McAnulty KieranLOCAL ELECTORAL (ADVERTISING) AMENDMENT BILLSecond ReadingHon KIERAN McANULTY (Associate Minister of Local Government) on behalf of the Minister of Local Government: Thank you Mr Speaker. I present a legislative statement on the Local Electoral (Advertising) Amendment Bill.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Ian McKelvie): That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon KIERAN McANULTY: I move That the Local Electoral (Advertising) Amendment Bill be now read a second time.This year is local election year. This October New Zealanders will be voting on who they want to represent them in local government making decisions on behalf of them and their local communities.This bill makes a small but important change to ensure the safety of local election candidates around the country by replacing the requirement to include a physical address in an authorisation statement with other options. Those options are a physical address an email address a telephone number a PO Box number or a website address. This bill creates a safer playing field for all candidates so that no one is needlessly subjected to harm or discouraged from standing.I'd like to thank the Justice Committee and its chair Ginny Andersen. The committee had an ambitious time frame to hear submissions and to report back. They met in their recess to give as many submitters as possible an opportunity to have their say.There were just 30 submissions on this bill. I think that what this shows is that New Zealanders just want to get on with this. All of the submissions received by the committee were unique and I would like to thank everyone who took the time over the last two weeks to present their views to the committee. All but three submissions strongly supported the bill. This includes local government sector organisations including Local Government New Zealand and Taituarā—Local Government Professionals Aotearoa—11 submissions from current or former candidates in local or general elections two submissions representing local authorities and three submissions from current mayors. I'm pleased to hear such unanimous support from the local government sector. Some submitters believe that urgency and the select committee process are not warranted. I disagree. In the words of Local Government New Zealand: Without these changes we're concerned that a number of potential candidates may be deterred from standing due to fears for their personal safety and the safety of those they live with."So that it can take effect before campaigning for this year's local elections gets properly under way in less than a month the amendment bill needs to be enacted under urgency. The urgency is justified to remedy the risk of harm at the next local elections and I wish to take the opportunity to acknowledge the support of other parties for allowing this to go through all stages this evening.I want to acknowledge the role that local government has in making positive change. Local government is an incredibly important part of our democratic landscape. The contribution that each local authority makes to the wellbeing of its communities cannot be understated. Local government decisions affect each and every New Zealander every day. Sometimes these are obvious—when we turn on the tap catch the bus or take the dog to the park. Then there are the big-picture items that councillors are responsible for—planning and development infrastructure community facilities climate change and many areas in between. Those diverse functions require cohesive political institutions that reflect the unique character of our nation and we are a diverse nation. For there to continue to be effective local government in Aotearoa we need New Zealanders to continue putting themselves forward in elections. It is the responsibility of this House to make sure that they can do so safely. As the Hon Nanaia Mahuta said when she announced this legislation: "Local democracy thrives when a broad range of individuals who bring different perspectives and experiences stand for public office in the contest of ideas."The committee heard that standing for election is not a decision that affects men women and people with marginalised identities equally. This bill is for those who stand for election to local government but it is also for those who don't; for those who had to put themselves and their whānau first because the risk associated with publishing their home address on a billboard was too much. I hope those people will think about standing again this year because local Government and democracy is for everyone. This bill keeps it that way. I commend this bill to the House."