Wilkinson Kate: Canterbury Earthquake Commemoration Day Bill — Procedure First Reading Second Reading Procedure Third Reading 
Wilkinson Kate: Canterbury Earthquake Commemoration Day Bill — Procedure First Reading Second Reading Procedure Third Reading 
[Volume:670;Page:17147] 
Hon KATE WILKINSON (Minister of Labour) 
: 
 I move  
That the Canterbury Earthquake Commemoration Day Bill be now read a second time 
. As we have said this bill provides for 18 March 2011 to be a day of commemoration in those parts of Canterbury that observe Christchurch Show Day as Canterbury Anniversary Day in order to commemorate the devastating consequences of the Canterbury earthquake on 22 February 2011 at 12.51 p.m. It is a day and a time that will I think be indelibly etched on all our minds for many many years and decades to come. 
This day will be treated as a public holiday with schools required to close for the purposes of the Education Act. There is no restriction on shop trading. Businesses will be able to continue trading on the day if they choose to. The significance of having a public holiday on Friday 18 March is to provide people with an opportunity to attend the memorial service for the victims of the 22 February earthquake. 
A couple of issues were raised in some of the first reading speeches and as a Cantabrian I thank all members of the House for the compassion the feelings and the concern expressed for Canterbury and Christchurch. Christchurch is my home town and as many will know I am a pretty proud Cantabrian. One of the issues was whether it should be a national public holiday or a regional public holiday. It was considered more appropriate that it be a provincial holiday. It is an important day of mourning for Canterbury and is very personal for the region. That is not however to diminish its national importance and indeed also its international importance. 
Economically it is also important that the rest of the country can continue working as this will assist Canterbury and the Canterbury rebuild. It is certainly hoped that many people throughout the country outside Canterbury will at least be able to watch the service from afar so that they in their own place and in their own way can mourn. They can pay tribute contemplate the utter tragedy of what happened build strength and use that strength to help Cantabrians and New Zealanders on the long road ahead for the rebuild and recovery. 
I also acknowledge one of the previous speakers who referred to the timing and asked why we are holding a provincial holiday on 18 March. I am not sure that there is ever a right time for such a commemoration. For some undeniably it will be too soon; for some it may be too late; and for some it is about right. But we hope that it is appropriate for Cantabrians to join together on that day and to know they are not alone. We are there with them shoulder to shoulder as a province and a nation and as a Parliament to help them down the long road of recovery and rebuild. It will be a chance to reflect on the terrible loss of life suffered as a result of the earthquake and the massive impact it has had on our second-largest city. 
It is also an opportunity to give thanks for the civil defence services by which I mean the volunteers the community the friends the family and the professionals. All were out there working with one thought in mind and that was the welfare of Cantabrians and Christchurch people and of the visitors who had been so unfortunately caught up in such a tragic event. I think we can have some pride in the resilience of our communities when we have our professionals—the police nurses doctors civil defence professionals and search and rescue workers—and volunteers all out there with no thought at all for their own homes which were also shattered and in tatters in many cases. 
This is an opportunity for the people of Canterbury to mourn together. We consider that providing a one-off public holiday for the people of northern and central Canterbury to allow them this opportunity to attend a memorial service is an appropriate response in these truly difficult times. I commend this bill to the House.