Tirikatene Rino: Employment Relations (Protection of Young Workers) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Tirikatene Rino: Employment Relations (Protection of Young Workers) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 05 December 2012. Volume:686;Page:7204. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
RINO TIRIKATENE (Labour—Te Tai Tonga) 
: 
 Tena koe Mr Speaker. First of all I would like to acknowledge all of the contributions in this debate that have been in support of this bill the Employment Relations (Protection of Young Workers) Amendment Bill. I mihi to the Green Party to the New Zealand First Party and of course to my own colleagues here. Can I just say that there is a Maori whakatauki—it is the most famous whakatauki of the Maori people—and it says: “Ka pu te ruha ka hao te rangatahi.” When the fishing net gets old it is replaced by a new and younger net. I must say that I am very proud to sponsor this bill. It is my first bill in this House. This bill protects the most vulnerable our children. Just as the whakatauki says that the old net shall be cast aside that is what will be happening to this Government. It will be cast aside because the new net is coming through and that new net is here on this side of the House. 
What did we hear from the line-up of speakers? We heard a line-up of the most mean-spirited Victorian era Dickensian—out of Dickens’ books—speakers. Mr Auchinvole even put on the accent with a bit of flair. It is very sad because firstly they did not even read the bill. This bill has nothing to do with domestic chores. That is specifically excluded. So Mr Simpson you and your 16-year-old who is mowing your lawns—I am sure he has hustled you because if you cannot read the bill that 16-year-old is definitely hustling you Mr Simpson. There is no absurdity about this bill. This bill is standing up for our young children. They are up and down the country. We know it. Every day we go back to our homes we look in the letterbox and there is that flotsam and jetsam that detritus all that junk mail that gets into our letterboxes. That material is delivered by your nieces your nephews mokopuna children tamariki up and down the country and there are hundreds of them. 
This is a significant bill because it does really make a difference and it will make a difference to the lives of working young people. I am talking about 9 10 11 and 12-year-olds all the way up to 16-year-olds right up and down the length and breadth of this country. They do need protection because as vulnerable independent contractors they have no rights. They do not have rights to sick leave. What does the single mother do when her child the deliverer has to go out and deliver hundreds of pamphlets and that child is off-colour and cannot go out? What does the single mother do? Does she go out with her other children to go and do the delivery work? Does she say to her child “Harden up son or daughter. You will have to go out there and do that work.”? There needs to be protection for our young people. Parents know; that is why parents are very unhappy and they are complaining up and down the country. 
We do need to protect our young people so I am very proud to have brought this bill to the House. It is a most worthy bill. It is there to protect our young people our young workers up and down the country. I would like to thank those who have supported me on this bill. I commend it to the House and I encourage you all to vote for it. Kia ora ano tatou.