Faafoi Kris: Psychoactive Substances Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading In Committee Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeFaafoi Kris: Psychoactive Substances Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading In Committee Third Reading[Sitting date: 06 May 2014. Volume:698;Page:17536. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]KRIS FAAFOI (Labour—Mana): Thank you very much for letting me have a call on this Committee stage of the Psychoactive Substances Amendment Bill. Clause 7 is the one that I think most people will be focusing on in this debate. There have been a few political volleys fired from both sides of the Chamber tonight but in terms of my constituents they do not care. They just want to make sure that what is being done here tonight is enacted as fast as it can be.I do want to take this opportunity to thank a number of people who certainly—like in Trevor Mallard’s electorate in my electorate in Mana and particularly in Porirua—brought this issue to my attention. Particular thoughts go out to a couple of mothers whose sons were particularly affected and they shall remain nameless but the effect that synthetic cannabis has had on their sons has been immense. Again I will not mention names but one who approached me was very very concerned about her son’s use of the product and then her son went on to assault the shopkeeper of the store that was predominantly selling this stuff in the electorate. So for those people out there who—Hon Trevor Mallard: After she talked to you?KRIS FAAFOI: After she talked to me. So for those people out there who are I guess judging why this has come about whether or not they think this is vote grabbing or just reacting to media coverage I can tell them right now that that is definitely not the case. I guess this is a win for those of us who have heard the concerns ofcommunities who have reflected it to our caucuses—and who cares who came first because this absolutely needed to happen.In particular I do want to take the opportunity to thank some people locally: the local police force that brought their concerns to me; the local city council which was not too happy that this House I guess it thought lumbered the responsibility—Hon Trevor Mallard: Peter Dunne asked for it.KRIS FAAFOI: —yes—of a local approved products policy on it. I want to thank some local community workers and a member of a gang who was also concerned. One morning in particular the police let me walk around the canopies in Porirua to see what was going on in the shop and they took me into the shop. Like Trevor Mallard said there was a very long line in the shop and there was regular patronage. But the thing that got me was some 15-year-olds who should have been at school but who were not whom we spoke to. They knew that this product was doing them harm. In fact I was completely baffled as to why one product that was being sold had on the packet “Not fit for human consumption”. That is just mind-boggling.As has been said by Trevor Mallard as well we do regret the fact that some 18 months to 2 years ago the original legislation went through. Although it was a good bill it did have flaws and we are here tonight to make sure that we rectify this because the drugs were having an awful effect in communities. To the person who was representing the Star Trust and who was saying that this House is merely reacting to political concern or concern in the media I say that he is someone who makes money out of other people’s misery so I am not concerned about what he thinks about what this House is doing when something had to be done.Also there are some other people I thank: Jenny Lester from the Porirua Healthy Safer City Trust is someone who brought this to my attention and the Porirua City Council which was making positive steps to bring in a local approved products policy anyway. I guess again it was not overly happy that that responsibility was given to it but it was taking proactive steps towards that. In a submission that I made to that council the council asked why this stuff was not banned altogether and I—as did other members of the Labour caucus—fed all of this feedback into the policy position that we came to a week or so ago.So this bill is a good thing. It is regretful that we have to come here and make good what we thought 18 months ago was going to be a good move. But in the end this stuff is bad news and it should not be sold freely into our communities and 15-year-olds certainly should not be smoking stuff that says “Not fit for human consumption”.