Mapp Wayne: Land Transport Amendment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
Mapp Wayne: Land Transport Amendment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:626;Page:21371] 
Dr WAYNE MAPP (National—North Shore) 
: 
 National supports this bill. We recognise as the Minister has indicated that much of it covers improvements to the existing legislation and enhancing it. I note in this third reading that the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee members worked very constructively together to enhance the legislation. The rules in many parts are detailed technical and naturally intended to attract the interests of only those people who are most directly affected in the transport industry. So I note the rules around logbooks etc. and the details around the limited licence powers of traffic officers and the like. Some specific things did not get covered in earlier debates including some of the rules around goods and services vehicles—in particular the sizes of those vehicles. That area of the law has actually been made somewhat more liberal and we recognise the value of that in terms of the practicality of operating modern New Zealand businesses. 
There are of course some issues that the select committee and indeed the preceding debate have focused on—and quite properly so. The changes are substantial and rest particularly around the P1 endorsement—that is the endorsement for taxi-drivers bus drivers drivers of courtesy vehicles—and electric bikes. I want to turn to the issue of that P1 endorsement for taxi-drivers. The select committee in some respects largely on its own initiative—and I note at this point the contribution of Deborah Coddington; it was she who really raised the issue at the select committee and the committee to a person saw the importance of the issue she was raising—recommended a major change to the legislation so that people in the industry at present who have very serious convictions ought not to be allowed to hold a P1 endorsement. We felt that passengers in taxis are in a uniquely vulnerable situation particularly late at night and particularly if they are young women. So the people who are carrying those people ought to satisfy rigorous tests. 
In essence we have proposed that anyone who is henceforth convicted—or more particularly who has previously been convicted—of murder of a serious sexual offence or of other serious offences such as aggravated assault and the like should not be able to hold a licence. On further consideration we did consider that there should be a very limited appeal. The National Party believes that the Government has gone too far in essentially giving discretion on appeals to the director rather than to the court system. If the proposals put forward by the Minister had referred for instance to a District Court considering that issue they would have almost certainly received our support but we consider that giving that power to the director has softened the requirement excessively. 
The courtesy vehicle issue vexed the select committee. We have come up with some minor modifications to the existing rules. I am not sure that we ever got that one completely right and no doubt it is something that could be revisited further. 
I want to comment on the issue of electric bikes and then by extension on some of the issues that I think this country will have to look at in the future. We believe that the number of electric bikes being used is likely to increase for a whole variety of reasons. More cycleways are being constructed and by and large they have support within local communities. Almost certainly that will lead to a greater increase in the numbers of bicycles that have electrical assistance to propel them and we believe that a more liberal approach is necessary. It is quite common now for those bikes to have motors of 600 watts. That will become increasingly common in the industry and we believed a blanket exemption up to that level was appropriate. The Minister has said that the director should have the discretion to rule on exemptions for vehicles with motors of between 300 watts and 600 watts and maybe that is something that will need to be revisited further. 
I want to close on this particular point: I believe that as a nation we will have to consider more seriously the issue of vehicle emissions. I think that there is a real question as to whether we are taking a rigorous enough approach to that issue. Certainly much of the New Zealand passenger fleet consists of imported vehicles many of which were quite old at the time of being first imported. I wonder whether we will have to look more rigorously at putting an age limitation on the first importation of those vehicles plus take a more rigorous approach to the emission levels of those vehicles generally. In a whole variety of ways this country is concerned about global warming. There are different approaches to that issue. The Government’s approach is very much— 
Phil Heatley 
: Taxes. 
Dr WAYNE MAPP 
: —taxes as my colleague has quite rightly put it. National is opposed to a carbon tax but nevertheless we recognise the seriousness of the issue. I note that last week President Bush also noted the significance of the issue. I believe that in due course the United States will become a party not to Kyoto but to a subsequent convention. Rather than taking a punitive tax approach—which is always the fond approach of the socialist; the European way if you will—the approach of the United States is to provide incentives for new technology. I guess it is an issue of whether one thinks an incentive or a tax is more appropriate. We know what the Government thinks. It thinks the tax or the punitive approach—the cost-plus mentality approach—is the right way. I believe that in time that will be shown to be an unwise decision. 
Nevertheless I think there is concern that we should have a more efficient vehicle fleet. I have only to think of the work done by the Toyota and Honda motor companies on their hybrid technology vehicles. I imagine that over the next few years the United States will be incentivising that kind of technology. President Bush has already indicated that is the pathway the United States will take and I believe that a future agreement post-Kyoto will have a much greater focus on incentives rather than on punitive taxes. The outcome of course is intended to be the same: to reduce the effect of global warming. 
Hon Pete Hodgson 
: This is about land transport. 
Dr WAYNE MAPP 
: I say this to the Minister who has responsibilities in this area. I believe that when this issue is reviewed further—and it will have to be—the pathway of Kyoto and of taxation will be seen essentially as a flawed approach. Nevertheless the matter will have to be dealt with and I believe that the way of the future will be technological innovation. That will be driven more through an incentivisation process than through punitive taxes. I believe that one of the things we will have to look at is the age of our vehicle fleet and the rules around the importation of motor vehicles particularly their age at the time of their first importation. It is noteworthy that Toyota and Honda have said that importing vehicles that are already 8 or 10 years old means that New Zealand misses out fundamentally on newer technology. 
If that issue was looked at more thoroughly by the Government and Crown agencies—the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority for instance should be looking at that issue more intensively—we may come up with a more rational approach to that particular issue. That is not to suggest that we would not have second-hand imports; clearly they are a feature of New Zealand’s way of life if you will and we do get substantial technological advantages as a consequence of importing them. But that does not mean to say that the alternative is essentially to have open slather on importing any vehicle no matter how old it is. So I suggest that as we look at the issues that this bill raises we see we will have to think more creatively and more imaginatively in order to deal with the issue of global warming.