Curran Clare: Motor Vehicle Sales Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
Curran Clare: Motor Vehicle Sales Amendment Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
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CLARE CURRAN (Labour—Dunedin South) 
: 
 I want to talk a bit about the comments made by my colleague the Hon Lianne Dalziel about people’s purchasing habits online. Although she may not yet have made her first online car purchase many many New Zealanders have. I do not have the statistics to hand but many New Zealanders are purchasing motor vehicles camera lenses and other things online. There is a growing trend whereby people are buying and selling houses online and as my colleague Carol Beaumont mentioned today these are major purchases and major decisions in their lives. When people enter into a contract to buy or sell those sorts of items it is absolutely critical that purchasers in particular can trust the process and trust that they are not being duped. That is one of the reasons why this bill is very important. 
I thank all my colleagues on the Commerce Committee for their work on this bill. I also thank Heather Roy the previous Minister of Consumer Affairs for her work on the bill and her work generally in that portfolio area. I congratulate the Minister in the chair the Hon John Boscawen the incoming Minister of Consumer Affairs on his new role. I really look forward to hearing his pronouncements and what he has to say on this bill and on future issues concerning consumers. 
One of the most important things about this bill is that it is very much a common-sense measure and a step in the right direction. That is why Labour is supporting it. The bill makes some quite important amendments to current law. As members have heard the bill was initiated under the previous Labour Government. Given New Zealanders’ high proportion of vehicle ownership the bill will make a difference for many consumers as other speakers have said. Members on this side of the Chamber certainly care about consumers and any legislation that protects consumers is important. 
As my colleague Lianne Dalziel also mentioned Labour is perplexed as to why this bill has come up again under urgency. I think this is the third time I have spoken on this bill and every single time I have spoken on it the House has I think been in urgency. Although the bill is obviously tremendously urgent it seems to have taken quite a long time in between the bits of urgency for it to come back to the House. I am a bit perplexed as to how something can be so urgent yet have a big pause until the next bit. I have been scratching my head about that given the important issues out there at the moment in terms of the number of New Zealanders who are out of work and the fact that the economy is trying to move out of a very bumpy recession. I would have thought that an important priority of the Government would be to try to create jobs and get people back into work. However this urgent bill must somehow fit into a wider plan that maybe we are not aware of at the moment. 
I have been thinking about the last time I spoke on this bill and I think it is worthwhile mentioning a few points again given the quite lively discussion that followed. We know that many people are struggling to afford to run a car let alone considering selling one and buying another because of the rising costs they are facing as a result of the emissions trading scheme. I am sure the new Minister of Consumer Affairs the Hon John Boscawen will have a number of things to say about the fact that those costs are being put on to ordinary consumers that they are facing rises in GST and that many of them are losing jobs and struggling to find new ones. 
The last time I spoke on this bill I reflected on the importance of the decision to buy a new car. I reflected on my first decision to buy a car. That car was a 1948 Morris Ten. It was kind of blue with runner boards and those little indicators that flick out. It had a crank thing in it although I did not have to use it very often. The car’s name was Maurice and he was a great car. I had him for about a year and a half and then I sold him. He cost $125 to buy and I sold him about a year and a half later for $125 which I thought was a pretty good deal. 
I asked other members who were speaking on this bill to reflect on their first cars. We on this side of the Chamber have a good outlet through which to express our views and get our thoughts out there. I am referring to our blog Red Alert. I am sure that a few members have heard of it and might even read it. I mentioned this issue on Red Alert and there has been an extraordinary number of responses right across the House and out in the community. Some people got quite emotional when they recalled their first cars and the importance of that purchasing decision which brings me back to the Motor Vehicle Sales Amendment Bill. Consumers need to be protected. 
Today I put the same question to the incoming Minister of Consumer Affairs the Hon John Boscawen. He might like to share with us some of his purchasing decisions about cars. I am sure we would all be really interested to know what his first car was. I think that the decisions people make about important purchases say a lot about them. It would be really interesting to know about other members’ first cars. I wonder what Tony Ryall’s first car was. I know that the Speaker Dr The Rt Hon Lockwood Smith takes a great interest in car-purchasing decisions as I am sure does the presiding officer at the moment Eric Roy. 
I come back to the Motor Vehicle Sales Amendment Bill and its importance. The bill amends the Motor Vehicle Sales Act which was passed by the previous Labour Government in December 2003. The bill is important because it brings the provisions in that legislation into the 21st century. It makes those consumer protections more transparent and it makes sure that the new technologies that have emerged since then and are being used in the sales of vehicles are robust. It would be interesting to do a search on TradeMe to see whether there are any 1948 Morris Ten cars for sale. TradeMe is where many people these days are looking for and purchasing vehicles. 
The bill introduces a new registration regime for motor vehicle traders and it also makes them more accountable to consumers. It will also offer some degree of flexibility in terms of participation in the motor vehicle industry. We have heard that the policy that underpins this legislation has several core elements that ensure accountability. They include the requirement for those who trade vehicles to be registered more disclosure concerning used motor vehicles and the provision for consumer remedies through the Motor Vehicle Disputes Tribunal. I know that my colleague Carol Beaumont has quite a lot of good thoughts on that. The bill increases the financial limit on the jurisdiction of the Motor Vehicle Disputes Tribunal from $50000 to $100000 which is very important given that consumers have avenues for recourse when it comes to trading. It also intends to reduce the compliance costs.