The ACT Party will be supporting Government motion No. 4. I have just taken advice from the Clerk, who tells me that this debate is about the actual workings of this committee and why it is being established. The ACT Party acknowledges the work that the Hon Simon Power, the Minister of Justice, has done in talking with all members of this Parliament, and we are very pleased to be taking our place on the committee to consider electoral legislation.
As the co-leader of the Green Party Russel Norman said, this process is about democracy and we need to put it in its constitutional, or historical, place. Russel went on to talk about the great story of Western democracy. I think it is very important that we have cross-party agreement and that we try to reach as much agreement as we can, because the last time this process took place there was a great deal of acrimony and there were some damning submissions against the previous Government’s attempt to drive through electoral reform. Who can forget the very famous words of our own Human Rights Commission, when it submitted on the Electoral Finance Bill: “This bill in its current form represents a dramatic assault on two fundamental human rights that New Zealanders cherish, freedom of expression, and the right of informed citizens to participate in the election process.”? I think the Human Rights Commission made a very important submission. It called on the Government to withdraw the Electoral Finance Bill but, sadly, it was ignored.
I think it is very important that the process we follow results in citizens being informed. I remember well the debate we had on MMP in 1993. Mr Norman has just referred to the efforts of Mr Shirtcliffe on that occasion. Mr Shirtcliffe is to be congratulated, because he sought to inform the public of New Zealand. He sought to inform the public about the issues of MMP, and I hope that as the committee is involved in deliberations, it can take on those views.
This committee, of course, is being established to consider two bills: the bill dealing with the electoral referendum—the bill setting up the referendum for the review of MMP and the electoral system—and the subsequent bill to be considered by this House, to do with electoral finance. I only hope that people participate. I hope that the workings of the bill on the electoral referendum that the committee will consider are such that people participate. And I hope that people’s experience with the most recent referendum on smacking does not put them off participating. On the most recent referendum that this country considered, 1.5 million New Zealanders took the trouble to vote—1.5 million—and 87 percent of them voted in favour of a change.
I appreciate that I need to keep my comments on the subject, but it is important that the bill the committee deliberates on does not put people off participating. Sadly, the record of referendums has not been very good in that regard, and in the last referendum some 87 percent of people voted in favour of a change but were ignored. Well, they were not totally ignored—I am one of just five MPs who stand up for that 87 percent of those 1.5 million people.
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Rick Barker): At the beginning of the member’s presentation he said that this was a narrow debate about the composition of the committee. He outlined very clearly what the scope of his contribution should be, and then he proceeded to waver from it. I indicated to him at one time that he should narrow it. He acknowledged that, but then he strayed away from the debate. I say to the member that this debate is narrow, as he has described. I am prepared to let people have the odd sally on to another subject by way of description, but to make it the major part of a presentation to this House is out of order. I ask the member to continue, and to stay within the confines of the debate.
JOHN BOSCAWEN: Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker Barker; I will certainly do that. I was referring to the committee’s deliberations, or potential deliberations, on the electoral referendum bill.
I now consider the deliberations on the finance bill. Mr Norman referred to the need for the public to be involved. He talked about it being a deliberative process; we want the public of New Zealand to be involved in that process and to make submissions on both of those bills. I encourage the public to make submissions, in particular on the bill involving electoral finance, because all too often members of this House seek to restrict those deliberations, and try to put unreasonable limits on them. I thought that the Attorney-General, when speaking this afternoon in question time on behalf of the Minister of Justice, put it very, very well when he said that we need to balance the public’s interest. The New Zealand Bill of Rights Act makes it very clear that freedom of expression—the freedom to be informed and to participate—is a very basic human right and needs to be protected. I am very pleased to think that the Government is having a very open mind towards the laws governing electoral finance.
The ACT Party supports this motion. We will be taking our seat on the committee. In fact, it is currently the ACT Party’s intention that I should represent our party on the committee, and I look forward to doing so. Thank you.