SpeechCLAYTON MITCHELL (NZ First): Whew—I thought I was going to miss my call then. It's the quick or the dead around this place.SPEAKER: Well the member needs to call.CLAYTON MITCHELL: Oh I did. I was up on my feet when I looked across the House and saw nobody rising. So thank you very much sir. I will only be taking a quick call on this.Look the Remuneration Authority (Members of Parliament) Remuneration Amendment Bill (No 2) is a very pragmatic bill and it's great to hear our National colleagues across the House that support this bill. It's going to be a very interesting select committee process as this bill goes through. Just in the six years that I've been in Parliament—or almost six years—we've had two wage freezes which I think has been necessary. As the Minister has pointed out the formula that has been created previously actually created a larger than expected increase on the salaries of MPs. To freeze these wages over these two separate times was a pragmatic approach. I think it was muchly appreciated. But also in 2009 wages were frozen by a decision made by the members of Parliament because of course we went through a recession. It's very hard to justify in this House—you know working on behalf of all New Zealanders—that we were going to get an increase of 3 percent but the rest of New Zealand were on their knees feeling that pinch.So this bill will enable future freezes as well but it does two things. The bill makes two major changes to the system of setting MPs' pay. Firstly it returns the discretion in pay setting to the Remuneration Authority without the use of a formula. Like other public office holders regulated by the Remuneration Authority MPs' pay would be set in accordance with some factors which are outlined inside the bill. The other thing that it does which I think is quite important is that the MPs' pay will occur once every three years at an election cycle and then be looked at annually throughout that term as it comes through. So those are the two major changes.But I want to dispel a couple of myths because of the amount of people that talk to me out there and say that you know it's terrible that New Zealand politicians when they finish up a couple of terms in Parliament get their salaries paid for the rest of their life. That's absolutely not true. They said Oh I thought you only get 80 percent of your salary." I said "No that's not true either." It did happen many many many moons ago. I think that was stopped in about 1992 wasn't it?—I think from memory. It might have been—SPEAKER: Yes it was. I remember it well.CLAYTON MITCHELL: Yeah 1992. To dispel another myth for those people tuned in at home listening we don't get 10 percent flights on Air New Zealand for the rest of our lives either. So thank goodness for that opportunity some people say. Great to see those sorts of things tidied up.But I think in the select committee process we're going to probably hear from a number of submitters. I'm sure we will hear that some submitters think we shouldn't be paid anything at all and that may be true for some members of Parliament; maybe they shouldn't be paid anything at all. But in actual fact I think the majority of New Zealanders feel that the pay needs to be in accordance with other likeminded work that is done—the hours and the commitment and the outputs that are happening. I just want to also underline before finishing off my contribution that it's been great to be part—over the last two and a bit years—of working towards lifting up our minimum wages working towards helping out those people that are the most vulnerable workers in society to have a $17.70 minimum wage. Working towards that $20 per hour over the next two years is absolutely vital in providing that we can add value to those hard-working New Zealanders and I feel like we're contributing well and truly to the wellbeing of all Kiwis.So we will be supporting this bill. I want to acknowledge and thank the National Party for their support moving forward and we look forward to this bill getting to select committee so we can hear from submitters. Thank you sir."