Tisch Lindsay: Immigration Amendment Bill (No 2) — Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
Tisch Lindsay: Immigration Amendment Bill (No 2) — Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:609;Page:6804] 
LINDSAY TISCH (NZ National—Piako) 
: This has been an interesting debate. It is a debate under urgency and Government members have not been prepared to stand up take calls and articulate and support legislation that will infringe the rights of so many people. Not one of them has stood up and taken a call the whole of this morning when we have been here pointing out that this legislation will affect 46000 people whose applications will be expunged at the stroke of a pen after the third reading today. That is what will happen. There is no opportunity for anybody to attend a select committee; there are no submissions no transparency and no consultation. Yet this is a Government that has said in the past that consultation and open government is what it stands for. 
Today the Minister of Immigration is denying those people the opportunity to come to New Zealand in good faith and add value to our community and society as a whole. Today the Government will expunge their rights and those people will be out. Everything has been overridden. Where is the natural justice when with a stroke of a pen today the Government says: “You’re not wanted here; get on your bike you’re out?” What about all the people who have come from areas like Zimbabwe? Every week in my electorate of Piako I am getting numerous requests from people from Zimbabwe who have come to New Zealand. They have no certainty that they can stay here. What have they got if they go home? They have actually got nothing. Those people are absolutely stateless. They have nothing to go back to. This Government has had an opportunity over the last 4 years to make those people welcome here. They are the kinds of people we want; they can add value. But no they are down and out on their luck and this Government today is saying: “We don’t want you. You can’t add any value to what we are doing. You’re down and out.” 
If I look at how this department will operate in the future under Part 2 I see that any mistakes that have been made by officers will be deemed to be valid. The slate will be clean. It is like the Clean Slate Bill that the Justice and Electoral Committee is talking about. This is what will happen here; there will be a clean slate because mistakes misdemeanours or whatever will be deemed to be valid. I do not know of anybody or any organisation that does not have to account for its actions. But clause 5 of this bill is headed: “Past order and manner of processing applications deemed valid”. Where is the accountability? Where is the transparency that one would expect? If I am employing somebody then I would expect him or her to front up and to rectify anything that is not up to par. But under clause 5 that has been wiped. 
Clause 5 goes on to say in subclause (2) that there will be no appeals against any decision to process or not to process an application for a visa or a permit. There is actually no appeal process. What about those 46000 people whom I mentioned before? There is no appeal process. They cannot appeal. Subclause (3) states that no review proceedings may be brought in court in respect of any failure in the process. Once again there are no opportunities for those people. People want their day in court but that is being denied by this clause. They are being denied their day in court. As I asked earlier: where is the natural justice? This measure is going to affect 20000 applications or 46000 people whose livelihood is at stake. This Government is absolutely insensitive to what is required. 
Clause 6 is headed: “Lapsing of certain applications made before 20 November 2002”. This Government has been in power now for 4 years. Why is the Government doing this under urgency today? We are opposed to this.