going to come under this regime with seven appointments from the Labour Party to set up the commission and a team of bureaucrats to run around and monitor inspect and collate information. Those members talk about putting $9.8 million into it. That will actually be a drop in the bucket compared with what it will eventually cost. 
Let us think of any one of those charities and what it could do with $9.8 million! Let us think about the good works that could be done with $9.8 million! It will though all go just on bureaucracy. That $9.8 million will be spent on making more work for the charitable sector. That is what will happen. 
Hon Steve Maharey 
: What? 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Steve Maharey yells out “What?”. I know that Mr Steve Maharey can talk for 2 hours and if one takes a page of notes all it is is clichés and hackneyed policy words but there is no substance. We know that because his former Associate Minister John Tamihere told us. He summed up Mr Maharey rather well—I thought it was perfect. He said he was smarmy. Do members notice how smarmy his interjections are? [ 
Interruption 
] Oh he wants to be slimy rather than smarmy. Maybe he is slimy and not smarmy. I do not really know but I know that what Mr Tamihere had to say was not very nice—and it was the truth. I say to Government members that they should listen to John Tamihere a bit more. They should not just go around liking him because he gives 150 percent. They should not just go around saying: “When he’s good he’s really good but he has the odd stumble.” They should listen to what Mr Tamihere is saying. He is telling Labour members that they are out of touch. 
Jill Pettis 
: Oh he’s scoring another 2 percent. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: That is “Paint Stripper”—Jill Pettis from Whanganui. That is what Mr Tamihere has gone around the gallery and said tonight. 
Hon Mark Burton 
: Oh that’s original. 
RODNEY HIDE 
: Mark Burton confirms that he has heard it before. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Order! 
RODNEY HIDE 
: It has been going around for years according to Mr Mark Burton. Labour members should listen to what Mr Tamihere is saying. 
They should think about the charitable sector which is there to look after families which this Government knows nothing about. They should listen to families and to hard-working New Zealanders. My goodness! As my colleague Sue Bradford said Labour should just listen to the charitable sector. But oh no Labour members are sitting around supping their lattes talking parlez-vous and not listening—just plotting.