Goudie Sandra: New Zealand Sign Language Bill — In Committee 
Goudie Sandra: New Zealand Sign Language Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:630;Page:2162] 
SANDRA GOUDIE (National—Coromandel) 
: 
 I am very pleased to be able to speak in support of the New Zealand Sign Language Bill on behalf of National. During this process I have learnt a great deal about New Zealand Sign Language and its importance to the Deaf community. One of the things I have learnt is that when we are speaking to people who are using a sign language interpreter—and I am delighted to see that we have one in the House this afternoon—it is important to speak slowly. So that is something I have learnt and I am making a conscious effort to put into practice. 
On that premise I think learning is one of the great things about sharing other people’s stories and valuing their contribution and understanding a little of what they experience every day. I was intrigued to note that even the Deaf community change their language and the New Zealand Sign Language as they learn develop and evolve. In being sensitive to other communities and their needs they have changed some of their signing. 
Brian Connell raised an interesting point when speaking to Part 1. Yes members of the Deaf community have protections under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act but I am pleased to see that those protections are enhanced by the New Zealand Sign Language Bill. One of the things that was very important to me was to see that the appropriate sign language interpreters are available during any criminal process and that includes where deaf people might be apprehended. 
In my initial speech in the House I related a story that was shared with me by the Deaf community regarding a policeman who was trying to give an instruction to somebody who was deaf. Because the policeman was standing behind the deaf person the deaf person was unaware of the policeman requiring him to do something. So what happened? The policeman probably got mad and of course the deaf person was still unaware of that taking place. As a consequence having been cautioned a number of times the person was then duly arrested. None of us likes to see those sorts of situations taking place. We like to see people being given the due consideration care and attention that is necessary but it is hard to know whether someone is deaf and whether he or she can understand us in that kind of situation. 
There have been forums between the Deaf community and the police and there have been some very positive discussions highlighting some areas where there is room for improvement. My understanding from those forums and discussions is that some very positive relationships already exist between the Deaf community and the police but there were also some areas where improvements could be made. I am sure that in the ongoing training of our police personnel their understanding of the Deaf community will be broadened quite substantially. 
Hospitals is another area where there is a concern around interpreters being available. We need to ensure that the diagnosis and the explanation of symptoms is very clear and understood and not misinterpreted. This does of course require a level of great expertise on the part of the interpreter and there are differing degrees of capability with interpreters. There is no provision as was pointed out by my colleague Brian Connell for ongoing costs associated with the provision of interpreters.