Soper Lesley: Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Soper Lesley: Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
[Sitting date: 02 September 2008. Volume:649;Page:18336. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
LESLEY SOPER (Labour) 
: 
 I wanted to take a short call on this Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill particularly after it seemed to me that a National member who spoke earlier was less than wholehearted in supporting it. I remind National members that they did try to delay the process of this bill. I offer my congratulations to the submitters. I acknowledge the people from the Disabled Persons Assembly whom we have here tonight and who I believe helped to change the National Party’s mind on the importance of this bill for the disabilities sector.  
I pay a tribute to the Minister for her consultation with the sector for her promotion of this very important bill and for her dedication over a very long period to removing barriers for disabled people and to working towards a fully inclusive society. I can say that as someone who was for some years the chair of the committee of my local district health board that dealt with the disabilities sector and I know of the very good work this Minister has done over many years towards building a fully inclusive society. The debate on this bill tonight provides an opportunity to offer congratulations to the sector and congratulations to the Minister on some very good work on an important acknowledgment about just how important it is for the sector for us to address discrimination in New Zealand and in other countries.  
This bill does several things that are really important. It removes outdated and discriminatory provisions in some of our New Zealand legislation that automatically disqualified people from certain public offices on the grounds of their being mentally disordered. What we will now have is a situation where a person’s capacity to perform will be important—and that for the sector is a very important change. Secondly the bill clarifies the provision of reasonable accommodation in the Human Rights Act in certain areas where this provision is currently rather uncertain. That is pretty important and it is very important for the sector. The removal of barriers is important. We have put a lot of dedicated work into saying to the sector that we recognise the barriers we recognise the importance to these people of removing those barriers and we will deliver on doing that.  
This Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill delivers something very important: an acknowledgment to the sector. I am proud that I can support the bill tonight. I offer my congratulations to everybody who has been involved in it. Again I offer my congratulations to those submitters who actually convinced the National Party to change its attitude and to acknowledge how important it is with regard to the legislation to get to this point in time for that date in October.  
I say in closing to those people who have come here tonight to actually listen to this final passage just how important it is for them to be involved to have their voices heard to be on the committees to tell us as parliamentarians what they want and to be part of the important consultation that helps us to deliver to a sector as important as theirs. So I thank them for being here tonight. I thank them for having submitted and having been part of the process. I look forward to working with those people in the future on what is important on removing those barriers and on addressing discrimination and I say to them that they are part of the population of New Zealand whose lives we work to improve. Everything we do in this House is important in their day-to-day lives. I am really proud to see so many of them here tonight and I thank them very much for the work they have put into what we are delivering.  
Bill read a second time.