Henare PeeniPEENI HENARE (Labour—Tāmaki Makaurau): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker. Thank you very much for this opportunity to reply. Can I thank the Hon Maryan Street who—[Interruption]The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): No no. Order! Can I just ask the people on the cross benches to settle down. We will start this time again. Thank you.PEENI HENARE: Mr Assistant Speaker tēnā koe. Thank you very much. Can I start by thanking the Hon Maryan Street who attempted to bring a bill like this into the House a number of years ago. Interestingly enough looking through the Hansard and looking through that debate I am not exactly surprised to hear what we have heard from the Government this evening. In fact it is almost a cut-and-paste attempt to try to belittle this bill.Trade Aid presented a petition signed by 17000 people in 2005. That was over a decade ago. I would imagine and in fact if that petition were to run again—and this is an idea for us to consider—I daresay there would be more than 17000 people who would support this bill or the intention of this bill and I want to thank them for their efforts in years gone past.As I look across this House I wonder how different it would be if people told Kate Sheppard and the women's suffrage movement: That's too hard to do." I wonder how different this House would look. I wonder how different New Zealand would look if members in this House told my esteemed colleague Louisa Wall that the marriage equality legislation was too hard to do. I wonder how different New Zealand would look if in the face of such odds my colleague backed down. We are fortunate that she did not. I wonder too then from the House to New Zealand to across the world what the world would look like if David Lange had backed down in front of the major superpowers of the world instead of standing up for nuclear-free Aotearoa New Zealand. Those are three examples of brave positions taken by socially progressive parties and socially progressive politicians in Aotearoa New Zealand to make a change here in this House across Aotearoa New Zealand and indeed in the world.I take the point by Mr Tabuteau and I do want to thank New Zealand First and the Green Party for their outright support of this bill. I take his point and I believe in it. Human rights if adhered to if promoted are in fact good for business. When customers walk through a jewellery store and see a diamond I wonder what they think about that diamond and where that diamond has come from. The blood diamond trade is well documented. If we say that it is just simply too hard to take a stand against such an abhorrent trade then I am afraid this world is going to be a poorer place. This world will be a poorer place if we back down from taking a stand. In a time when trade is as important to Aotearoa New Zealand as it was in the time of my ancestors I wonder whether our country—our Government—is brave enough to redefine the landscape of trade moving into the future. I wonder whether it is brave enough. In terms of the contributions this evening although I do thank many members across the House for their praise of my athletic skill on the rugby field—and I am sure I heard some mention of my good looks—I am saddened to hear that the Government is not brave enough to support this bill and allow democratic processes—The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Order! The member cannot accuse another party of a lack of bravery.PEENI HENARE: Tēnā koe. Thank you Mr Assistant Speaker. In closing—I understand my time is nearly up—I want to finish with the words to a song. The Leader of the Opposition knows all the words to this song I can say. Old pirates yes they rob ISold I to the merchant shipsMinutes after they took IFrom the bottomless pit.I hope that this country takes a stand against slavery right across the world. Tēnā koe."