Shirley Ken: Customs and Excise (Alcoholic Beverages) Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
Shirley Ken: Customs and Excise (Alcoholic Beverages) Amendment Bill — First Reading Second Reading Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:608;Page:5406] 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY (Deputy Leader—ACT NZ) 
: 
 Speaking to Part 1 which includes the— 
Dail Jones 
: I raise a point of order Mr Chairperson. I would have thought that New Zealand First would be next in the order of speaking. 
The CHAIRPERSON (H V Ross Robertson) 
: The member is right but no one from New Zealand First took the call. 
Dail Jones 
: Our member has sought it twice. 
The CHAIRPERSON (H V Ross Robertson) 
: I am sorry. I did not see him. My apologies. I have already called the Hon Ken Shirley. 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY 
: Part 1 contains clause 2 and clause 3. Clause 2 relates specifically to the commencement. ACT has a number of problems with this bill and I wonder whether the Minister in the chair and his colleagues on the Government benches might at this late stage consider withdrawing the bill. 
One of the immediate problems with the commencement is that even though it is past midnight liquor outlets will be open. If they are not open nightclubs will be and they will be selling these light spirits in the 14 to 23 percent alcohol content band. Those people will get caught. Under extraordinary urgency this legislation according to the commencement clause came into effect at midnight tonight. Clearly it will not get the royal assent until tomorrow but midnight was the time it came into effect. So liquor outlets and certainly nightclubs operating from an hour ago to however long it takes to get the royal assent will be caught out. The excise will be charged on the liquor they have sold as from midnight tonight but they will not be recovering that money from their patrons for the next 8 to 10 hours or so. 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: Will they get both the excise and the fines? 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY 
: Quite so! We are in a terrible situation. But the point that has been made by many speakers is that the whole purpose of what the Government is doing has been exposed for what it is—that is one big fraud. This is one of the dangers when Governments get a rush of blood to the head think they are doing one thing— 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: Don’t send it to a select committee. 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY 
: —and do not send bills to a select committee. The Government is introducing the bill and ramming it through under extraordinary urgency and it has been totally exposed by the scrutiny of the Opposition. We see in the explanatory note that the bill is clearly—and the Minister who moved the first reading made it quite clear—all about social engineering about redressing the binge drinking of our young people. He was sincere; I believe he was genuine in saying that. But it has been adequately exposed that the preferred drink of young people that the Government thought it was targeting is not included. This bill covers dessert wine sherry vermouth port—the drinks of the matriarchs shall we say. Labour Party matriarchs are the ones who will be affected by this. The next Labour Party conference could be a quite testy affair when the matriarchs make their displeasure known to those members. The bill is not targeting the people whom it purports to cover as stated in the explanatory note. 
I invite the Minister in the chair to take a call. He sat there with his head down obviously out of shame and I can understand that but we are a forgiving bunch on this side of the Chamber. We think he should get up and concede the point that the bill fails miserably. If it is intended to address the binge drinking of young people it fails because their preferred drink is not included. If the Minister is not prepared to do that then he is party to what can only be called an absolute tax grab. If the member was honest and sincere in what he told us the bill is all about then he will get up concede that the bill fails and withdraw the bill even at this late stage. That has been done before. Then we can all go home and I do not think anybody would worry too much about that. We have wasted a few hours on what is clearly a very bad bill. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: Mothers back to their children. 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY 
: Mothers can go back to their children; we have had speeches on that tonight. Withdrawing the bill would be a very very sensible course of action at this late stage. Will the Minister take a call? He has not indicated whether he will. He has not taken any calls from the chair to date. A major revelation of an inaccuracy in the bill has been exposed. I ask the Minister to take a call.