Goff Phil: Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill — Procedure First Reading Second Reading 
Goff Phil: Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill — Procedure First Reading Second Reading 
[Volume:666;Page:13901] 
Hon PHIL GOFF (Leader of the Opposition) 
: 
 Labour is very pleased to support the Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill. When we observe the scale of the disaster in the Canterbury region I think every member of this House accepts that there is no room for partisan squabbling at central government level or for that matter at local government level. This is a time when people in New Zealand expect their legislators to work together to assist the recovery to help people to get their lives back together and to do so without unnecessary delay. 
I have had the opportunity over 3 days to spend some time with my Christchurch member of Parliament colleagues looking around at the scale of the disaster. From Kaiapoi in the north and Pines Beach where I went with Clayton Cosgrove through to the central business district St Albans Avonside and south into Bexley I have seen some of the scale of what this earthquake has done to the people of Christchurch. Literally tens of thousands of people have been affected. There have been 2500 homes rendered uninhabitable and the people from those homes have been forced to seek alternative accommodation. Thousands more homes have been damaged and sadly much of the heritage and the history of this beautiful city has been damaged or in some cases destroyed. The human effects are no less real. To see in the shelters the people suffering from the trauma of that night—4.30 in the morning—and to see the stress and the fatigue on the faces of those people makes it very clear that we in this House need to do everything that we are capable of to help them to get their lives back together just as quickly as they can. 
That is why we support this legislation. We understand that this situation is not one of business as usual and that we need to make an efficient and swift response. We welcome the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Commission as a way of coordinating and facilitating the response to this disaster and it makes sense that we work to assist the Government in its efforts to achieve that end. I acknowledge the role of Clayton Cosgrove who is Labour’s shadow spokesperson on the recovery. He has worked very hard not only in his own electorate but also with all of my colleagues and with Jim Anderton to do everything that they can to help the people on the ground. 
It is important that we have legislation to streamline the process but it is equally important that in doing so we do not remove the safeguards that are necessary in order to maintain standards. We do not want to see the cowboys moving in. We do not want to see get-rich-quick merchants moving in and exploiting people in this situation. We do not want to see an opportunity being provided to those who would knock over heritage buildings not because they cannot be repaired but simply because it is convenient for them to wipe out that piece of heritage which might have been protected. We do not want to see people lose their legitimate rights. When they are affected by a regulation in an adverse manner they should have the right to respond and to be heard and listened to. It is important to have those safeguards in place. 
I acknowledge the cooperative attitude that the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Gerry Brownlee has shown in this matter. It has been a good example of how the two sides of the House have been able to work together. The Minister’s offer to allow Labour to see the Orders in Council in advance is much appreciated. The changes that were made from the early drafts allowing those Orders in Council to go to the Regulations Review Committee where they can be subject to scrutiny and where the committee members can get expert advice and listen to the report of the Office of the Clerk are an important safeguard. Where something is wrong to then be able to bring it back to the House and expose it to debate is I think very important. I welcome too the announcement by the Minister that the sunset clause that is necessary in legislation of this nature will be brought back from 2015 to 2012 because by and large the substantial work will have been done in that period of time. 
Although we are streamlining the process one thing that we should be rejoicing about in this House is that despite the complaints about red tape compliance costs and nanny State we have building codes in New Zealand that are so effective in preserving human life that we saw not one life lost in our country although an earthquake of a similar magnitude in Haiti took the lives of 230000 people. We can be proud of that. So you know although on occasions in the 1990s this House got it wrong about the building codes and that led to leaky homes it is really important that we maintain those high standards and that level of protection. 
I acknowledge the work done by many people to alleviate the plight of those who have been affected by this earthquake. It is a bit hard to know where to begin but I suppose we would begin with the emergency services. We have seen the search and rescue teams coming in from all parts of the country seen the work done by the police and seen the soldiers out there at night doing the work. They have been working alongside the police. The firefighters have been doing what they could to help. All of those things make one proud to be a New Zealander with those people being prepared to act in a professional and selfless way. I acknowledge the role of the mayor the council and the officials of not only the Christchurch City Council but also the Waimakariri and Selwyn districts. They have worked beyond people’s expectations. I have seen the people out there in the streets working long hours and doing the jobs. I have seen the Salvation Army and the Order of St John working in the night shelters. They are doing that work in a way that lifts the lives of the people whom they are helping. I have seen the work of the volunteers the students with shovels over their shoulder who are ready to muck in and help. All of those things are I think very positive in the response. 
I have also seen the resilient nature of Christchurch people and the way in which they have often dealt with adversity. They have been prepared to work alongside and help their neighbours first even when their own situation is also a very difficult one. But there comes a point where the euphoria wears off and people start to feel the stress and strain. At that point it is really important to provide the support and information that they need. I am really pleased that the Earthquake Commission has started to hold a series of meetings working alongside my colleagues. Lianne Dalziel convened a meeting of 500 people in Christchurch south with the Earthquake Commission. I think that is really important. 
Aaron Gilmore 
: There weren’t 500. 
Hon Ruth Dyson 
: You can’t count. 
Hon PHIL GOFF 
: I do not think it is helpful to have that sort of debate across the House. We are talking about something positive that is happening there where the Earthquake Commission is there to provide advice along with the geotechnical experts and the loss adjusters. 
But I say to the Minister in a helpful manner that our members have been getting a lot of questions out there that people need to be given answers to. Some people have built their homes in areas subject to liquefaction and I have seen the disaster that that has caused. Those people desperately want to know whether they will be able to rebuild their homes. If they cannot rebuild on their sections they want to know about the level of compensation that there might be for their plight. I want to know why the insurance companies have refused to cover people for 3 weeks when they move into new homes. What situation does that create for people who want to sign up to a new home but who know that they have to have insurance protection? I hope the House will be able to work on that issue with the insurance companies in order to achieve a change in attitude. I want to know what is to happen for those people who are either under-insured or not insured. I know it is easy to condemn people for not having insurance but I spoke to somebody who is on an invalids benefit and he did not have insurance because he could not afford it. Obviously we cannot leave those people to suffer and to be without any help. 
There are people out there who still do not have their sewerage connected. We can see the Portaloos down the street but there is no way that elderly people should have to go out into the street to use them. I know that the Minister and others will be working hard to get those services put back in place and to help people who are in temporary accommodation. I have spoken to people who are living with family living with friends or renting a motel and who cannot do that for the longer term. Clearly that is another area where there is a need for help. 
I know that everybody—including members of the House—needs to be patient but we also need to acknowledge that people out there want and need to be given full information and that they need to be given adequate resourcing in order to get the job done. Labour undertakes to assist the Government in meeting those needs but equally we will be working on behalf of and advocating for people who need help and assistance and we will be doing that in a constructive manner. Thank you very much.