Hipango HareteHARETE HIPANGO (National): Thank you. I rise and address the House as the last speaker for the National Party in opposition to this Charities Amendment Bill. Before I move on to speak to the specifics of the bill in the debate this evening it is appropriate to acknowledge the deceased of Loafers Lodge here in Wellington their families the first responders Fire and Emergency New Zealand the police St John Ambulance the hospital workers and also those charitable organisations that have mobilised around that community. Secondly I also acknowledge those acknowledgments that have been made in the House this evening in terms of tragedies that have occurred in the local communities that we all come from. Cyclone Gabrielle the adverse weather events the recent death of the young man up in Whangārei and the other young persons and also acknowledging again the efforts and charity of our charitable organisations and communities that mobilise and wrap around in support. My third acknowledgment this evening because those earlier ones have tended to address a socio-economic demographic of our most vulnerable communities—I now move to acknowledge the other end of the spectrum: Dame Rosie Horton who gave a lifetime of service and commitment in the charitable fundraising philanthropic area of her life. She died earlier this week and it is appropriate to accordingly acknowledge her for her service because the contribution that was made there meant that there were many in those most vulnerable communities who benefited from her efforts. I now turn to address the bill and the debates in the House this evening. When I spoke to this bill at the first reading on 28 September last year I commenced my speech by stating charity begins at home". It's really important that the Government take heed of it because the meaning of "charity begins at home" is that those in a position of responsibility first and foremost address the very people that they are meant to care most about. Earlier in the debate this evening my colleague Penny Simmonds as the first speaker for the National Party spoke very forthrightly and robustly. However I heard from the Government benches nothing but a rabble raucous retort of what is rational debate. Such behaviour and conduct is uncharitable. We need to focus importantly on the substance of the debate and not target the debater.So I turn now to the bill. This bill came before the scrutiny of the Social Services and Community Committee. It was introduced into the House on 21 September last year and then referred to the select committee on 28 September. The Minister Hon Priyanca Radhakrishnan was invited to provide an initial briefing to the committee on the bill and she did so on 9 February 2023. Submissions were called for and there was only a month for those submissions to be made from a sector that represents 28000—28000—registered charities. Now those are registered charities—there are numerous other charitable organisations that aren't registered so we're looking much wider in scope. There were 95 interested groups and individuals who made submissions and oral evidence was heard from 28 submitters in Wellington.Now what's been very interesting is some of the contributions from the Government benches this evening. I have found it rather patronising when we hear that there is a Minister and perhaps three other members of the Labour Government sitting on this select committee who come from the experience of working in this sector. I certainly acknowledge that but that should not displace the views and the representation of those 28000 registered charitable organisations in this country as having lesser meaning effect impact and substance—and that is effectively what this Government has done. The National Party has filed a minority view and the substance of that minority view is premised on the views of those submitters representing the majority of those 28000 registered charitable organisations and many non-registered charitable organisations. So the National Party again despite some of the contributions from members in the House because of political orientations that go with it—what I emphasise in this House this evening is that the National Party take heed and listen to the sector most affected and most impacted by legislation that comes before this House.Submissions: written and oral. I quote Sue Barker who is a specialist charities lawyer and member of the core reference group for the review of the Charities Act. "The Government has no mandate to pass this Bill. The Bill represents a broken manifesto promise"—heard that before—"and does nothing to meet its stated objective to 'support charities to continue their vital contribution to community wellbeing' … It is a sad indictment on our democracy that policy"—in other words the Government officials from the Department of Internal Affairs who have driven the shaping the structure the content of this Charities Amendment Bill that their advice has been accepted "without critical examination". So "It is a sad indictment on our democracy that policy is effectively being set by an unelected and largely unaccountable bureaucracy while the fundamental concerns that the vast bulk of the charitable sector are consistently ignored." So important that the public is aware of this—"a sad indictment on our democracy". This is something that New Zealand has experienced time and time again from this Government and here we have that again repeated in this Charities Amendment Bill.My colleagues have addressed those members who were on the select committee which I wasn't on at that time—have addressed the detail of the bill. There's a significant section within the Charities Act itself that is not being addressed within this amendment bill: section 5 which is the very definition of charitable organisation—what is a charity? That has been totally dispensed with.So the other point that I make is that not only were there those 95 written submissions 28 oral submissions there had been extensive public consultation in 2019 with engagement of 1200 people at that time—the online presentation was viewed 650 times and there were 364 written submissions at that time. Again the feedback from the community: those persons representing and advocating for the 28000 registered charities in New Zealand their views were dispensed with because it would seem that the Minister and those members from the Labour Government sitting on the select committee—where the select committee is weighted heavily in favour of the Government who has the majority say and rule on this—know better than the charities sector of our country. Disappointingly this bill is going to be passed into law dispensing with the very views of those people who know better—who know best actually—than this Government. It's on that basis that the National Party opposes this bill. In conclusion I do not commend this bill to the House."