Bridges SimonHon SIMON BRIDGES (National—Tauranga): Thank you Madam Speaker. Well if National was minded to change its view on this bill we couldn't after all those nice words could we. In seriousness National will be supporting this bill as we did at first reading through select committee and the committee of the whole House and now the final hurdle—although not much of one—for this bill. I showered the member in charge of the bill with praise at the earlier reading. I even quoted Scripture. The only thing I think I didn't do was dance a jig so I'm not going to do—Ginny Andersen: Away you go.Hon SIMON BRIDGES: Well—no. So I'm not going to go through all of that again. It's a well-intentioned bill and New Zealand is a compassionate society. We're still a relatively prosperous society noting of course there are disparities and inequalities and I believe—and I'm sure many members do—that we judge a society and one measure at least is on how it treats the least and that certainly includes those with disabilities. As I say we could see that from the member who's just spoken who was at times and understandably so emotional talking about the story of one of the people who is part of the genesis of this bill if you like. So I say again it's a well-intentioned bill that shows and reflects what a compassionate society New Zealand is.Of course the substance of the bill—it's actually not lengthy. It's not complicated. This bill has five clauses and what it does is effectively say that look in the case of collecting debts bailiffs may not go after certain items that are around communication and the ability for a disabled person to live a fulfilling life. We can all obviously think of those pieces of equipment—a mobility scooter a medical device a Braille communication device for example—which this bill will clearly cover.There was discussion at select committee though as you I suppose in a sense always get—but certainly particularly with this bill—around the possibility for unintended consequences or for side effects if you like from the medical prescription we were putting in place if we can use that as a metaphor. There were issues that we were interested in somewhat—I wouldn't say hugely" but somewhat concerned about. Would this mean—and we had submissions from the finance sector—that there would be less credit going to disabled people? That would be an unintended and indeed a very regrettable consequence if it were so through the provision or the making of this bill into law. How would the bailiff know actually? I know it may sound obvious at one level but it isn't necessarily in every instance. How would they know whether the person in question that they were going to was disabled in fact? How would they know what they could and couldn't seize? It's not the case here that we've given a comprehensive list a shopping list of things you're not allowed to take. What we've instead done is been more—as we are in modern times in the law—values-driven here but that does lead to some grey areas and some issues around these things. So there were these disputes—or not disputes but issues that were present with the bill. Where we got to I think in the end is that we worked—as the member said herself—collegially through those issues in the bill and in some cases we found workarounds. In some cases perhaps they weren't the issue that was a problem or in the end actually—I think really in relation to most of the ones that I have discussed—it was probably a case of well even with a few of these problems possibly unintended consequences overall this is a good bill. It will work at a level and so it is worthwhile. It is good to pass it and that's the position that everyone on the committee and all of the parties in fact in Parliament—not even all of which were represented on that committee—have come to. So it's a small not perfect but well-intentioned and well-formed proposition. I don't need to talk really any further. I mean no disservice to the bill or the member. It is a discrete one. It deals with the issues I've discussed and National is happy to support it."