McNair Craig: Overseas Investment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
McNair Craig: Overseas Investment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:626;Page:21566] 
CRAIG McNAIR (NZ First) 
: 
 This afternoon I want to focus on clause 21T “No compensation for marginal strip” and to get my case clear on this issue. Either we let overseas owners have the land or we do not. It does not really matter what side of the argument we are on—whether we are for this bill or against it whether we are for foreign ownership or against it—at the end of the day what this clause and David Parker’s amendment were about was taking something away from somebody. They are saying: “We’re going to let you have it but once we’ve let you have it we’re going to take some of it away from you.” We should make up our minds at the beginning. Either we let the person have it or we do not let the person have it. That is the deal and that always should be the deal. That is the problem New Zealand First had with the clause and with David Parker’s amendment—the smokescreen amendment. I think it is outrageous that the Government was even considering that clause and still to this day Government members get up and passionately advocate for it. 
We all know the reason why the Government is pushing this issue. An election is on its way in the next 1 2 or 3 months. Government members looked at each other and said: “What are we going to do? We have to do something to make it look like we are the true Labour Party of the old days.”—and by that I mean the Labour Party before 1984; the same Labour Party that went up and down this country signing a petition pledging that it would— 
Jill Pettis 
: Where was that member in 1984? 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: Admittedly I was quite young. This is not from memory; this is from learning a bit of political history. The facts are that the Labour Party of old would not have supported this bill. 
New Zealand First says: “Make up your mind. Either let them have it or not.” New Zealand First says that at the end of the day this bill is wrong it is fundamentally flawed and it is not putting New Zealand and New Zealanders first. This bill allows foreign investors to come here flog off our country’s assets in a huge way and have no regard for New Zealand and New Zealanders whatsoever. That is what New Zealand First says. There is $12 billion going out of this country every year because of the dealings of Labour and National in the 1980s and 1990s. 
There is another point on this issue that I want to talk about before I move on. Who will be next? That is the question I want to ask. Labour Party members put their heads together thinking that here is a situation whereby they can make it look like they are being tough and looking after New Zealand’s interests and put in an amendment to say that they will allow foreign investors to buy land in this country but then they will take some of that land away from them. That is what Labour members did. They put their heads together and said: “Let’s do that.” and then they said: “We will push this little part for now and in the future we will start taking New Zealand - owned land off New Zealanders once we have got this amendment through.” So who will be next? 
Labour is very very disappointed. David Parker was almost devastated by the fact that his amendment could not be rammed through today. He was devastated. Labour has a hidden agenda on many issues and on this issue those members jacked it up. They thought they had it all ready set to go but they were not able to do it. That is why they are devastated—because they have a hidden agenda on this issue. They want Kiwis to be next. They want to start taking Kiwis’ land off them. They want to start initiating the “Mugabe clause” right through our legislation.