Perry Edwin: Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Bill — Second Reading 
Perry Edwin: Prisoners' and Victims' Claims Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:625;Page:20562] 
EDWIN PERRY (NZ First) 
: 
 I am very happy to speak on the Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Bill on behalf of my colleague Mr Dail Jones. The result of the Labour Government’s legislation will be that scumbags murderers and vicious criminals on long-term sentences will harass and taunt prison officers purposely to such an extent that if there is even minor retaliation they will be entitled to compensation. This bill will create a new industry which will be called the “taunt prison officers industry”—screw the screws; power is in prison. It sounds like one of those principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and here it is again. It is another gravy train for the lawyers. New Zealand First will be voting against this bill. 
No funds should be made available to criminals. They do the crime and they pay the time. I would say that most New Zealanders affiliate with that very very easily. There should be no compensation. I quote from the section of the March 2005  
Leader’s Letter 
 headed “Should Prisoners be Entitled to Personally Receive Compensation?”. It reads: “Do you think criminals should be able to claim compensation for the way they have been treated in prison and after making some payment to victims be allowed to keep the balance for themselves?”. I am sure my United Future colleague over there who is one of the very staunch law-and-order men in Parliament will vote against this bill but I do not think the other members of that party will. 
I move on quietly. Mr Phil Goff during the times I have spent with him overseas walks the talk but in this bill I cannot see that happening. That is the Labour Government’s intention with the Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Bill which went before the Justice and Electoral Committee. The problem we face at the moment is that on 24 August 2004 the High Court awarded $130000 in damages to five scumbags in Auckland prison after finding that aspects of the Department of Corrections’ behaviour management regime were unlawful. The decision is currently under appeal. Why the hell did they go to prison? Did they go in there for a soft ride? No they did not. If the prison officer has to lay the law down so be it. 
I quote further from the  
Leader’s Letter 
: “Now Sam Te Hei who murdered Colleen Burrows in a brutal cold blooded calculated killing in 1987 is seeking compensation for breach of human rights and would get to keep this money.” What do the family and the whanau who are the victims of that crime think of that one? I think Sam Te Hei is a disgusting disgrace to Maoridom quite frankly. The  
Leader’s Letter 
 stated: “Colleen Burrow’s mother Mrs Ida Hawkins had this to say to the Parliamentary Select Committee: ‘He was sentenced to life imprisonment he should never get parole. He should never get any compensation. Te Hei is a criminal prison is for punishment and life should mean  
Life in Prison 
.’ ” There should not be any compensation. I wholeheartedly support Mrs Hawkins and I want to make sure that people like Sam Te Hei do not profit as a result of murdering a New Zealand citizen and ending up in prison. 
Another example is the murder of young Simon Reaney. I ask folks to think about how they would feel if it were their 7-year-old; how would they feel if that happened to one of their children? His murderer Anthony Roma—we all know of him because he was front-page news at the time—was charged with the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. There is also the case of William Bell who was involved in the brutal murder at the Mount Wellington - Panmure RSA. He murdered one of our RSA members who fought for the rights of the people of this country but who had to suffer being brutally murdered by yet another scumbag. 
What did William Bell do? He was already on parole for aggravated robbery having had 102 previous convictions mainly for violence. Should criminals like that be allowed to seek and to keep compensation? No I go along with my colleague Mr Ryall. In no way should such people receive any compensation and if any money is left over it should be put into a trust for victims not for prisoners or the people who committed the crimes. 
Those people have been abusive and have failed to recognise all the human rights that exist in our society today. Surely there must be a limit to the way in which they can profit from being sent to prison. Mrs Ida Hawkins mother of Colleen Burrows said: “Now he wants human rights!! Human rights are for human beings.” Te Hei was a disgrace to Maoridom. She said: “Tei Hei is not a human being.” He was an absolute disgrace folks. Members of Parliament members of the public and Kiwis of this country know he was a disgrace to Maoridom. 
In some cases there are no specified victims such as in drug-dealing cases or in cases where criminals might murder all members of the family. So in those cases prisoners would keep all the money. In other cases a person might be imprisoned for theft from an employer and that person should be certain only of a civilised form of treatment in prison. 
A view seems to be forming that although we do not want criminals to get anything if we can possibly be assured of that nevertheless in a civilised society even criminals should be entitled to some form of civilised treatment. But if they do receive any compensation then their victims should be the first to benefit. At the end of the day it is a life sentence for the whanau as well and any balance should be paid to a trust for victims. The Sensible Sentencing Trust’s submission was a long way along those lines. 
I want to finish after having spent time at the Justice and Electoral Committee by thanking Tim Barnett for his fair approach to all members of the select committee. Ms Dalziel is not here; I do not know why. But I say that her expertise and her longevity in this House certainly showed out in the select committee. I apologise to Nandor Tanczos for not being there all the time but that member sat beside me and I must say that his comments and input into the bill were worth listening to. I listened to Stephen Franks with his legal background and also to Richard Worth with his English humour. I must say that he our colleague from the National Party with his English humour— 
Simon Power 
: The member is not getting an award. 
EDWIN PERRY 
: No no. That is all right; it is not a problem. I want to finish by saying that the compensation that will be paid to those prisoners is quite frankly disgusting disgraceful and despicable.