Faafoi Kris: Royal Society of New Zealand Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Faafoi Kris: Royal Society of New Zealand Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:673;Page:19429] 
KRIS FAAFOI (Labour—Mana) 
: 
 Thank you very much for the opportunity to speak on the Royal Society of New Zealand Amendment Bill. It is my first call tonight and one of a couple I hope. Before I talk on the bill as this is the first opportunity I have had to address the Chamber since the aftershocks in Christchurch I send my sympathies to the men women and children of Canterbury and also to the members of Parliament from across the Committee who hail from Canterbury. Our sympathies and support go out to them too. 
We are talking on clause 6 of the Royal Society of New Zealand Amendment Bill which substitutes the new object clause. New section 5 in clause 6 states: “The object of the Society is the advancement and promotion in New Zealand of science technology and the humanities.” As the member in the chair Pete Hodgson said earlier in this debate this clause is really at the heart of the bill. It changes the focus of the Royal Society from focusing strictly on science and technology as it has since 1867 and future-proofs the society by bringing the humanities into the realm of the Royal Society. 
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 and do not know what the definition of “humanities” is under this bill I say that it includes languages which obviously are very important here in New Zealand with our own official language of te reo. It is good that languages have entered the realm of the Royal Society. It is interesting that there was a debate at the Education and Science Committee as to whether English or te reo should be specifically included in the bill but at this stage they are not. The humanities also include history. For a young nation it is promising to see that subject enter the realm of the Royal Society. They also include religion philosophy law classics linguistics literature cultural studies media studies—I think that in this age of new media that is an advance for the Royal Society—art history film and drama. 
As I said this bill moves the focus of the Royal Society towards the humanities but I hope the Royal Society does not lose its focus on research science and technology. Since 1867 it really has been a champion to make sure that our scientists our research and our technology have been cutting edge. Through awards like the Rutherford Medal and scholarships it has ensured that New Zealand research science and technology stay world class. 
Since late 2008 there has been a debate on making sure that the focus of the society changes. This is an advancement but I think it is very important that we have a champion in science to make sure that we are pushing it. Although we welcome the humanities coming into the realm of the Royal Society it is very important that we have a focus on science and innovation to ensure that our economy remains highly skilled and that we have a workforce that ensures economic success for our country. It is very important that the Royal Society makes sure that that continues and that we have a champion in this area. It is obviously very important for that function of the Royal Society to continue because research and development are essential for our productivity to grow and for our economic success. So I really hope that although the humanities have come into its realm the Royal Society will continue its focus and its heritage around science. 
It is also very important that the focus of the society remains on science and technology because New Zealand’s private business research and development spend is one of the lowest in the OECD. We need to make sure we have a separate body that ensures that although our spend on research and development in comparison with other OECD nations is low someone outside the realm of business and the Government is pushing to make sure that we are doing the best that we can and that we are continuing to make sure we have scientists and technicians in crucial areas for our businesses to ensure our technology is cutting edge. 
It is also very important that the Royal Society continues its focus on science and technology as it has since 1867 because compared with other countries we are still lagging behind. We continue to stagnate in terms of our growth because of a lack of investment in science and technology. It is very important. Although we welcome this change of focus and this change of object for the Royal Society I would hate to see the voice it has had since 1867 on science and technology get drowned out because that voice is very important.