Jones Shane: Local Electoral (Repeal of Race-Based Representation) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Jones Shane: Local Electoral (Repeal of Race-Based Representation) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:639;Page:9883] 
SHANE JONES (Labour) 
: 
 Tena koe Mr Deputy Speaker. I stand to take a short call on this wretched bill put forward by Mr Ryall trying to foster discord no doubt in the Bay of Plenty. There is something very interesting in the general policy statement of the bill. It states “At present the Local Electoral Act 2001 provides the option of Maori wards and constituencies at district council and regional council levels and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council (Maori Constituency Empowering) Act 2001 mandates such seats in that region.” There is something very important here surrounding the word “option”. 
The people in Te Moana-a-Toi mai i Nga Kuri-a-Wharei ki Tihirau of course Mr Ryall is completely oblivious of. We see it every day when he is feeding some half-baked mix of a toxic diet to the people of the Bay of Plenty. Well we are not going to have it not for the iwi and the tangata whenua of that area. They deserve a far better mix of ideas and leadership which is why I follow with a great deal of confidence my friend Mr Hereora and my Pakeha kaumatua from Tai Tokerau Mr Donnelly. I stand with Mr Hereora to condemn and consign this piece of irrelevancy to the dust heap of history. We only hope that Mr Ryall soon goes in that direction. 
The notion of an option is that people in that region decide what is best for that region; they have a shot at choosing what is going to suit their circumstances. Why is it that he single-handedly should believe that this House would want to support him in overwhelming the goodwill the common sense and the vision of the vast majority of the people of that part of Aotearoa who want Pakeha Maori and whoever else that is there to live harmoniously? They do not want to see his divisive plots littering the floor of this Chamber. That game was run by Mr Ryall and a few in  
The Hollow Men 
. Of course in that book it was evident that Mr Ryall had his knickers in a twist or as I said that the ladder in his intellectual stocking was well and truly evident. No we will not have any of that. We will not allow that type of poor thinking and those kinds of ill-conceived ideas. It is almost as if something lurks there hiding. No we cannot allow that to intrude upon these matters of national identity and regional leadership on questions of identity in Te Moana-a-Toi Bay of Plenty. 
Despite the best efforts of Mr Carter reciting a potted history of social relationships in Tai Tokerau aided by Mr Donnelly a part of what they say is inaccurate because they overlook the word “option”. That lies at the pith of why this side of House sees no drama no angst and no danger in initiatives of this nature. The people in that region have the choice as to how they believe their community can be strengthened and enriched so that the representatives not only have to speak for the majority culture but come via different conduits and speak for the entire region. 
It is a region with a great deal of potential despite the nature of its current representative. It is a region that deserves the scope and the latitude to make its own decisions about matters that are at the grass roots—the flax roots. The less we hear from Mr Ryall about these matters of sensitivity— 
Hon Member 
: Scratching the itch. 
SHANE JONES 
: No I will not go there on the question of itch. He knows exactly what he is doing and the sooner we dismiss this bill and rule him completely out of order on matters to do with race relations the better. Kia ora tatou.