Choudhary Ashraf: Local Government (Auckland Law Reform) Bill — In Committee 
Choudhary Ashraf: Local Government (Auckland Law Reform) Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:663;Page:11564] 
Dr ASHRAF CHOUDHARY (Labour) 
: 
 I am delighted to hear some very good things about my local MP George Hawkins. 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: What does this member know about Auckland? 
Dr ASHRAF CHOUDHARY 
: I live there. I live in the south. I have been there for 4 years but the member did not notice. Mr Williamson has not been seen in Pakuranga. I was in his area last week. I am a little bit concerned about and upset with John Carter. John Carter is a good man actually. I have known him for a number of years. 
Darien Fenton 
: He’s not. 
Dr ASHRAF CHOUDHARY 
: No the thing is that he has disappointed me with this. I have travelled overseas with him and he is generally pretty good but this bill has brought out what he really is. I am really disappointed with John Carter. I had the opportunity to sit with John Carter on the Auckland Governance Legislation Committee a number of times and I had the opportunity to hear a lot of submissions including submissions from Pacific people Asian people and Maori people but it looks as though John Carter did not really listen. He has not really listened to any of the submissions and I am really disappointed about that. 
This bill has totally ignored the ethnic people of not only Auckland but also New Zealand. Over 20 percent of the population of Auckland is now Asian but there is nothing in this bill for the Asian people or the ethnic people of Auckland. I am disappointed in our first Asian Minister Pansy Wong who has been put up on the mantelpiece by National. She has done nothing for our people. So far the Office of Ethnic Affairs has done nothing for our people and that message will become very clear over the next 18 months. The Minister is a token Minister and we will see what happens there. 
We are disappointed that under this bill there will be just a token panel for the ethnic community. It suggests that the panel will be appointed by the mayor. If we really want to make something for these people they should have the right to have a view. Do they not have the right to have an input into the process for the selection of this panel? This bill says nothing about that. This bill says that the panel will be appointed by the mayor and that it is for only 3 years. Why is it for only 3 years? I ask John Carter why this panel which he has reluctantly agreed to is for only 3 years. It is the same for the Pacific advisory panel. It is for only 3 years. Why? What value is being given to the Pacific people the Asian people and the ethnic people who are pretty much half of the population of Auckland? They have been given only one paltry panel to represent their communities. They do not have any input into the selection of the people for the panel. No input from ethnic people has been suggested in the bill. We are going to put forward a Supplementary Order Paper to say that these communities should have input into the selection of the ethnic panel and the Pacific Islands panel. There should be input from the communities themselves before the panels are selected. 
As a country we have to look forward and our future is tied up with Asia. Even the Government agrees that our future is tied up with Asia. Unless we have some recognition of those people in New Zealand how will we move forward? The Asian people who are in New Zealand are good ambassadors. They are the people who can help us engage with Asia. They can help us promote trade with Asia. But when they are here they have no say. The one Asian Minister we have has been put on the mantelpiece. She has done nothing for our people so far. The message we are getting is that nothing is happening.