Key John: Governor-General Bill — First Reading 
Key John: Governor-General Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:665;Page:12444] 
Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister) 
: 
 I move  
That the Governor-General Bill be now read a first time. 
 At the appropriate time I will move that the Governor-General Bill be considered by the Government Administration Committee that the committee report finally to the House on or before 14 September 2010 and that the committee have the authority to meet at any time while the House is sitting except during oral questions and during any evening on a day on which there has been a sitting of the House and on a Friday in a week in which there has been a sitting of the House despite Standing Orders 187 and 190(1)(b) and (c). 
The Governor-General Bill is important timely legislation. The Governor-General plays an important role in our constitution. As the Sovereign’s representative in New Zealand the Governor-General helps maintain the legitimacy and continuity of Government. The office of Governor-General is a symbolic link between the community and the State and the Governor-General also represents the New Zealand public in a non-partisan way on important public occasions. New Zealand Governors-General always support many community organisations. It is vital that the office of Governor-General is properly supported in carrying out these roles. 
For much of our history Governors and then Governors-General came from overseas. The office of Governor-General is now fully a New Zealand institution but the Act that provides for the support of that office the Civil List Act 1979 is outdated and no longer fit for purpose. As a result in 2007 the previous Government asked the Law Commission under Sir Geoffrey Palmer’s leadership to review the Act. The Law Commission found that the Governor-General provisions in the Civil List Act were old-fashioned unnecessarily complicated and no longer suited to supporting the office of a modern Governor-General. The Law Commission recommended a range of reforms to that part of the Act. The Government this year has agreed with the Law Commission’s recommendations and will implement them in time for the next Governor-General to assume office in August 2011. The new legislation will not save for one or two exceptions apply to the incumbent Governor-General but will apply when the next Governor-General is appointed. 
The main purpose of the bill is to streamline the financial arrangements for the support of the office of Governor-General promote transparency and ensure that they are simpler to administer than the present regime. The bill will also modernise the old-fashioned language found in the Governor-General parts of the Civil List Act. As a modern stand-alone statute it will separate the arrangements relating to the Governor-General from those providing for Ministers and MPs and will therefore better reflect existing constitutional boundaries as well as the mana and independence of the office. 
A key feature of the bill is that it creates a new funding structure for the office of Governor-General. The Governor-General’s personal allowance presently pays for a range of official functions that are much more properly supported by a separate programme appropriation. The bill provides for that separate appropriation. Similarly funds for international travel which the Governor-General undertakes at the Government’s request are provided for in a new international travel appropriation. Domestic travel will form part of the programme appropriation. 
The present exemption of the Governor-General’s salary from income tax will be removed. There is no longer any justification for this exemption and successive Governors-General have requested that it be discontinued. The Queen has voluntarily paid income tax on her private income since 1993. The Australian Governor-General and state governors have paid income tax on their salaries since 2001. Another anachronism that will be removed is the Minister of Finance’s power to exempt the Governor-General from paying any public or local taxes and any other rates and duties. This power came from an age when our Governors-General typically came from Britain and is no longer relevant to supporting modern New Zealand Governors-General. 
The bill will also remove certain outdated restrictions on the availability of the annuity paid to former Governors-General and their surviving spouses or partners. The annuity recognises the significant role played by a Governor-General’s spouse or partner in supporting the office holder. Compared with the present regime the annuity will continue to be available if a surviving spouse or partner remarries or enters a new relationship or if a former Governor-General or his or her surviving spouse or partner chooses to live overseas. The bill will carry over from the Civil List Act provisions allowing the Government to provide specified benefits and privileges to former Governors-General. In practice such benefits are limited to domestic travel and the use of chauffeur-driven cars. The provision of these benefits recognises that the public demands on a former Governor-General’s time may continue after he or she leaves office. Similar provisions exist for former Prime Ministers. The bill will further enhance transparency by requiring the Government to present to the House on an annual basis the details of the expenses incurred to provide such benefits. 
Overall the bill represents a big step forward in how the Government supports the office of the Governor-General. I would like to extend my thanks to the Law Commission to the previous Government and to the leaders of those parties in this House that have indicated to me that they will support this bill.