Foster-Bell PaulPAUL FOSTER-BELL (National): In following on from that hectoring lecture from Clare Curran the poor man's Diane Abbott I want to respond by saying that this is the party that has been doing such good work in enabling New Zealanders to come and electronically enrol by implementing the RealMe system—by rolling that out. It has never been easier to do the right thing and fulfil your obligations and your responsibilities as a New Zealand citizen by identifying yourself online and enrolling properly on the electoral roll. I think there is harm in this bill. I do want to commend the member Meka Whaitiri for I think a well-intentioned bill but there are not only moral hazards but practical issues with the measures that she proposes.The electoral roll is an important—in fact fundamental—part of our voting system in New Zealand. We are among the most liberal jurisdictions in the world in that we do not close the rolls many weeks before a general election as they do sometimes for practical concerns in some parts of the world where you have printed rolls as your main means of registering people—then there is a practical reason you need to close the roll. But I think having a roll that is not simply a self-determined one on the day by turning up in the ballot booth is important and it is important that we preserve the integrity of that roll and actually encourage New Zealanders to fulfil their obligations. They have an absolute right to cast their vote but let us not forget that there is a legal responsibility and an obligation in this country to register on the electoral roll.If you are not registered on the electoral roll you will not receive the published booklets and literature that are issued prior to a general election. So we are actually saying that you will turn up and vote on the day without having received any of the literature that is provided and I think that is problematic. The Electoral Commission coordinates and compiles lists of for instance the party lists. This might be information that people have not yet seen through the media through online browsing or through going to the parties' websites—Denis O'Rourke: This is waffle. It's not literature. The member's waffling. Give us a good reason.PAUL FOSTER-BELL: —because not every member of the general public is as politically obsessed and politically aware as members of this House.Denis O'Rourke: Stop waffling and give us a good reason.PAUL FOSTER-BELL: And if Mr O'Rourke ceases his incessant heckling and actually turns his ears on he might actually have some intelligent remarks to make to my comments.Also I think there is a significant problem in the signal this sends to people which is that it is OK not to fulfil something that is currently a legal obligation—to be registered as a voter—and we know that it would create significant difficulties in increasing the number of unregistered voters to be processed. That could lead to significant issues on election night and the days and weeks after an election when we will have a number of seats where it could be quite unclear who the winner was on the night. We have that as it is but this could become a significantly larger issue when we come to coalition negotiations and those other very important parts of the political process that we have under MMP.It is far better that there is a comprehensive roll and that people cast their vote and those are counted where possible on the night and there are obvious exceptions—those votes that are cast in our missions overseas at high commissions consulates and embassies; votes cast in hospitals; votes cast by members of the military. It is important that those people who are serving the country in those capacities in particular have the right to have their views heard. We accept that there is an administrative burden in allowing those votes to be cast in that way and counted in that way. However if every single person who turned up to the ballot box and cast their vote without having been properly enrolled—that is if more votes become special votes because of this perverse incentive that has been created—I think that would be highly problematic for counting the votes.I am not entirely convinced that it would lead to a massive sudden increase in turnout. We know that there is something special about our voting system in New Zealand. We know that if you go to a postal ballot there is significantly less public interest and lower turnout as is demonstrated in local body elections. We know that in countries that have tried an electronic system for voting—Denis O'Rourke: Irrelevance. Irrelevant to this bill.PAUL FOSTER-BELL: —this lowers the value. It certainly lowers the public perception of the integrity of the vote and this was the case Mr O'Rourke in Scandinavia in Norway where a trial of electronic voting was so unacceptable and so disastrous that they overturned that and they have actually gone back to a system much closer to the paper-based system we have. This is a well-intentioned bill but it would not achieve what it wants to achieve and I think it should be voted down.