Cosgrove Clayton: Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Cosgrove Clayton: Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Sitting date: 19 February 2013. Volume:687;Page:7998. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE (Labour) 
: 
 I thank the Green member Mojo Mathers for her contribution heartfelt as it is and I congratulate her on it. But I heard Jacqui Dean who is sort of grinning over there talk about how there was such support for this measure. Well Nicky Wagner last week made a similar claim. I think Jacqui Dean also alluded to the fact that there was—the woman of course who is an expert on water of course did not quite get what H2O was when someone wrote to her and asked what H2O meant but we will not go there. She is an expert on irrigation—she sprayed the people of Canterbury all right. That is for sure.  
I say this. When she talked about local authorities and experts who supported the Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill she neglected to say of course firstly that in the submission process there were 95 submissions. The Minister will know this backwards. There were 95 submissions and five of those submissions supported the extension. Among the submitters cited by Ms Wagner was Ngai Tahu a credible organisation; then we had Local Government New Zealand—very grassroots I would have thought in Canterbury—and then we had those erstwhile bastions of non-political behaviour Federated Farmers. One could argue that Federated Farmers have a real stake in proceedings given their penchant for irrigation as we know.  
But a fact that Ms Dean neglected to provide us with was that the Christchurch City Council—and we all know where Bob Parker’s allegiance lies. We all know he is a creature of this Government and we all know that Gerry Brownlee regrets every day as he heads for the 7-Eleven on the way home actually creating that individual with the power he has. The Christchurch City Council of course on 22 September passed a resolution—I think it was unanimous; even Bob voted for it—to oppose this extension. It is true that some of those on the Christchurch City Council as Ms Dean said have articulated complaints about Environment Canterbury as it was before the commissioners moved in but even the Christchurch City Council in the end opposed this extension.  
I say to colleagues that what this extension is about is something very very simple. We know in Canterbury that this Government does not want people standing up whether they be business people—and remember it was business people who literally but not in my time in Canterbury crashed the barricades in the earthquake to get information because they were so frustrated at the lack of communication in Ms Wagner’s electorate. This Government does not want an election where people who may be elected to Environment Canterbury prior to the 2014 general election might stand up and become a vehicle to articulate the difficulties and the hurts and the opposition to many of the things that this Government is doing in Canterbury not just around irrigation and those normal generic Environment Canterbury activities.  
The Government does not want a group of people elected who would get up and add to the opposition around schools for instance. We see the Minister of Education there—that genius—and what she has done to Canterbury schools. An elected group of people might articulate against and oppose some of the Draconian measures that Gerry Brownlee has put in place as he refuses to listen to people. Government members do not want an agency or a group of people elected who have a mandate and who could oppose their view.  
Aaron Gilmore got sworn in today so I am told. Aaron Gilmore of course old “Curly” in the corner came up beaming like a Cheshire cat like the young fellow who got the lollypop in the raffle. What we forget about dear old Aaron Gilmore the genius from Christchurch who knows everything is of course that he was part of the group in the National Government who broke their promise to the people of Canterbury. So I invite him as the newly sworn-in member to get up and tell us why it was that Nick Smith gave a cast-iron guarantee that there would not be an extension. He was part of that Government. I want Aaron Gilmore to explain why when the Department of Internal Affairs recommended to the Minister a transitional provision—option 1 to transition to democracy—the Government ditched it. He was part of that. I invite him to front up as he does occasionally on his Facebook page—and oh there is a story to tell there but we will get to that another time. I invite him to front up on his Facebook page and tell the people of Canterbury newly sworn-in as he is why he broke that promise. [ 
Bell rung 
] 
John Hayes 
: Mr Chair— 
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: The Hon Clayton Cosgrove. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: It is all right “Sir Les”; I have got the call. Thank you to John Hayes for providing a moment of jocularity within Parliament. We needed that. Your timing was excellent.  
I invite Aaron Gilmore to go to the people of Canterbury and articulate that—articulate that. Actually I ask the Government and I ask the Minister in the chair the Minister for Courts—and maybe he could ask the Minister in charge of the bill—why it is that this Government does not have faith in the people of Canterbury to elect sound representatives from among their number to represent them and responsibly take part in the management of our province. Why is that? Would the Minister in the chair like to respond? Why is it that the Government does not trust the people of Canterbury to elect sound men and women from amongst their number to represent—[ 
Interruption 
]; sorry I am happy to let him go—and to lead the people of Canterbury and help manage our province.  
The fact is that it does not. If it did it would rescind this measure it would burn this bill and it would allow an election to take place on schedule as it promised—as Mr Hayes promised as Jacqui Dean promised as part of the Government and Nicky Wagner “Curly” and the others over there. They were part of a Government that promised the people of Canterbury—a cast-iron promise as Nick Smith said—that they would be allowed to have an election.  
If ever there was a time when we needed to restore democracy it is now. The truth is we have dysfunction on the Christchurch City Council. We have a Minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission who does a very good impression of a blunderbuss. He is not a conciliator. You will not solve the many conflicts around the world by making Gerry Brownlee an ambassador I will tell you that. He is not a conciliator. He is not one who can bring people together. 
Andrew Williams 
: Finland. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: No not even in Finland—no no no. You will not see Gerry Brownlee being the diplomat. So you have a Christchurch City Council that has difficulties with the mayor and the chief executive officer and there is dysfunction there. It is at odds with the Minister for earthquake recovery. If there was ever a time to bring some sanity back and some democracy and allow Canterbury to elect people to represent it and have some balance and maybe even allow those elected people to have their own view—and maybe that would oppose the Government; maybe there would be disagreement but the last time I checked that was a healthy thing in a democracy—the time is now.  
But oh no; these guys over here in Government want to listen to only those people who will sing their song. They want to listen to only people who will say “Yes Minister. Yes Minister.” Well Hekia Parata has come on the wrong side of that. 
John Hayes 
: No she hasn’t. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Oh no she has not! Well I just say to “Sir Les” to go down to Christchurch go to Phillipstown School talk to Tony Simpson or any of the principals who were told by the Minister at 4 o’clock yesterday that a 30 percent roll increase—[ 
Interruption 
]  
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: Order!  
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: I am quite happy to. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: We are not on this. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: I am quite happy to—quite happy to. 
Hon Hekia Parata 
: That is so untrue. That is so untrue. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: Well the Minister of Education calls Tony Simpson a liar—the Minister calls Tony Simpson a liar. Let us get that on the record because that is what Tony Simpson told me and the other people who were in the room. But the Minister calls Tony Simpson— 
The CHAIRPERSON (Lindsay Tisch) 
: Order! I have mentioned to the member to come back to the bill. 
Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: I am more than happy to Mr Chairperson—more than happy to. So given you have these almost insurmountable—almost insurmountable—problems in Canterbury surely it is time to unleash a bit of passion down there and let people have a say. Let people have a say let people have a vote and let people elect men and women from amongst them to lead that province and be part of it. That is the bit that the Government does not get. We will have a world-class city and province in Canterbury if people are allowed to be part of that process—part of the rebuild not just of buildings but of their lives of the social fabric and of the key institutions like for instance Environment Canterbury.  
But I find it interesting that the National Party the sort of free-market anything goes live-and-let-live party the so-called bastion of democracy as its members would argue is the one that came to the House today and put forward a bill that disallows people from having a vote and a say. It has made history in its party today with this piece of legislation because it is barring people from a basic democratic right.