Martin Tracey: Radio New Zealand Amendment Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeMartin Tracey: Radio New Zealand Amendment Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 19 May 2015. Volume:705;Page:3438. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]TRACEY MARTIN (Deputy Leader—NZ First): It has been an interesting debate while I have been sitting in the House particularly the interaction between the Government members and the Labour Party members trying to figure out who took the longest to get nowhere.I just want to quote a few statements with regard to this particular bill. This is what has been said previously about this bill: “This bill languished under the last administration whereas this Government is committed to fulfilling its legislative responsibilities.” It just never got around to doing it. “This is an unfair situation for Radio New Zealand and it shows that the previous Minister [of Broadcasting] had other priorities. It is highly desirable that the related legislative process be concluded as soon as possible to ensure that Radio New Zealand can operate to an up-to-date and clear public service mandate. The adoption into legislation of the revised charter supports this Government’s manifesto commitment to provide certainty in relation to the operations of public service broadcasters.” Those quotes were from the Minister of Broadcasting at the time the Hon Dr Coleman of the National Government back in 2009.Members on the Government benches have made much of the fact that the original review around the content of the charter was made in 2005 with 135 submissions at the time and that the Commerce Committee at that time considered those submissions and then came up with a few tweaks and so on for the charter. It then came back to this House which then needed to be turned into legislation which then went back to the Commerce Committee.So there has been much made by the National Government members in an attempt to override what they knew was going to be a drumming when they came into this House with this bill. The reason why they were going to get a drumming—and they knew it—was that those statements were made in 2009 about how important this piece of legislation was and they were made by the Minister about how terrible it was that it had been left for 3 years and nothing had happened. And now here we are 6 years later under a National Government looking at the same piece of legislation which fascinatingly even though it has changed almost not a jot since 2009 is now apparently—according to the speakers from the Government benches—going to completely update and modernise Radio New Zealand for the new digital age and for the many media platforms that are available now.That is a miracle. It is a miracle that when something just sits on the Order Paper for 6 years it suddenly becomes the answer for the future. Maybe we should just leave everything on the Order Paper and then eventually it will morph itself into the future. Well that would be lovely but you know like I know Mr O’Connor that that is not going to happen.But let us just take some other quotes. This speaker on this bill said the following: “I commend Dr Coleman for his courage to take action over this bill a bill that was an example of the Labour Party resting on its laurels and not getting legislation through this House. It is a brave move by Dr Coleman to take this legislation on and move it quickly through the House.” So what happened to that courage which started in 2009 and now we are here in 2015? What happened—Chris Bishop: We got busy.TRACEY MARTIN: What happened Mr Bishop? What happened to the courage? Did all the courage leave the House when the members of the original Commerce Committee that looked at this bill left? Is that what happened Mr Bishop? There is no more courage left to drive such important legislation through this House and that is why it has spent 6 years sitting on this Order Paper?It fascinates me that we have had National Party members stand and passionately argue how important—how important—public broadcasting service is for New Zealand. And it absolutely is. New Zealand First absolutely agrees that there must be an independent non-commercial public broadcaster for New Zealand. We agree and we believe as the Green Party spokesperson said that there should be a public broadcasting non-commercial television station. Ms Collins holds her head in her hands—now she sits on the Education and Science Committee. What a shame she was not on the committee when she was a Minister because she would have heard her Government members on that select committee at the time also raving and being very passionate about Learning Media and its opportunity to create digital content in visual and in radio form that would retain the voice of New Zealand across our public service radio. But Miss Collins was not there and now holds her head in her hands in a back seat backbench position.Of course what happened was that this Government on the one hand said that this was a wonderful thing and Learning Media had this opportunity and could keep the New Zealand voice there for New Zealanders. Then the Government drove it out of business by opening Learning Media up to 100 percent competition while at the same time it had its hands tied behind its back with regard to what it had to provide for the Government for free.So it is fascinating to listen to the Government members stand and argue how much they believe in public broadcasting and how much they believe that this institution should remain and should be well funded. They have not funded it properly for the last 7 years but today after 6 years of this being on the Order Paper—so Radio New Zealand not technically having a legal charter or at least not a charter that has been reviewed in the modern age and not increasing its funding in any other way—they have decided that it is incredibly important and that they must push it through.It will be interesting to see what is in the Budget. Is there any money Mr Bishop in the Budget for Radio New Zealand? Is there any money Mr Bishop? Will you finally give public broadcasting money? After all the statements made will that Government finally give public broadcasting any more money?Chris Bishop: Wait and see. It’s a good Budget.TRACEY MARTIN: Is that a no Mr Bishop? Is that a no? Is that a no Mr Bishop?Chris Bishop: It’s a good Budget. It’s a good Budget Tracey.TRACEY MARTIN: That is a no. There you go. So unfortunately for Radio New Zealand and those people in New Zealand who believe in public broadcasting do not look to this Government to try to fund it appropriately. They will talk the talk in the middle of night. They will talk the talk but they will not walk the walk. So do not expect anything inside this Budget.The only other thing that New Zealand First would say is that it is incredibly important that we keep an independent voice but is Radio New Zealand currently as independent and informative as it should be for the New Zealand public? I think one needs to go and have a look and we challenge the broadcaster itself to go and have a look. Is it unbiased in its political reporting for example? Does it gain comment from across the whole of the political spectrum on issues that are of importance?We would challenge it to go and have a look at the percentages of its reporting and the percentage of comment that it seeks from political party spokespersons on issues that are of importance—important enough for it to put on the radio station and make programmes about such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. It appears to be picking and choosing political parties in order to gain a bias. New Zealand First would argue that there are voices in the political arena that New Zealanders need to hear on issues like the Trans-Pacific Partnership on issues like foreign investment and on issues that this Government has been trying to push through again and again through a misrepresentation to the New Zealand people.We would suggest that it is not only timely for this organisation to have its charter passed through here so that it can actually provide comprehensive independent accurate impartial and balanced regional national and international news and current affairs. We would encourage it to seek comment from every political party inside this House on a regular basis and in an apolitical manner.Do not be frightened of the National Government. Make sure that you keep in the charter comments that are here in the charter. We would absolutely support that this bill needs to be passed now so that Radio New Zealand can actually get on with its business. We also would support that if there are any crumbs left in the Budget Mr Bishop perhaps we could throw a few to Radio New Zealand. Otherwise New Zealand First joins with the other Opposition parties in saying that we actually believe in public broadcasting and we would fund it to the level it should be appropriately funded at.