Finlayson Christopher: Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Finlayson Christopher: Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 10 May 2012. Volume:679;Page:2199. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage) 
: 
 I move  
That the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Bill be now read a second time 
. It was the National Government of Keith Holyoake in the 1960s that created what was then known as the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council of New Zealand and it was the National Government of Jim Bolger that reformed it in the 1990s and for some years it has been known as Creative New Zealand. What this bill does is repeal the 1994 Act the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Act and streamline the governance structure of the Arts Council which is such a hugely important avenue for Government support to the arts in New Zealand.  
Given its central role in the New Zealand arts sector the Arts Council structure needs to be fit for the job and for some time now it has been apparent that that is not the case. The current structure has been shown to be top-heavy and an inefficient drain on resources. Quite frankly having 27 governors of an arts funding organisation does not make sense. This is not a comment on the work of the Arts Council or Te Waka Toi the Pacific Arts Committee or the Arts Board. Their work has been of a very high standard for many years. I was very lucky to chair the Arts Board between 1998 and 2001 and during that time the board did some great things. We introduced the Berlin Writers’ Residency for example and we started going to the Venice Biennale the Olympics of the arts world.  
But an overhaul is required so this bill delivers a leaner more efficient governance structure. The two arts boards the one statutory committee and the council that we currently have will be replaced by a single body the Arts Council. The bill proposes that there be 13 members on the council appointed by the responsible Minister and it is a reform that has been sought by many many people in the arts sector. The legislation removes the excessive governance arrangements and the layers of bureaucracy and it enables resources to be directed where they should go: to artists to performers and to arts organisations.  
But let me be very very clear: the bill does not diminish Maori representation; it strengthens it. At least four members of the new Arts Council will be qualified by their knowledge of tikanga Maori and Maori arts. At least two appointees will have knowledge of the arts and cultures and traditions of the Pacific Island peoples of New Zealand. The Ministers of Maori Affairs and Pacific Island Affairs will have to be consulted on these appointments.  
Very important and we will come to this in greater detail during the Committee stage is the fact that clause 11(1) provides that the four members of the Arts Council who have special knowledge in tikanga Maori are a committee of the Arts Council. That committee if it wished could call itself Te Waka Toi. That would be ultimately a decision for the committee in conjunction with the Arts Council. Clause 11(2) gives the committee a wide range of responsibilities including advising the Arts Council on matters relevant to the functions of the council in relation to Maori arts and any other functions that the Arts Council delegates to it. Clause 11(3)(b) allows the Arts Council to appoint any committees it wants to appoint so the Arts Council for example could decide to appoint a Pacific arts committee.  
The bill also removes the requirement for the Arts Council to provide a strategic plan every 3 years—a pointless exercise if ever there was one. This requirement is considered to be an unnecessary duplication of the obligation to provide a statement of intent under the Crown Entities Act 2004. I remember from my time in Creative New Zealand that no sooner had one completed one strategic plan the whole exercise had to be started again. It was an utter waste of time.  
The Government Administration Committee has recommended that the bill be passed with three minor amendments. There were no substantive objections to clause 10 which relates to the new governance structure. I was very disappointed in the Labour Party’s minority report which quite frankly was as shallow as a bird bath.  
A number of submitters wanted to see more explicit reference in the bill to the Arts Council’s work with young New Zealanders. Although I understand this view the Arts Council’s work is intended to benefit all New Zealanders. The committee correctly concluded that it would be inappropriate to amend clauses 3 and 7 to make more explicit reference to particular demographic segments of the population. As it happens there is provision for youth in the Arts Council’s existing funding programmes. A key criterion in the Creative Communities scheme is encouragement of young people to engage with and participate in the arts. School-based projects considered to be outside a school’s core curricula activities are also eligible to receive support from the scheme.  
The future of community arts was raised in some submissions and the Arts Council is currently focusing on this area. As part of its strategic plan the council has recently implemented developing a new community arts policy. That policy better defines community arts and identifies Creative New Zealand’s role in and responsibilities for community arts activities in this country. It specifies that community arts include the practice of community cultural development the maintenance and transmission of cultural traditions and leisure and recreation activities.  
The committee has recommended clause 4 be amended to remove the word “local” from the definition of “community arts”. This will enable national and regional organisations operating in community arts to apply for funding from the Creative Communities scheme in addition to the general contestable funding streams that they can currently access and that is a very sensible proposal. The change aligns with Creative New Zealand’s new community arts policy.  
The Regulations Review Committee advised that commencement of the Act by Order in Council as introduced in the bill is not really in accordance with the guidelines of the Legislation Advisory Committee so I intend to introduce a Supplementary Order Paper at the Committee stage to alter the commencement date to 4 months after the bill receives the Royal assent. A third amendment strengthens the provisions in the bill relating to the appointment of Arts Board members with knowledge of the arts of the Pacific Islands of New Zealand.  
This is a reform whose time has come. It is one that will impact significantly and positively on the effectiveness of the Arts Council and I very much look forward to the Committee of the whole House stage when we can look at greater detail particularly I imagine at clauses 10 and 11 where there is some misunderstanding about what is going on. I commend the bill to the House.