Bennett GlenGLEN BENNETT (Labour): Kia ora Mr Chair. This is the first call I've actually taken this evening on this legislation. I'd be interested to hear from the Minister and just wanted to I guess have a bit of a reflection and then with some questions and maybe some really amazing suggestions which I'm sure he'll take on board because I know he's smart.So evidence-wise I just want to really reflect briefly because it sort of keeps coming up and up and it's one person one vote—all that kind of narrative. Well in New Plymouth this Parliament established the New Plymouth District Council in 1876 so it's been around for 100—well actually up until 2019 it had been around for 143 years.Now just evidence-wise we've only ever had two Māori elected members of council. The first one was in 1998 so it was 122 years before we got our first and he was a rugby league star in New Zealand somebody—I'm not very good with sports. But anyway—Howie Tamati. So he was—you know name recognition; a good thing. So he was the first. Then it was another 20 years until the second one.Now just for the record for those two to be elected in the time of the New Plymouth Council they are 0.43 percent—they are 0.43 percent of elected members which is very very small I'm sure everyone in this committee can agree. Good people ran. Good Māori ran for council—only 0.43 percent ever made it on to our council.Now in terms of this legislation and in terms of this part of the bill we're dissecting I really want to speak about the fact that times do change. The Minister has spoken several times tonight. He's spoken several times around the fact that Oh the Labour Government put this into law in 2001 and we threw this in so get over yourselves. Stop being hypocrites." He didn't use that word because we're not allowed to but that's the thing right?Hon Kieran McAnulty: It was a bit squeaky.GLEN BENNETT: It was a bit squeaky; exactly. Anyway I just want to clarify. I just want to I guess ask the Minister to think about this and then I'll go into the question about it. It's the fact that times are different in 2001. So times are different in for example Taranaki. Times are different in the 1980s in Taranaki. Now Inglewood—I'm not sure if people know where Inglewood is. It's an interesting small town in Taranaki. They elected their first ever female mayor in 1986—the first and only actually. Now the reason this is relevant to this legislation is because times change and it moves on. So I reflect on 2001 the comments the Minister has made. That's why I mention this. The funny thing about that story—I know everyone's gagging and so interested—is that the mayor who lost hid the mayoral chains and they never found the mayoral chains until he died. He hid them in this box—they actually had to make a separate pair of mayoral chains because no way were they having a woman mayor. How dare they! The world's going to implode and fall in; they have a woman mayor. So he hid the mayoral chains. They had to create new mayoral chains—true story. Jenny Rowan—she's a good woman a good elected member.So what I'm talking about is the fact that—so I'm coming back to 2001 which the Minister has spoken about at least three to four times this evening. He's raised when we bought this in 2001. It was a different time back then and the fact is to get legislation across you have to—CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): I'm just saying come to the bill.GLEN BENNETT: Yep. I'm bringing it in with you there Mr Chair. I'm coming in.CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): People are enjoying your anecdotes but—GLEN BENNETT: So you had to do things as things will be done in 20 years' time and we'll look back on them and that is why we had that at that time. I remind you: 0.43 percent.So my question is—I'm just going to get to it now because—David MacLeod: Where's David MacLeod?GLEN BENNETT: Well I don't think you want to mention David MacLeod in this committee people because he's actually—CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Can we not refer to the absence of a member from the Chamber.GLEN BENNETT: I haven't referred to the absence of a member; I was referring to the member. If you want to look at in the media potentially the controversy is people that he supports a Māori ward.CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Let's focus on the bill.GLEN BENNETT: But anyway just putting it on the Hansard there. It was in the media last year. He supports a Māori ward. So my question is: when we look at the Local Electoral Act 2001 which is part of this so this is around how we in Part 1 here in terms of referendum I feel that we could actually remove the binding referendum out of this legislation because—and I want some advice from officials potentially from the Minister because the Local Electoral Act 2001 if you look at section 19H if you look at 19I of the Local Electoral Act 2001 they already have provisions for us to deal with the fact of actual representation and reviewing that. So why don't we just take this out and go from there?"