Brown Peter: Shop Trading Hours Act Repeal (Easter Trading)Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Brown Peter: Shop Trading Hours Act Repeal (Easter Trading)Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:639;Page:9312] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 I can only endorse what my leader the Rt Hon Winston Peters said. We have been trying to pursue this sort of legislation for many a year and when a bill came out in Winston’s name a few years ago we tried very hard to get the House to adopt it. There are a number of differences between Winston’s bill and this bill. One as I recall it is that the New Zealand First bill applied to only Tauranga and Rotorua whilst this bill will apply nationwide. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: Ours was nationwide. 
PETER BROWN 
: I stand corrected: ours applied nationwide. But there is another difference which is that this bill contains some protection for people who might be required to work on Easter Sunday. I have not advised my leader of this but recently I met with some union officials who outlined that concern in some detail. New Zealand First is of course accepting this legislation in the genuine sense of the conscience vote. Although we are all voting in favour of the bill we recognise there is a legitimate concern for people who may be required to work on that day. 
So when the bill reaches the Committee stage a Supplementary Order Paper in my name will propose an amendment to make it mandatory for a review after 2 years of the situation of workers. In other words if workers are taken unfair advantage of within the 2-year period—assuming this bill is passed of course—then the Department of Labour will conduct a review. The department will then report to the Minister and the Minister will make the findings known to the House. I am hopeful that those people who support this bill will support that amendment. I will be writing to MPs advising them of the Supplementary Order Paper. I apologise that I have not done it as yet; we have only just worked on it. But it is an important consideration. The folk I met with—and I have discussed this with some of my colleagues—have to my mind got a major issue of concern. So it is only reasonable that we put in a review process—at least that is as I see it. 
The other important aspect to this bill which makes it quite different from the earlier bill that was rejected is that it excludes Good Friday. I understand that the last bill was modified to exclude Good Friday except for certain events or what have you. But this bill makes Good Friday totally exempt as a shopping day. We in New Zealand First view that as an important factor. Good Friday has some very special meanings attached to it particularly for the Christian community of this country. I am told from the census report that over 50 percent of people in this country still claim to be Christian—and good on them. 
One of the major concerns we have is that the current law is uneven and we know that at times of extended holidays cruise ships quite often come into places like Mount Maunganui and Tauranga Harbour. The passengers come off the ships and look for somewhere to go shopping. Bus and taxi operators take advantage of the situation by advertising that the shops are open in Taupo and the operators take them all there. So the passengers come off cruise ships get in buses and taxis pass through Tauranga and Rotorua and go on to Taupo. If that makes sense to anybody in this House then I ask them please to explain it because I do not understand it. There we have two major holiday resorts yet tour buses take passengers from cruise liners and drive them all the way through to Taupo. Taupo is of course— 
Te Ururoa Flavell 
: Taupo. 
PETER BROWN 
: Have I not pronounced that correctly? I do apologise to my colleague; I do not mean to be disrespectful. I guess that is the “Pommy-ness” coming out in me. How I pronounce the word is a common way of doing so—but I am getting better. 
 It does irritate the community in Tauranga and Rotorua and it is only right and fair that we get standard legislation that goes across the country. This bill does that. 
Jacqui Dean 
: No. It doesn’t. 
PETER BROWN 
: The member says “No.”? I bet the member votes for it. 
It is only right and proper that we try to standardise the legislation in so much as local councils will determine whether shops are open. We think that is fair. 
I close by reminding the House that there will be a Supplementary Order Paper in my name to ask for a review of the worker protection clauses. I trust that members will give that serious consideration and give it some support at the Committee stage.