Stewart Barbara: Television New Zealand Bill — Third Reading 
Stewart Barbara: Television New Zealand Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:606;Page:3870] 
BARBARA STEWART (NZ First) 
: 
 New Zealand First is opposing this bill despite having an amendment to the charter requiring that Television New Zealand reflect programming of a family nature to promote the development of family life in New Zealand. New Zealand First believes that free and open communication is the foundation of the democratic State and that the role of the Government in broadcasting should largely be confined to essential regulatory matters realising that there are issues relating to community standards access impartiality and diversity that necessitate intervention. This bill does not give us that certainty in any way—rather the reverse. 
We are pleased to see an amendment to the charter put by the Green Party that focuses on the reduction of violence in television programmes particularly those for children. New Zealand First supports that amendment wholeheartedly. 
New Zealand First believes that this bill is a backward step for broadcasting rather than forward-looking as we have heard from the other side of the House. New Zealand First has concerns along with the general public that the Government will manage the content of what New Zealanders will see on television and that the Minister of Broadcasting in spite of the clause on ministerial and editorial independence will totally manage our television. For example we saw that with the John Tamihere statement last Friday. It was not played at all. We do not believe that it is the role of any Minister in any Government to manage our television viewing or edit daily events. To have a smoke and mirrors policy such as this is not advantageous to New Zealand. 
New Zealand First also has concerns about the charter. Although this charter appears to be very politically correct we do not believe that it is the role of the State to feature television programming that contributes towards “spiritual and ethical development that reflects the diverse beliefs of New Zealanders”. New Zealanders have always been free from any interference by the State in their spiritual beliefs and it is indeed a very sad world if we have to expect television to carry out that task. It is interesting to note that this charter is to be reviewed every 5 years which while maintaining a flexible approach means that the emphasis may change with subsequent Governments. 
New Zealand First questions the money that will be spent on providing the Maori television programmes mentioned in the charter. Although we appreciate that there should always be some Maori cultural programmes on Television New Zealand why have many millions of dollars been spent and why do they continue to be spent on setting up a Maori television station and programmes if that kind of programming will also be heavily scheduled on Television New Zealand? Is this acknowledgment that the Maori television channel will not be providing what New Zealanders require or want? 
As a new member I am puzzled as to why the Minister has not taken a call during the passage of this bill to explain why Television New Zealand is to be split into two separate companies separating off the profitable transmission arm Transmission Holdings Ltd. The separation off of this company and its landholdings—in some cases they are small and in other cases they are not so small—makes it an asset that could easily be sold off to overseas companies. It appears that it is another one of New Zealand’s assets that we will sell cheaply and have to buy back at a grossly inflated price when many millions of maintenance dollars are required. Unfortunately the history of asset selling does not bode well for New Zealand or New Zealanders. New Zealand First believes that strategic asset sales should cease. If considered appropriate and only where absolutely necessary management by private contracts under public ownership should replace the policy of State asset sales. 
This charter states that Television New Zealand will observe a code of ethics that addresses the level and nature of advertising to which children are exposed. The increasing rate of diabetes and obesity among our New Zealand children and young people can be partly attributed to the amount of television advertising of fast foods. New Zealand First is concerned to know whether the health aspect of New Zealanders or advertising revenue will be a priority for Television New Zealand. Thus far the Minister has not clarified this point in any way. Television New Zealand will have to come to the Government for funding and of course the commercial aspect of fast food advertising must come into consideration. The fast food industry is a substantial spender on advertising and it is to be hoped that the health of our nation will be considered. 
The charter for Television New Zealand needs to be regularly audited and the compliance measures need to be developed. I know that the Minister said that there is a company already concerned with this aspect but we are uncertain as to how this will continue in the future. 
Again we are quite concerned as to why this bill should be passed at all. It is quite surprising that the Minister has not taken a call at all on this aspect to enlighten us during the course of the debate. New Zealand First believes that if the Government’s aim is to increase the amount and the quality of local television programming this could be addressed through increased funding through New Zealand On Air rather than unnecessary restructuring which diverts the total funding away from programming. New Zealand First questions this change particularly in the light of the low operational funding that Television New Zealand has been allocated. We will not be supporting this bill.