Carter John: Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Carter John: Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:666;Page:13935] 
Hon JOHN CARTER (Minister of Civil Defence) 
: 
 I rise to speak in the Committee stage firstly to tell members that the Minister in whose name the Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill is will be in the chair straight after dinner. I know that members have questions of the Minister Mr Brownlee and he will be here to listen to those questions and to do his best to answer them. 
I want to make one or two points to just set the tone of the debate. I have listened to the contributions from various members and I think that the first thing that needs to be set clearly and squarely on the table is that this bill is not about this Parliament or this Government trying to run the recovery in Christchurch. It is a bill to allow this Parliament and this Government to assist the people of Canterbury but the recovery is to be driven by the people of Canterbury. That is its purpose and it is the very reason for some of the points made by members earlier about the bill being referred to the Regulations Review Committee for example and the opportunity for that committee which is chaired by an Opposition member to allow full scrutiny of any decisions made in regard to this bill. 
I think the second point that needs to be made and it is an important point is that any member can come and put a notice of motion on the Table if there is a decision taken by the Government by Order in Council. The bill allows for a motion to be debated and if the Government does not allow a debate then the Order in Council lapses. The purpose of that is to allow full and open scrutiny which not only Labour members but also Green Party members and others have asked for. They have suggested that that is a vital part of our democracy. Of course it is and that is the intention of the bill and of the Government. Indeed it is one of the reasons why we have done our best to consult as widely as we can. I know that there are some amendments on the Table. It is our intention to ensure that there is full scrutiny of any decision where a member deems it necessary. If some person in the public is worried about an issue and refers it to a member of Parliament there is that mechanism to allow the issue to be fully debated and disclosed. Some issues have been raised that the bill does not allow because they are not necessary in the way in which this bill has been established. 
This bill allows the public of New Zealand to hear the reasons for the decisions that are taken if that is considered necessary. The purpose of this bill is to allow for the recovery to be undertaken as speedily as possible but in a seemly way. The bill is to allow the people of Canterbury and particularly the leaders of the people in Canterbury to ensure that every step is taken to recover as rapidly as possible. As we heard in the House today they are keenly attuned to the needs of the people of Canterbury. They are aware that there is a state of shock and that all sorts of emotions will flow as people start to realise the impact on their lives. There will be disappointment there will be anger and there will be sadness. All sorts of emotions will flow and we will need to deal with them as best we are able. This bill will allow those concerns to be addressed. 
A member asked earlier when the state of emergency will be over. All being well if this bill passes by this House it is very likely that the state of emergency will be lifted tomorrow at 12 o’clock. So we will have a seamless transfer from a state of emergency into a state of urgency. Of course the needs of the people who need access to welfare and psychologists etc—all that sort of thing—will still remain; those needs will not disappear. The 0800 779997 number will still be there so that all of those needs will be catered for to allow continuity. We do not want any disruption. We realise that the lives of the people of Canterbury have already been disrupted so the whole objective and purpose of this legislation is to do our best to ensure that there is a smooth recovery for the people of Canterbury. We have to be concerned about their needs their worries and their issues. They have to be first. It is not about this Parliament. It is about this Parliament and the rest of New Zealand helping the people of Canterbury to get back on to their feet so that normality can be restored as rapidly as possible. I have not heard anybody in this House who does not have that as their intent. 
I know there are some amendments on the Table; they are being studied at the moment. I cannot say that they will all be adopted but we certainly are doing our best to genuinely look at whether they can be incorporated. Of course we would prefer at the end of the third reading debate for everybody in this House to agree. That may not be possible and it would be unfortunate if that were so but we want the people in Parliament and in New Zealand to understand that this Government is genuinely trying to ensure that we have a cross-party agreement on this bill because we think that that is in the best interests of the people of New Zealand. It may be that some points will be put that may not be supported; nevertheless the intention is to do our best to accept to cooperate and to ensure a smooth transition. I finish by saying that our objective is to do our best to return the Canterbury region to normality as soon as possible.