Marcroft JennyJENNY MARCROFT (NZ First): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker. Thank you for the opportunity to stand and speak on behalf of New Zealand First on the Accident Compensation Amendment Bill. I'd just like to start my contribution this afternoon—I'd like to tautoko the Minister the Hon Iain Lees-Galloway—by making note of his comment that New Zealand's no-fault accident compensation scheme is in fact a national treasure and the envy of many countries. We know that to be a fact and we are really proud of the fact that we do have this ACC scheme. Also I acknowledge the former Minister the Hon Michael Woodhouse who did a lot of work in the previous Parliament to get this bill ready. Just a couple of mentions too—the previous speakers—acknowledging Dr Reti and his focus with his contribution on the disestablishment of the Accident Compensation Appeal Authority. This is something that I would be particularly interested in hearing: what the select committee has to say about that in the contributions that we'll come to in hearings in the select committee on that.This bill accords well with New Zealand First's ACC policy implementing a number of reforms that the party has been calling for and other common-sense amendments that are supported by the tenor of New Zealand First policy. Kiwis as we've heard are very proud of the ACC scheme. Nearly one in three Kiwis made an ACC claim in the years 2016-17. So we're very well engaged with this scheme.The bill has two broad objectives: to ensure that ACC continues to meet society's expectations by providing cover and entitlements that are appropriate consistent and sustainable and to improve the Accident Compensation Act 2001 by ensuring that it is effective efficient and accords with best regulatory practice. On behalf of New Zealand First I'd like to voice our support for the Accident Compensation Amendment Bill. The bill is designed to tidy up aspects of the Accident Compensation Act of 2001. Now over time inconsistencies duplications gaps and errors start to crystallise and good housekeeping legislation is necessary to tidy up and improve upon major legislation. We believe that these amendments meet the twin tests of fairness" and "common sense". These are important amendments and it is worth going through and making sure that the House has a clear idea of what the components of this amendment bill intend to do.So the tidying-up legislation will remove any potential hurdle for those who work overseas for example. We've heard that talked about already this afternoon. So if you work for a company that sends you off overseas for a period of time and you continue to pay your tax here in New Zealand then logically you should be covered for ACC. Not only should the working parent be covered but the family—his or her family—as well. If the family does then return to New Zealand after suffering an injury overseas they will now continue to be treated under ACC in New Zealand. So that's a really good amendment in this bill. It's also become apparent that the Accident Compensation Appeal Authority is a court too far. District Courts are in fact perfectly able to adjudicate accident compensation appeals and we will hear more about that in the select committee. There is a duplication of work between the authority and the District Courts and this amendment will end that.These amendments seek to offer greater clarity to some of the grey areas of the ACC legislation. So take another situation: maybe a person suffers an injury and receives compensation under ACC. Now if that worker is approaching the age of 65 years and hadn't intended to retire just yet this bill will remove the requirement to choose between either weekly compensation or superannuation. Now some including New Zealand First argue that having to choose is discrimination because when you qualify for New Zealand superannuation you are entitled to your superannuation as well as your income. As ACC compensation is in lieu of income we argue that you shouldn't have to forgo it when you reach the superannuation age. The Government has said that the age limit of 65 is justified discrimination because it's designed to protect the fairness and sustainability of the ACC system. A landmark ruling by the Human Rights Review Tribunal in 2015 found that this policy was in breach of the Human Rights Act. Claimants caught in this situation now will be entitled to up to two years of their weekly ACC even if they do receive their superannuation and that includes surviving spouses and partners in the event that the injury is in fact fatal.Alongside this clarification the bill will also adjust the Veterans' Support Act so that it maintains consistency with the updated ACC amendments. In a further attempt to streamline the process it seems sensible to turn the annual review of rehabilitation amounts that the Accident Compensation Corporation is liable to pay into a two-year review rather than annually. Any attempt to reduce bureaucracy is in our view to be welcomed.May I also make an observation as a new member dealing with a great deal of legislation on behalf of New Zealand First: during the election campaign and after there were all sorts of wildly exaggerated fears that the coalition Government would be unwieldy and wracked with the competing interests. We know that this coalition Government has big and important goals to help make New Zealand be a better and fairer country but it is in the process of governing dealing with the myriad of small but very important pieces of legislation that need attention and fixing what we can so that the machine is operating smoothly. What I see is that a lot of the detailed but unspectacular work of government is getting done and it's getting done with thoughtfulness and efficiency.So from the engine room of the Government I can report that in fact this coalition Government is functioning outstandingly well and that is why it is easy to support legislation such as the Accident Compensation Amendment Bill. So in conclusion this Government is in fact determined that all New Zealanders deserve the best possible care when they are sick or injured and that is why we're repairing the previous nine years of neglect in the health system and also why we're looking to make the ACC scheme fairer for all claimants. So Mr Assistant Speaker that's my contribution this afternoon. I commend this bill to the House."