Hutchison Paul: Building Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Hutchison Paul: Building Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:643;Page:13256] 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON (National—Port Waikato) 
: 
 Thank you Mr Chair for the opportunity to speak on this most concerning bill the Building Amendment Bill. It is most concerning because once again we see this Labour Government making it more difficult for ordinary New Zealanders to own their own homes and build their own homes. I note that the commentary on the bill states the most ridiculous assertion—that the 2004 Act was designed to improve building standards including work done by unqualified and DIY builders and that this bill will add clarity. That is just unmitigated tripe. Unfortunately the very opposite exists. 
We have heard the excellent arguments from the Hon Dr Nick Smith who is an engineer and who certainly knows about building. We also have in our caucus of course Bob Clarkson the builder from Tauranga who has more experience than anyone put together. 
Judith Collins 
: And he beat Winston Peters. 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: He did of course. He did a brilliant job in Tauranga and he will continue to do so. 
Pita Paraone 
: What did he do? 
Dr PAUL HUTCHISON 
: His contribution to Tauranga in building the stadium and giving it to the people of Tauranga was a monumental gift and much more than this Labour Government or any individual in this Labour Government has ever done. 
The National Party believes that the bill gives the Government much wider powers to bill councils for accreditation and audit them as a building consent authority and this is what is of such great concern. This bill basically shifts the system from one of fixed fees by regulation to full cost recovery. Undoubtedly it is this cost shifting by central government to local government that will inevitably drive up rates. This is what we are seeing time and time again by this Labour Government. First of all it was the power of general competence and now it is shifting every cost it can think of on to local government and from there go the extra costs to ordinary hard-working Kiwis who wish to build houses. 
I think the Hon Dr Nick Smith was absolutely right in mentioning the cost of house prices over the last 6 to 7 years. But it is not only the cost of house prices it is the cost of building as well. I myself applied 3 years ago to build an extension on my house. I could not afford to build it at the time. Now 3 years later the quotes coming in are double what they were 3 years ago just for an extension. As Dr Nick Smith said the submission from the Registered Master Builders Federation said there was on average an extra $30000 of unnecessary costs to build a house in New Zealand. That has to be a travesty for every hopeful homeowner in this country. 
Again the Labour Government has basically regulated Kiwis out of not only building their own homes but also building their own baches. It is one of the great historical traditions of New Zealand. It was pointed out that Norman Kirk that great New Zealander built his own home without all this fuss and bother. He would not have been able to build his home today; nor for that matter would Prime Minister Robert Muldoon have been able to build his bach at Hatfields Beach. It is an excellent structure which still exists today in which the family enjoyed many happy hours. 
Why can Kiwis still not have the right to do that? Why does this Labour Government insist on putting every hurdle it can imagine in front of them to prevent them from doing ordinary things that Kiwis should be able to do? I was absolutely intrigued and concerned when I heard that representatives from the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand pointed out in their oral submission that people will be required to get a building consent to re-putty the windows on their houses. This may be an extreme extension of the weathertight provisions but that is how ridiculous it has become under this Labour Government.