SpeechHARETE HIPANGO (National): So on Thursday evening at approximately 4.45 I rise to take a call for the National Party on the Statutes Amendment Bill. I acknowledge members who served on the Governance and Administration Committee the previous speaker Naisi Chen being one of those and my colleague Ian McKelvie who is the chairperson and MP for Rangitīkei.Not having sat on this committee and being enlightened by all the amendments that came before the committee—this bill was referred to the select committee on 8 March earlier this year with the closing of submissions to be presented on 20 April of this year. There were 16 submissions that were received and all 16 of those were considered by members of the select committee. Advice had been received from the Ministry of Justice and also Te Arawhiti which is the Māori-Crown agency and also notably advice from the Office of the Clerk on the bill's legislative quality and the Parliamentary Counsel Office assisted with legal drafting. The reason why I've made particular mention of those offices is that there is an inordinate amount of work that goes on behind the scenes particularly noting that this Statutes Amendment Bill as has been said is an omnibus bill which is dealing with multiple numbers of Acts—42 specifically in relation to this Statutes Amendment Bill. And within the framework of this as an omnibus bill 62 amendments have been proposed and outlined in the bill.It was interesting when I picked up the bill to have a cursory glance and my eye was drawn specifically in particular to noting that this bill is made up of 41 parts and four schedules. So in my Māori development spokesperson role the lens of my eye was drawn to in particular Part 25A which references amendments to the Ngāti Manuhiri Claims Settlement Act of 2012. Minister Little addressed the House in terms of the particular and the detailed and the important provisions around that amendment.My eye also with a Māori development lens was drawn to Part 28 Amendment to Port Nicholson Block (Taranaki Whānui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika) Claims Settlement Act 2009" and then of particular and relevant significant note for myself personally as uri a descendant of Whanganui having spent all my life in Whanganui and generations before me too to Part 39 which is "Amendment to Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Act 2017".I was in the House on the day that that particular bill was passed into law and that was a significant time for Whanganui for uri of Whanganui because it was in the making of some 128-130 years before we arrived at that point. So my eye has been drawn to that. My colleague Simon O'Connor made reference to Part 41 amendments to the Wine Act—"wine" without an "h". I'm going to highlight Part 39 Whanganui with the "h". That took some time—and it was controversial for the "h" to be gazetted—for the recognition of we of Whanganui and the significance of it. So that is Part 39.I'm going to address specifically clause 119 of the bill and it's important for me to be able to address this under the Statutes Amendment Bill. Clause 119 of this bill amends the Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Act 2017; in particular clause 120 amends Schedule 3 of the principal Act inserting "If the term of appointment of a person appointed to Te Pou Tupua expires"—and to explain to members of the public and also members in this gallery Te Pou Tupua is the human face and representative of Te Awa Tupua the Whanganui River. This was significant international legislation—significant for we of Whanganui but significant internationally because this was a legal personification of our tūpuna of a natural asset: the flowing waters of the Whanganui River.Clause 120(3) is dealing with the appointment of Te Pou Tupua one of the two legal faces representing the Whanganui River. If the term of the appointment of that Te Pou Tupua person expires "unless that person resigns or is removed from office that person continues to hold office by virtue of the appointment for the term that has expired until—(a)that person is reappointed; or (b) a successor to that person is appointed." I'm labouring the point a little bit but there is specific and personal relevance. A former member of Parliament of this House—Dame Tariana Turia—was one of the first of those two Te Pou Tupua to be the legal representative of the Whanganui River in the personification and recognition of that as a living being an essence.So this is quite significant for we of Whanganui in terms of the Statutes Amendment Bill. As has been said the National Party does support this bill. It's one of the few bills that comes before the House that does have unanimous support across all parties for this. In recognition of the importance—although it may not be seen to be important by members of the public and perhaps some members of this House—the fact that there are 42 Acts that have 62 amendments under 41 parts with four schedules says that it is somewhat significant.So in closing the National Party does commend this bill. And finally my last commentary is that my eye has also been drawn to relevant significant parts to do with our children in terms of the service that I gave in the Family Court and in the child welfare sector and also representing victims particularly in the domestic violence and the family violence—there are provisions within this Statutes Amendment Bill that make modifications or amendments to bring everything to contemporise it and to make it consistent. So on that note I commend the bill to the House."