Motions — New Zealand Commonwealth Games Team—Recognition 
Motions — New Zealand Commonwealth Games Team—Recognition 
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Motions 
New Zealand Commonwealth Games Team—Recognition 
KEITH LOCKE (Green) 
: 
 I seek leave to move without debate except for brief comments from the parties members’ notice of motion No. 4 on the Order Paper. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Leader of the House) 
: 
 I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. We had notice that this motion was to be moved without debate. If you recall we had a discussion in the Business Committee around this matter. Obviously given the nature of the subject we will not be refusing leave. But for the future members should be very well aware that the Business Committee is asking us to return to the notion that “without debate” means without debate. If one wants debate then one does not ask for the motion to be without debate. 
KEITH LOCKE (Green) 
: 
 As I understand it “without debate” means that the motion does not go through the normal procedure. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: No it means no comment at all. It means just moving the motion and the House agreeing to it. There is no further comment. 
KEITH LOCKE 
: I think the House can grant leave for whichever course it wants. In my experience in the House basically there are three courses. The first is to have a formal debate with 10-minute speeches. The second is for the member just to move the motion. The third is to have just brief comments from party representatives and I think it would be wrong to rule out that intermediate course. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: It is for the House to decide. I am merely clarifying that the member has sought leave for in effect brief comments to be made. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Leader of the House) 
: 
 What I am saying is that we were informed that the motion was to be moved without debate and pursuant to the Business Committee’s discussion of this matter we assumed there would be no comments. The member has sought leave and clearly we will not refuse it in the circumstances. I simply draw the House’s attention to the fact that the Business Committee discussed this matter for future reference and understanding of when leave is being sought by discussion with the whips. In other words if one is seeking leave to discuss something without debate it means that. If one wants to seek leave without debate but with brief comments then that is what must be indicated to the whips around the House—not without debate. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I will put the leave that has been sought which is for brief comment. Is there any objection? There is no objection. 
KEITH LOCKE (Green) 
: 
 I move  
That this House express its pride in the performance of the New Zealand Commonwealth Games team in Melbourne and recognise the long hours of training put in by our sportsmen and sportswomen in their preparation for the Games 
. The Green Party along with I think all parties in this House congratulates all of our sportsmen and sportswomen on their performances. They all put in very long hours to prepare for the games and I am sure they did their best. We particularly congratulate the 31 medal winners but I do not think we should get hung up on our medal tally or on our gold medal tally. For example Dean Kent a longstanding swimmer did fantastically well to achieve a personal best in the 200 metre individual medley. There is no shame at all in his getting only a silver medal. I think it is in that tradition that we should support all of our team and not succumb to some of the armchair critics who only watch the games on TV every couple of years. We really need to support our sportsmen and sportswomen into the future. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Deputy Prime Minister) 
: 
 On behalf of the Labour Party might I say how much I endorse those comments. There is no shame in being No. 2 in an excellent team. I will point out that only one country smaller than ours actually won more medals than we did and that was Jamaica. Given that country’s crime rate I would not swap our slightly lower medal count in that respect. 
Hon MURRAY McCULLY (National—East Coast Bays) 
: 
 I would like to associate the National Party with the congratulations conveyed in the resolution that has been moved. In particular I congratulate those who were successful in winning medals at the Commonwealth Games. It has been a matter of some comment that the medal tally was somewhat short of the aspirations expressed at the outset of the games. On that matter I simply commend to the House that this is a time when an orderly review process will be undertaken. It should be noted that a substantial commitment of taxpayers’ money was made to support the team. No doubt officials will be filing their reports and a review process will ensue that will enable us to ensure that every possible step is taken to improve our performance in future games. I urge those who are interested in that matter to wait for that process to take its course. 
RON MARK (NZ First) 
: 
 As New Zealand First’s spokesperson on sport I rise to indicate that New Zealand First supports the intent of this motion. But we have to say from where we sit that coming third often makes one the winner and that is quite a bizarre situation is it not? And long may that continue to be the case. 
There have been some winners in the Commonwealth Games and I do not think—[ 
Interruption 
] Well Maurice Williamson gets gold for “Yap of the Month” or “Mouth of the Month” but we will move on from that. We have to move on and recognise an outstanding young lady who made it very clear what her intentions were and they were to win. In my background in the military it was often said that second was the first loser. However Valerie Vili had no intention of losing and special congratulations need to go to her on her mammoth effort in bringing home gold for us. 
Minister Mallard has quite rightly signalled to the sporting fraternity in New Zealand that the country that spends money on and the taxpayers who put money into the Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games do expect a result and I have no doubt that everybody will be scrutinising not so much the athletes but the sports administration. Some may say that the focus should start with the athletes but others will suggest that we need to look at the administration of New Zealand sport—the selection of coaches and the process by which people become leaders coaches and administrators. Maybe the House through its select committees might like to pay some attention to those areas in time. 
Finally I think that if a gold meal were to be given out to anyone in this House it would go to Mr Keith Locke for being the winner of “Prat of the Year” for the way in which he ambushed Tony Blair yesterday— 
Madam SPEAKER 
: No no. That is not appropriate. 
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. The jeering and barracking from the National Party is again unacceptable. I know that some of them are denied speaking chances in question time but they should not make up the shortfall with general barracking and shouting in the House. We just had a very good example: when Ron Mark was finishing one could barely hear a word. If members cannot keep quiet in a debate on a motion heaven help us when it comes to other more serious parts of discussions in the House. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I thank the member. 
HONE HARAWIRA (Maori Party—Te Tai Tokerau) 
: 
 The Maori Party joins with all others in congratulating our Commonwealth Games team on their success at the Melbourne games. We also note that hundreds of millions of dollars were spent on the sports; that we brought back I understand about half a dozen gold medals; and that we have just finished participating in the 2006 Waka Ama IVF Va’a World Sprint Champs from which Aotearoa brought home 20 gold medals for a miserly support allocation of $150000. I thank the Minister of Maori Affairs and the Minister of Youth Affairs very much for their support in that initiative. Perhaps this House might recommend to the authorities that fund such sports that given that the nation’s feel-good factor is improved by the success of our sports teams considerably more support should be given to Nga Kaihoe o Aotearoa the New Zealand waka ama federation in its bid to be even more successful at the next world waka ama championships in Sacramento California in 2008. 
Hon PETER DUNNE (Leader—United Future) 
: 
 United Future joins with others in supporting the motion congratulating the athletes on their achievement and wishing them a safe return to New Zealand. We note and lament the fact that no sooner had the games ended than our country once again indulged in the ritualistic self-flagellation that follows every Commonwealth Games Olympic Games and Rugby World Cup about why we did not do as well as we should have and what we need to do better next time around. Frankly what we need to do is give our athletes a chance and stop this mindless bickering and criticism of their performances. 
HEATHER ROY (Deputy Leader—ACT) 
: 
 The ACT party also joins other parties in this House in supporting Mr Locke’s motion. Some may well have wondered why the Government did not in fact bring the notice of motion and I thank Mr Locke very sincerely for doing so. 
All of the New Zealand athletes at the Commonwealth Games were winners. They are athletes who have always trained hard. New Zealand athletes have always prided themselves on training hard and doing their very best at international competition such as this. The ACT party thought that some very unfortunate comments were made not only in the media but by members of this House—unfortunate comments indeed to people who have spent a lot of time and effort in their individual codes. 
New Zealanders do celebrate success but they also celebrate the fine effort that we saw from the New Zealand athletes at the Commonwealth Games. I would say that there is no shame in being the fourth best in the Commonwealth at any sport. I would also say that if New Zealand was ranked No. 4 in the OECD this country would really have something to celebrate. 
Motion agreed to.