Mentions of Human Rights Commission in New Zealand Parliament debates

Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM ... and the Law Society, yet those against it include the Criminal Bar Association, the community law centres, and the Human Rights Commission, so I trust that the Minister will concede that the issue is neither simple nor straightforward, but complex and finely ...

Dr KENNEDY GRAHAM ... the District Court judges, and those against the idea, and at submissions from the community law centres, the Human Rights Commission, the Criminal Bar Association, and others. I see opinion coming down on either side if we increase the threshold from 3 ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... at what had happened. I was with the people in Whakatāne on that hīkoi. I have heard a draft report back from the Human Rights Commission. I have been at the Tūhoe Ahurea, which is the biggest festival gathering of Tūhoe people in the Ruātoki Valley, on at ...

KEITH LOCKE ... particular issue. There have been submissions to the Standing Orders Committee by various institutions, including the Human Rights Commission, about the speed with which bills pass through this Parliament without sufficient time for people to make submissions. ...

CHARLES CHAUVEL ... have been inserted and that they were inserted at the behest of the human rights watchdog in New Zealand, the Human Rights Commission. That is something to be pleased about. The bill updates existing powers. For that reason it will receive support ...

KEITH LOCKE ... amendments. The Greens support the committee adding a human rights clause to this legislation, as recommended by the Human Rights Commission, but we wonder whether the SIS will actually take much notice of the clause. Then there is the problem of the SIS’s ...

DAVID SHEARER ... 4AAA, which looks at the “Principles underpinning performance of functions”. This amendment was recommended by the Human Rights Commission. Some people say it does not have teeth, but I believe it lays out the real principles on which the Security ...

Hon LIANNE DALZIEL ... to the bill as it was going through the committee. Picking up where David Shearer left off, the submission of the Human Rights Commission was quite a powerful submission heard by the committee. That submission asked that the principle section include ...

Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON ... about new section 4AAA(2) inserted by clause 5A. My understanding about the way this clause was drafted was that the Human Rights Commission made a submission, and then Dr Norman and Mr Goff got together and refashioned it, and that is how it emerged. But I am ...

KEITH LOCKE ... and Security Committee, and all members of the committee agreed to put in that provision. It was proposed by the Human Rights Commission in its submission. It is not quite in the form that the Human Rights Commission would like, but it is a step forward. ...

Hon DAVID PARKER ...4AAA(1) was inserted into the bill at the recommendation of the committee upon the submissions of, amongst others, the Human Rights Commission. It makes it clear that in performing its functions under the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service Act, the ...

Hon PHIL GOFF ... this bill that improve the nature of it. I acknowledge, in particular, three sets of submissions. One was made by the Human Rights Commission. I thought it was a very appropriate submission that led us to include in the bill a section that sets out the rights ...

Hon DAVID PARKER ... is wise legislation and an appropriate balance of the different interests to be balanced, that the suggestion of the Human Rights Commission that human rights be protected in the legislation has been brought forward and adopted by the select committee, that ...

KEITH LOCKE ... it later reversed this decision and released copies. Something positive did come out of the submission process: the Human Rights Commission had proposed that “Given the legitimate concerns about the breadth of the amendments and their possible impact, the ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... with Gareth Hughes. I always find it very interesting when members of this House refer to the pronouncements of the Human Rights Commission, and particularly when those members come from both Labour and the Green Party. I have a real respect for the Human ...

JACINDA ARDERN ... believe me on this question; let us go to one of the submitters. Why do we not ask for an independent view from the Human Rights Commission? The commission, when asked whether the existing structure and framework we offer in New Zealand actually caused any ...

GARETH HUGHES ... we are debating now with clause 9. The real transitional measure would be a more explicit opt-out provision. The Human Rights Commission said, of course, that there is no issue of human rights and no problem here with the freedom of association. But what ...

Hon JOHN BOSCAWEN ... with such utter contempt drew widespread protest throughout the country. I go back to the submission from the Human Rights Commission on that bill. It said: “A human rights approach to democratic government requires genuine participation. Genuine ...

SUE MORONEY ... in terms of where our women in the workplace stack up in that report. We know that she has failed because the Human Rights Commission recently published a census on women’s participation and, again, we see the slide backwards for New Zealand women, and ...

RAHUI KATENE ... from a very simple Minister. It is of real note that in the annual review of race relations issued by the Human Rights Commission in March 2010, the need for Māori representation in local government and an effective voice for Māori in the decisions ...

METIRIA TUREI ... to oppose it. The areas of concern are those that have been outlined by submitters such as the Law Commission, the Human Rights Commission, and, of course, the early childhood education sector. The issue of limited-attendance centres for children and the ...

SUE MORONEY ... that the select committee received on this bill on the matter of limited-attendance centres. It was from the Human Rights Commission. I want to read its actual words, because they tell us about the human rights aspects that are under threat with the ...

RAHUI KATENE ... up secondary-tertiary programmes. We were interested to see that this project received support from as wide as the Human Rights Commission and the PPTA. The commission said that the experience of the Manukau Institute of Technology in seeking the opportunity ...

DAVID SHEARER ... submissions the select committee had on this particular subject. Sue Moroney has mentioned the submission made by the Human Rights Commission. The submission mentions, of course, that the bill proposes to amend section 310(2) of the Education Act 1989 so that ...

Dr JACKIE BLUE ...iness.” A very interesting survey called What Next? National Conversation about Work was done by the Human Rights Commission. A whole lot of myths were absolutely thrown out the window. One of the myths was that employers are bastards. They are ...

CAROL BEAUMONT ... also noted that the effects of this legislation will disproportionately affect some workers rather than others. The Human Rights Commission took on the issue of what it called “constrained consent”. On the other side of the House, members seem to think that a “...

DAVID CLENDON ... The mover of the bill, in his opening remarks, referred to people in ivory towers critiquing the bill. Perhaps the Human Rights Commission dwells in an ivory tower, though I think not. Its submission spelt out very clearly the major flaws in this bill, and ...

HONE HARAWIRA ... was out of due proportion to the objective of punishment, and that it was out of line with international law. The Human Rights Commission said the bill would “impact disproportionately on Māori … and therefore may amount to indirect discrimination which ...

JACINDA ARDERN ... it assumes that people do not wish to work, I would rather rely on some of the thoughtful words from groups like the Human Rights Commission. It said: “The most obvious flaw with this proposal was the assumption that work would be available when many of the ...

Hon ANNETTE KING ... by opinion leaders in opinion pieces in newspapers, by researchers, by academics, and by Government agencies like the Human Rights Commission. They have said in one voice: “Dump this bill!”. They are telling the Government to dump this bill because it will not ...

Hon LUAMANUVAO WINNIE LABAN ... her own cleaning and day-to-day tasks. Stories like those have led Grey Power in Southland to lodge a case with the Human Rights Commission about cuts to home help in Southland, as reported by the Southland Times today. It comes after a huge ...

MOANA MACKEY ... stop social or affordable housing, then it was illegal. We said it could be any purpose because we were told by the Human Rights Commission that it had seen cases where developers were saying that the primary purpose of a covenant was amenity value, but that ...

MOANA MACKEY ... heard the original submissions on the Affordable Housing: Enabling Territorial Authorities Act, we heard one from the Human Rights Commission. It told us of a case in Nelson where a developer had said that the purpose of the restrictive covenant was related to ...

RAHUI KATENE ... international experts who are telling us this. In a report released this month by the Government’s own watchdog, the Human Rights Commission, we were told that New Zealand needs to take a much stronger stand on child poverty. The Right to an adequate standard ...

Hon DAVID PARKER ... mistake that was made within the ministries. When I started to think about this issue, after we had heard from the Human Rights Commission and the New Zealand Law Society as to their opposition to it, and tried to think about how injustices could be caused ...

LYNNE PILLAY ... that they know that their voices are heard. I think the most compelling submissions on this bill were those from the Human Rights Commission and from the Law Society, which raised the concerns initially. When the bill went through its first reading, it was ...

Hon DAVID PARKER ... to have the right to be present at his or her own trial. That is what the Law Society objects to, that is what the Human Rights Commission objects to, and that is what the Labour Party objects to. I hope that Mr Garrett from ACT will be reflecting upon this,...

Hon LIANNE DALZIEL ... that the bill should have been vetted by the Attorney-General. I relied specifically on that occasion on parts of the Human Rights Commission submission—which I do not now have in front of me, and that is why I am struggling to refer to it. Instead of referring ...

LYNNE PILLAY ... David Parker said, and also with my friend and colleague Lianne Dalziel, who spoke before. She did not refer to the Human Rights Commission submission until later in the piece, because she had a lot of other things to say before that. I will be honest: it is ...

Hon DAVID PARKER ... now a matter of discretion for the judge. That is wrong. What did others say? The New Zealand Law Society and the Human Rights Commission both submitted strongly and both said it was wrong. Given that there is no evidence of any malpractice or something ...

Hon LIANNE DALZIEL ... from the Minister of Justice about the assessment of compliance with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act, the Human Rights Commission does not agree. I want to spend a bit of time going through the Human Rights Commission’s submission, because it has ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... thing is that in looking at the submissions—and I understand there were about eight submitters—we saw that the Human Rights Commission’s sole concern seemed to be about the speed with which this initiative is progressing. In the short time available to ...

JACINDA ARDERN ... Zealand Law Society submitted that audiovisual links should not be used for substantive criminal matters, as did the Human Rights Commission, and that has been discussed at length. Finally, I highlight the fact that in this case I had expected the Minister ...

Hon TARIANA TURIA ... that “Denial of basic human dignity and revenge does not make for good legislation.” This view was endorsed by the Human Rights Commission, who warned the select committee that “concern about the victims of crime should not override the importance of ...

DAVID CLENDON ... and well-informed statements that this legislation is not worthy of extension, and that it sees no value in it. The Human Rights Commission in its submission supported the continuation of the Act, but only rather tentatively and on the grounds of an ...

DAVID CLENDON ... provide another opportunity to guarantee Māori a place at the decision-making tables throughout this country. The Human Rights Commission recently in its annual review of race relations identified Māori participation in local government and an effective ...

JACINDA ARDERN ... this third bill. In fact, on one of the first days of submissions I was lucky enough to hear a submission from the Human Rights Commission. Not only did it criticise the process the Government had used to progress this legislation, but it questioned the way ...

RAHUI KATENE ... considered. We also present this amendment in the context of the annual review of relations released in March by the Human Rights Commission. That review identified Māori representation in local government and an effective voice for Māori in the decisions of ...

RAHUI KATENE ... for the Auckland region. The first was the annual review of race relations, which was released in March by the Human Rights Commission. That review identified Māori representation in local government, and an effective voice for Māori in the decisions of ...

KEITH LOCKE ... then on to a country of torture, where they have actually been tortured. The committee also wanted the New Zealand Human Rights Commission to be able to “receive complaints of human rights violations related immigration laws”. That is something the Greens ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... 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 ...

RAHUI KATENE ... debate without looking even further back into history, at the very foundations of the scheme. Submitters from the Human Rights Commission went to the select committee and reminded Parliament of the origins of accident compensation as “a form of social ...

CAROL BEAUMONT ... I have raised a number of concerns about this legislation being discriminatory. I have raised the fact that the Human Rights Commission has raised some very specific concerns about the discriminatory impact of the proposed changes. I have raised the fact ...

CAROL BEAUMONT ... unfair. Others have gone on to explicitly show that this bill is discriminatory in terms of our Human Rights Act. The Human Rights Commission made a very strong submission to our select committee, and I find it deeply troubling that no Government Minister who ...

CAROL BEAUMONT ... not only unfair but also discriminatory. These points were raised quite strongly by a number of submitters and by our Human Rights Commission, an organisation I have a great deal of confidence in. It seems not to have caused any concern across the Chamber. It ...

RAHUI KATENE ... the effects of the recession, in order to achieve cost containment that is seemingly no longer necessary”. The Human Rights Commission adds further to this view, noting that “tinkering with entitlements at the margins undermines the concept of a truly ...

GRANT ROBERTSON ... to that control is a view held not only by Labour. I would like to put on record parts of the submission of the Human Rights Commission on this bill. The commission has raised a number of concerns about ministerial control. It says in its submission: “The ...

CATHERINE DELAHUNTY ... said to us in its submission, this is a traditional private sector model based on false crisis assumptions. As the Human Rights Commission submission said, there are serious concerns about ministerial powers. Of course, the Green Party supports the proper ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... control, and that this induced the offender to commit murder. We were particularly persuaded by the logic of the Human Rights Commission, which acknowledged that at the heart of the defence of provocation is the need to balance conflicting sets of human ...

PAUL QUINN ... of course, the Sensible Sentencing Trust, the National Council of Women of New Zealand fully supported it, and the Human Rights Commission strongly supported it. Then, of course, we had the submissions referred to by my colleague Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, who ...

STUART NASH ... to consent to the taking of a bodily sample. As we know, there are fundamental human rights issues around this. The Human Rights Commission has expressed concerns that the proposed changes may go a little too far. The bill allows the police to take DNA from ...

CARMEL SEPULONI ... He said he could not see any special circumstances in New Zealand to justify not having statutory safeguards. The Human Rights Commission has expressed concerns that the proposed changes go too far. The criminal bill allows police to take DNA from anyone ...

Hon CLAYTON COSGROVE ... theories were put forward to the committee. From a personal point of view, I was less than impressed with the Human Rights Commissioner’s submission. I was more impressed with the Privacy Commissioner’s submission. I think those of us who heard the ...

RAHUI KATENE ... orders. These are all serious issues, and ones that require further consideration than this bill is capable of. The Human Rights Commission also endorsed this view, noting the research and the recent review of the Domestic Violence Act report that ...

KEITH LOCKE Last Sunday I spoke at a migrant forum at the New Zealand Diversity Forum in Wellington, which was sponsored by the Human Rights Commission. I spoke alongside two colleagues, Darien Fenton from the Labour Party and Jackie Blue from the National Party. There ...

Hon STEVE CHADWICK ... that we will be confirming next week in the House, at the same time as the Government has received a report from the Human Rights Commission that confirms that chief executives of Government departments must work to overcome pay equity issues in their ...

RAHUI KATENE ... Rights Act 1990, although there is no mention of human rights in the bill and there has been no consultation with the Human Rights Commission. It is not enough to say that there are no human rights concerns under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act, as this was ...

The CHAIRPERSON ... and State enterprises that they wish to debate. I understand that the first entity members wish to debate is the Human Rights Commission.

KEITH LOCKE On behalf of the Greens, I praise the work of the Human Rights Commission, under the very capable leadership of Rosslyn Noonan. I think its work is even more important today; it is well spelt ...

Hon SIMON POWER I join the Green Party member in congratulating the Human Rights Commission on its work, under the leadership of Rosslyn Noonan. Engagement has been welcomed from the new Government and we have ...

RAHUI KATENE ... their capacity to finance further criminal activity. But there are a number of conflicting issues around this. The Human Rights Commission told us that the suggestion that the amendment will act as a disincentive is contrary to evidence from other countries ...

CATHERINE DELAHUNTY ... that we have not corrected a fault in the old immigration legislation, such that the new legislation will prevent the Human Rights Commission under the Human Rights Act from bringing any proceedings on immigration matters or being party to any proceedings. This ...

KEITH LOCKE ... in line with substantial criticisms that have been made by reputable organisations like Amnesty International, the Human Rights Commission, etc. It is disappointing that, on such an important bill, we are dealing with the Committee stage, which should ...

KEITH LOCKE ... Zealand;”, my amendment seeks to omit “or the international relations of New Zealand;” because it is so vague. As the Human Rights Commission said in its submission, “Apart from the implications of using classified information in a wide range of immigration ...

KEITH LOCKE ... overseas, there are also downsides from that, and those have been identified by Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission in their submissions to the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee on the Immigration Bill. I have an amendment ...

Hon PANSY WONG ... considered and professional approach to that issue. We engaged at length with the Privacy Commissioner and the Chief Human Rights Commissioner, and eventually we struck the right balance in the legislation. The other provisions that caused a lot of ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ...ghts: the presumption of innocence until one is proven to be guilty. We absolutely agree with the submission from the Human Rights Commission that measures must be put in place to deter criminal activity. The question is whether the extreme measures proposed in ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... Committee on the Electoral Finance Bill on 18 October 2007 as a member of the public. At that hearing the Chief Human Rights Commissioner said quite clearly and categorically that her preference was—and remains—that the Electoral Finance Bill be withdrawn,...

TODD McCLAY ... the case. The Electoral Commission referred to the bill’s “chilling effect”, and the New Zealand Law Society and the Human Rights Commission also condemned the bill. The Listener stated during the course of the debate on the Electoral Finance ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... on ordinary New Zealanders to speak out and criticise the Government. Those restrictions went far beyond what the Human Rights Commission considered reasonable. The Labour Government did that for the worst possible reason. Fearing that the Labour Government ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... limit that restricted third parties to spending just one-fortieth of what the Labour Party was allowed to spend. The Human Rights Commission said those parties should be allowed to spend up to $25,000 to $30,000—

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... after the public of New Zealand had had their chance to speak. I sat in on the select committee when the Chief Human Rights Commissioner, Rosslyn Noonan, said to the committee members: “The commission’s position is and remains that the bill should be ...

LOUISE UPSTON ... to fully participate in the democratic process. Despite grave concerns from the Electoral Commission and the Human Rights Commission, the Electoral Finance Act was rammed through. The result was poor quality law that was unworkable and unintelligible ...

Hon SIMON POWER ... freedom of expression and to participate in the democratic process, and they justifiably earned a rebuke from the Human Rights Commission. Gone, too, will be the concept of “financial agents”, as the obligations regarding donations and expenditure will be ...

JOHN BOSCAWEN ... Government treated the public was, in my view, unbelievable. I am sure members know the story well. Thankfully, the Human Rights Commission strongly disagreed and described the bill as a “dramatic assault on two fundamental human rights that New Zealanders ...

Hon TREVOR MALLARD ... of employment. No! There is no requirement here whatsoever to give reasons. The member says that people can go to the Human Rights Commission, but how can a person go to the Human Rights Commission on a gender issue, a religious issue, or on an age issue if the ...

CAROL BEAUMONT ... choose at the start of the employment relationship. I want to know why the Minister is disregarding the advice of the Human Rights Commission, which notes its concern that the proposed legislation could impact negatively on school-leavers seeking their first ...

Hon Dr WAYNE MAPP ... Authority and the Employment Court on the human rights issues. Initially in my bill they were going to go to the Human Rights Commission, but it was considered after hearing the submissions that it would be better to keep that within the authority. That ...

Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN ... the National Government is in favour of it all by itself. Nobody else is in favour of ramming the bill through; the Human Rights Commission is opposed to ramming it through. It is being rammed through for a simple reason: Mr Key said before the election there ...

SUE BRADFORD ...ional’s confidence in the capacity of its own members to debate the contents of this bill fairly and squarely. As the Human Rights Commission said yesterday, and as Mr Goff has already mentioned: “Rushed legislation is potentially risky legislation. … The ...

Hon RUTH DYSON ... like their attitude, or because they might be pregnant. But, of course, Kate Wilkinson says that they can go to the Human Rights Commission, and that there are existing safeguards for those sorts of things. I am talking about the Human Rights Commission, which,...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... impact of those members’ actions over successive terms was never more apparent than during the urgent call from the Human Rights Commission that New Zealand must adopt a national plan to combat child poverty. Poverty did not occur just today, day three of a ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... describing it as a lifeline from social isolation for those without access to cars. CCS Disability Action and the Human Rights Commission describe the provision of an accessible public transport system as pivotal to enabling disabled people to participate ...

Hon TARIANA TURIA ... use of lethal weapons is a ministerial policy matter. Again, during the course of mediation of our complaint to the Human Rights Commission, the police stated that the Minister of Police could have made a different decision. We come back, then, to the call ...

Dr PAUL HUTCHISON ... opportunity to make submissions, and to talk to them, as well. I was particularly struck by the submission from the Human Rights Commission, which clearly had put a lot of thought into studying the convention. The Human Rights Commission was set up by the ...

Dr JACKIE BLUE ... on 30 March 2007. After signing the convention in March 2007 a process of consultation with disability groups and the Human Rights Commission began. As of April 2008 I understand that 126 countries have signed the convention and 71 have signed the optional ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... to respond quickly. My colleague Tariana Turia is responsible for having brought to the House a ruling from the Human Rights Commission of 19 May 2008, which was described as a “landmark in human rights law in that it shows how any New Zealander can ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... deny entitlements to those who really need it the most. As an example, we were interested in the submission from the Human Rights Commission, which drew attention to the test of proving whether a mental injury is “reasonably expected”—a test that is not ...

SIMON POWER ... less focused on the legalities of the matter, made similar comments, as did the New Zealand Law Society and the Human Rights Commission. When National put together its minority view on this bill—although we supported the recommendation of the select ...

Hon DAVID BENSON-POPE ... for our community. Like the previous speaker, Mr Power, I join the New Zealand Law Society; Unicef New Zealand; the Human Rights Commission; the National Council of Women; Women’s Refuge; the Prisoners Aid and Rehabilitation Society; the Child Abuse ...

Hon STEVE CHADWICK ... protect vulnerable workers and, indirectly, their children. This bill will make a huge difference for many women. The Human Rights Commission has previously investigated many claims of discrimination against breastfeeding mothers under the Human Rights Act, as ...

Hon ANNETTE KING ... for police. This includes important contributions made by independent bodies such as the Law Commission, the Human Rights Commission, and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. They helped to ensure that the proposals in the bill are consistent with ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... of court for its publication. Alongside those actions, a raft of complaints were being filed with the courts, the Human Rights Commission, and the Police Complaints Authority. Internationally, the United Nations bodies on human and indigenous rights and on ...

Hon ANNETTE KING ... and the committee sent the summary of its recommendations to the submitters. That was a suggestion made by the Human Rights Commission about further public consultation. Members of this House have also made important contributions to the discussions. ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... in our case with an iwi called Ngāti Uenukukōpako. Ngāti Uenukukōpako has in fact lodged a complaint with the Human Rights Commission, claiming that the Rotorua District Council has prejudiced the iwi by failing to offer it the same or similar redress ...

CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON ... going on with the conservation board, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Creative New Zealand, Te Waka Toi, and the Human Rights Commission? All sorts of appointments are being made without any reference to the National Party whatsoever. Will we see Ann ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... National that the rental property did not want Māori tenants. Kelly Lovett subsequently lodged a complaint with the Human Rights Commission and the Race Relations Commissioner, Joris de Bres, and they confirmed that such discrimination was illegal. Illegal or ...

LINDSAY TISCH ... out against the bill. We saw that the Law Society has very strong comments about how abusive this legislation is. The Human Rights Commission described the bill as “a dramatic assault on the freedom of expression”. It does not come much stronger than that. The ...

Hon ANNETTE KING ... it for political purposes, and that is the cynicism of this National Party. Its members have constantly misquoted the Human Rights Commission. When the bill was introduced to the House and was referred to the Justice and Electoral Committee, the Human Rights ...

Dr JACKIE BLUE ... term that it has come to this. The Government has spurned the advice of such organisations as the Law Society and the Human Rights Commission. It is ignoring the sentiment, feeling, and passion of New Zealanders. It is arrogant and dismissive of the depth of ...

CHARLES CHAUVEL ... Future members—has recommended that it be changed. So clause 5(1)(a)(iii) is to be omitted, as was suggested by the Human Rights Commission amongst other bodies, including many non-governmental organisations that came before the committee. It is now ...

ANNE TOLLEY ... Professor Andrew Geddis, Family First New Zealand, Libertarianz, the Employers and Manufacturers Association, the Human Rights Commission, David Farrar, the New Zealand Law Society, Mr Graeme Edgeler, and about 13 other submissions, focused on this clause. ...

HEATHER ROY ... But we did have two very good submissions. One was from the New Zealand Law Society and the other was from the Human Rights Commission. The Human Rights Commission was asked to participate in the process and it brought forward some very valuable points ...

CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON ... of the procedural failings. The majority of the committee members were apparently very concerned about having the Human Rights Commission appear. The commission was initially offered two opportunities to appear, and when it could not meet the unrealistic ...

HONE HARAWIRA ... some 17 years before this bill even came up, but in many respects Te Pūtātara could be put alongside the views of the Human Rights Commission, the Electoral Commission, the Law Society, and many of the other 575 public submissions on this bill that called for ...

METIRIA TUREI ... moment that this legislation was a breach of human rights, we would not support it; we would not. I recognise the Human Rights Commission had problems with the legislation and we chose to work constructively with ACT, with United Future, with New Zealand ...

Hon ANNETTE KING ... ensure that 101 oral submissions could be heard. The committee listened to these submissions and then consulted the Human Rights Commission about changes that advisers had proposed in the departmental report on the bill. The bill is now reported back to the ...

ERIC ROY ... of democracy. Today, around New Zealand, grave concerns are being uttered by a range of groups—including the Human Rights Commission and the Law Society—and in editorials, on marches, and on talkback programmes. This matter has absolutely consumed ...

SUE BRADFORD ... already mentioned, we also heard from organisations like the New Zealand Assembly of People with Disabilities and the Human Rights Commission, both of which particularly endorsed the strengthening of project information memorandum requirements. This reinforced ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... we cannot help but be influenced by the power of messages put forward from groups, such as the Law Society or the Human Rights Commission, regarding electoral law reform. The Law Society stated in its submission on the Electoral Finance Bill that it would “ma...

NICKY WAGNER ... of property, apparently as a result of further consideration of United States experiences. Even the New Zealand Human Rights Commission, which was in favour of including property rights into legislation, recommends that amendments be made to this bill. ...

GORDON COPELAND ... Federated Farmers, the Treaty Tribes Coalition, Business New Zealand, the New Zealand Business Roundtable, and the Human Rights Commission. The only significant naysayer in relation to the bill was the New Zealand Law Society. However, its submission ...

RODNEY HIDE ... with the Government that they want to express a political view. That is pretty tough. I was impressed with the Human Rights Commission’s submission on Thursday. I myself think that we should not have any of these rules, but, given that in Parliament it ...

KEITH LOCKE ... by the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General to review the Terrorism Suppression Act. That is exactly what the Human Rights Commission called for at the select committee, and exactly what I put in an amendment 2 days ago in this House and that was turned ...

KEITH LOCKE ... on my Supplementary Order Paper is that I support, by an amendment, a thorough review of the original Act by the Human Rights Commission, to be completed, according to my Supplementary Order Paper, by 1 December 2009. Wayne Mapp talked about whether there ...

KEITH LOCKE ... came from the most highly trained lawyers—the ones most conscious of the rule of law and civil rights issues—and the Human Rights Commission, which wanted a whole review done because it could see that this amendment bill and the original Act breached the rule ...

KEITH LOCKE ... did not listen to the overwhelming majority of submitters opposed to the bill, including expert submitters from the Human Rights Commission, who said that this bill should not proceed before a proper review of the existing weaknesses in the Terrorism ...

HONE HARAWIRA ... little attempt to stack the next election to suit itself, in the face of massive criticism from the Law Society, the Human Rights Commission, and thousands of others. Is there a threat to the Prime Minister? Hell, yes! If the polls are to be believed, John ...

Hon Dr NICK SMITH It is an indictment on democracy that New Zealand First and Labour are backing a bill that the Human Rights Commission and Mike Moore—and Mike Moore—have described as a dangerous attack on the principles of free speech. Surrounding this ...

KEITH LOCKE ... I think that is the right approach—if in doubt, keep the plane on the ground. There was also the submission by the Human Rights Commission. It was worried about not only firearms but also Tasers being used on planes. It stated that the commission’s view ...

SANDRA GOUDIE ... and it will be exempt from damages while a tourist venture could be crippled as a result of any action taken. The Human Rights Commission has stated: “Schedule 1 could be seen as giving rise to indirect discrimination on the basis of race or ethnic origins ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... “h” in the name, telling the council it was meaningless without it. They went so far as to lay a complaint with the Human Rights Commission, advising the commission that it is a fundamental human right to ensure that the integrity of the language is upheld. I ...

SUE BRADFORD ... like youth organisations, community law centres, church agencies, the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, the Human Rights Commission, and many others. I will also make a brief comment on submissions that opposed the bill. I was surprised at the low ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... message does it send about the worth of our young people? What further abuse is made more likely as a result? The Human Rights Commission told the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee that the youth minimum wage has a significant impact on the ...

SUE BRADFORD ... stated that all workers should receive equal pay for equal work, regardless of age. I want especially to thank the Human Rights Commission, the Human Rights Foundation, and the Children’s Commissioner who, along with a number of others, called for the repeal ...

Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN ... including refurbishment of the historic Wellington High Court

funding for the Human Rights Commission to ensure business continuity, and to improve service delivery

funding to allow the ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... the impact of tasers, and in particular their likely adverse impacts on Māori, that it has laid a complaint with the Human Rights Commission, and it is currently in progress. Although our case will be heard in mediation, there is one anomaly that I believe is ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... To get a sense of how well the ministry has done, one had only to turn last week to the 5-yearly report of the Human Rights Commission that reviewed progress in race relations. And what does the report state that the key challenge for future years should ...

Dr PITA SHARPLES ... Manukau bill seems to be motivated more by declining property values and nuisance factors than civil liberties. The Human Rights Commission has advised the House that the bill is fundamentally flawed and should be withdrawn, citing a host of international ...

TIM BARNETT ... from New Zealand acceding to international human rights norms to its actually developing its own domestic law. The Human Rights Commission Act followed the race relations legislation in 1977, whereby gender equality first became an issue in New Zealand law. ...

TARIANA TURIA ... the bill—namely the Human Rights Foundation, the New Zealand Federation of Business and Professional Women, the Human Rights Commission, the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Women, and the National Council of Women. It was the view of these ...

LESLEY SOPER ... recognised it, and it is time we updated the Act and removed the section 33 exemption from the statute book. As the Human Rights Commission said to the select committee, it is difficult to see what the purpose would be of retaining an exemption that ...

LYNNE PILLAY ... and discrimination prevention policy that were applicable to both military personnel and civil staff. In 1998 the Human Rights Commission was contracted to carry out a gender integration audit of the defence force, which resulted in real progress in the ...

TARIANA TURIA ... as well. The review in progress of what is called gender integration came in response to a report instigated by the Human Rights Commission, the Burton report. That report in turn responded to complaints about the way in which the Defence Force was managing ...

Hon MARK GOSCHE ... organisations, how it worked with its workforce to provide flexible working hours. What was very clear from the Human Rights Commission was that we do not really know enough about what is actually happening in New Zealand in this context. Where are the ...

SUE BRADFORD ... the issue of the right of working mothers to breastfeed. Again, despite a number of submissions and the views of the Human Rights Commission on this issue, it has not been included in this bill. I strongly urge the Minister to ask her department to undertake ...

SUE BRADFORD ... the scope of this bill, as well. This is a real shame. In the mid-2003 review of the paid parental leave scheme the Human Rights Commission stated that providing a legal framework for the right to breastfeed at work need not be complex. It advocated that the ...

TE URUROA FLAVELL ... Waitangi—in other words, our tino rangatiratanga. The Māori Party has made approaches to the Auditor-General and the Human Rights Commission regarding the Foreshore and Seabed Act, and the response, in our view, was inadequate. The report of the special ...

KEITH LOCKE ... this legislation would list the national preventive mechanisms: the Ombudsmen, the Police Complaints Authority, the Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, and the Judge Advocate General. They would be specified in legislation, and ...

KEITH LOCKE ... the Paris principles as being the legal independence and operational autonomy of the institution. We see that in our Human Rights Commission here in New Zealand and in the independence in the process of appointing members to bodies like that. There should be ...

Hon MARK BURTON ... may contribute to the role of monitoring those places for the prevention of torture. It is likely that the Human Rights Commission will have that role. In carrying out its functions, the Central National Preventive Mechanism must consult and liaise ...

PAULA BENNETT ... hear that my colleague Nick Smith’s amendment will not go through, because it was when he brought this issue to the Human Rights Commission that we saw the Government finally do something about it. This tired Government finally felt that it might do something ...

Dr JACKIE BLUE ...son”—who brought the situation, finally, to the attention of the media. He took it further than that; he took it to the Human Rights Commission. It took Nick Smith’s efforts to get this legislation into the House, and it is Nick Smith that we and Mr Page have to ...

Dr PAUL HUTCHISON ... Barbara White brought her petition to Parliament in 2002, and Mr Page—through Dr Nick Smith—took his case to the Human Rights Commission in 2004, but only now in 2006, 5 years later, has the Labour Government woken from its stupor to finally get on with ...

COLIN KING ... the anomalies. There is very little difference between the circumstances of the case that Nick Smith took to the Human Rights Commission and the conditions we see amongst our veterans today. Those men and women are aged; they are getting on in years. No ...

Hon Dr NICK SMITH ... the Minister that basically told me to get knotted. I thought that was unacceptable, so I laid a complaint with the human rights commissioner, who rightly determined that the policy was unlawful discrimination and needed to be fixed. I am pleased to say that ...

JUDITH COLLINS ... who was very frustrated with the lack of work the Government had put into this area, lodged a complaint with the Human Rights Commission on behalf of Mr Page, who is now aged 91. I am very pleased to see that the Government has finally moved on it. We have ...

GEORGINA BEYER ... at tearing apart the institutional instrument that is there for the protection of human rights in this country: the Human Rights Commission. Well, I know that on the Government benches there is one person—me—who will be looking at particular aspects of human ...