Hipango HareteHARETE HIPANGO (National): Thank you Madam Speaker. This is the third reading of the Family Court (Family Court Associates) Legislation Bill and I've previously spoken to the House actually at the first reading. As has been heard in the House this evening justice delayed is justice denied which is a phrase that I've used speaking to a number of other court-associated type bills before the House. So when I did address the House at the first reading I talked about the importance of timeliness particularly for our children—not just adults in the Family Court system but particularly and especially children because the concept of time is so very stretched out and delayed for children. So it is so important that the court not only just makes the system more efficient and effective but timing is everything especially for our children but also for all those applicants and persons who are part of the Family Court proceedings.So with this legislation there will be the appointment of Family Court Associates who will be required under law to have at least a minimum of seven years' legal practice experience as a barrister and solicitor—so very important because effectively the Family Court Associate is taking on a judicial role and the focus of that role is to alleviate the administrative workloading for our judges. I have raised in this House before that in terms of making the Family Court more effective more efficient more timely it's going to take so much more than just the appointment of Family Court Associates and when the National Party is in Government my colleague Chris Penk who is spokesperson for courts is already looking into and is drawing on the depth and breadth of experience of practitioners in this field throughout the country by engaging and importantly listening—something that I could commend this Government to do and is doing on this bill but it is a bill proposed by this Government—to implement what is going to be the most effective impact system.So the Family Court system needs to be technologised. In the days—and it seems to have been a lifetime ago now almost seven to eight years—working in the criminal court but also the Family Court the Mental Health Courts coming back to the Family Court the importance of utilising technology to be able to facilitate accessibility but also efficiencies in timeliness. This bill doesn't address that. It's about putting in place more persons. I have said in this House before that we need more Family Court judges. I just draw on Minister Allan making mention and reference to retired judge His Honour Judge Paul von Dadelszen who I appeared in front of on a regular basis when I travelled to Hastings in my Family Court role as a court-appointed lawyer for children but also in my district inspector of mental health role because Judge von Dadelszen was a specialist mental health judge as well as Family Court judge. So I'm actually quite pleased that for a change the Government has listened to somebody who does know more than they do in this sector—so Judge Paul von Dadelszen.I'll also make mention too of a former Family Court—and he was a Principal Family Court Judge who is now this country's Ombudsman Judge Peter Boshier. These are people like a number of others who have left the profession and giving service in the Family Court. But what I have also said in terms of the appointment of Family Court Associates: we need to look at the timeliness of appointment of judges as well because what is tending to happen with the number of judges coming to retirement age exiting—and there is a number of them—we are leaving a void of a wealth of practice experience on the benches. So Family Court Associates will address administrative workloading of the Family Court judges but that does not address the case decisions that need to be made.And I do emphasise—and my colleague Chris Penk looking too in terms of making more efficient the courts system and my colleague Paul Goldsmith who's our justice spokesperson—we really do need to look at boosting and bolstering our resourcing of people in addition to technologising.I'm also heartened. This is the third reading so it's my last chance to make special mention of those special people who I served with in the Whanganui District Court covering the mental health court. Family Court Associates actually because the mental health jurisdiction comes within the Family Court jurisdiction may in part be addressing this to alleviate the workload of Family Court judges to deal with that other jurisdictional work.So I make mention of those who are continuing to give service in the Whanganui Family Court: people such as Sheryl Chapman long-time service; former now retired Rod Newport; Tracey Butler; and then there is Marcus Vettise who was a registrar 30 years' service plus. I mentioned Tasi Sua in a bill about social workers last week 40 years' service. And the reason I do this is because it's localising and taking it back to the community I come from and people who are passionate about the service that they give. Rama Brownlee is another then there's Dale and Chris. You know who you are. So I have the privilege to stand in this House to acknowledge and to say to our people in the community on the ground who do know better than most of us here in this House the effect and the impact that it has in terms of customer service and how we facilitate the people most in need.The select committee which I wasn't part of—my colleagues the Hon Paul Goldsmith the Hon Mark Mitchell and I believe Chris Penk also took part in these discussions around this Family Court (Family Court Associates) Legislation Bill. Submissions were heard or were considered from 31 interest groups and individuals with 14 submitters that were heard. In scrutiny and taking heed of those submissions I see that the select committee turned their mind to applying what had been submitted by way of extending some of those Family Court Associate powers. And I turn to within the bill specifically—and I'm quite heartened by this because in the days when I did practise law—Schedule 2 of the bill; new Schedule 2 inserted into the Family Court Act 1980. There was many an occasion—in fact a lot of wasted and lost time of a judge sitting on a bench dealing with counsel before to make appointments as counsel to assist the court counsel to represent children and counsel to facilitate either as a McKenzie friend or otherwise.So new Schedule 2 is looking at alleviating the time of judges so that they can orientate and focus more of their work into the substantive application of listening to evidence court hearings and then making findings and determinations by issuing decisions. And that's the fact that I emphasise that we do need more judges because we have a growing population. We have a country that's in crisis with a cost of living crisis with adverse weather events with tragedies and of course that affects people who are part of that fundamental foundational societal construct called family and whānau.So the Family Court Associates will now take on the power to appoint lawyers in obtaining reports as well such as cultural reports such as medical psychiatric or psychological reports. All those important administrative functions of a judge now will be passed on to a Family Court Associate. So this is practical legislation but it does need to go further to address that very issue of concern that it is a continuum we experience and it will become more of an experience with the crises that we have in our communities. Justice delayed is justice denied and this is but one part of a whole mechanisation of the Family Court that with tweaking and adjustment may just speed it a little bit but time will tell when there's a review of this in five years' time. So 53 seconds remaining—I can wrap it up in a matter of three seconds to say that we commend this bill to the House.