Yates Dianne: Third Readings 
Yates Dianne: Third Readings 
[Volume:625;Page:19842] 
DIANNE YATES (Labour—Hamilton East) 
: 
 I want to refer to some of the problems that have been highlighted which resulted in the Legislation (Incorporation by Reference) Bill being introduced to the House. First of all when the original Building Bill was reported back there were problems caused by the inclusion of standard clauses—that is the Legislation Advisory Committee guidelines were followed in preparing the bill. It was highlighted at that stage that those clauses could possibly infringe the copyright interests of third parties. The Department of Building and Housing and the Ministry of Economic Development took legal advice. There was a divergence of views and in order to clear up that matter the Legislation (Incorporation by Reference) Bill came before the House which has been split into the Building Amendment Bill (No 3) the Commerce Amendment Bill (No 4) the Copyright Amendment Bill and the Health Amendment Bill. 
This legislation assures us that we are complying with the copyright legislation and that eventually we will save New Zealand a good deal of money should there be cases under the previous situation of costly legal action for breach of copyright. I point out that the stakeholders and Standards New Zealand were consulted in the formation of the Legislation (Incorporation by Reference) Bill. When the Government Administration Committee called for submissions the stakeholders did not appear before it but they had said that they agreed with the bill. Standards New Zealand came and explained the legal implications around copyright. 
There was a good deal of grandstanding about the Building Act. I note that Nick Smith said in this House just a few minutes ago that we are crying out for rules in the building industry. He said that yet the previous National Government of which he was a member was responsible for the deregulation of the building industry which was responsible for the multiple problems around weathertightness. That was not the result of poor design builders or timber but of all those things that came about through deregulation and then a building boom. The member knows that his friend George Chapman who is president of the National Party was the chair of the Building Industry Authority in the late 1990s when the weathertightness issue was drawn to its attention—and what did he do? 
Georgina Beyer 
: Nothing! 
DIANNE YATES 
: Exactly. I have to thank the Labour Government for facing up to the crisis in the building industry and bringing in a better system. 
I will just point out too a couple of issues. One concerns the issue of not being able to build one’s own house. That is actually rubbish. In the present situation anybody can wire his or her own house. An electrician has to come in and sign off that the wiring is OK and that the house will not burn down. This legislation states that anybody can build his or her own house but that a registered builder has to come in and say that it has been done properly that it will not fall down and that it will still have some resale value. That is terribly important to anybody who builds his or her own house. During the inquiry on weathertightness we heard that in New Zealand at the moment anyone who has a ute a radio a hammer and a dog can build a house. It does not require anybody to have any building expertise. The legislation states that people can build their own houses but they just have to have someone sign off that they have done it properly. I just wanted to clear up that matter. 
In respect of this legislation Nick Smith and other speakers have been grandstanding for the National Party. Dr Richard Worth who chairs the Regulations Review Committee and members of that committee which consists largely of lawyers have said that in this case it is necessary to change the law in order to make sure that we do not infringe copyright. I thank Dr Worth and that select committee for their opinion on this legislation.