12. KATE WILKINSON (National) Link to this
to the Minister of Consumer Affairs
Does she stand by her statement in the House yesterday that “We have very good standards, and we see them enforced.”; if so, why?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD (Minister of Consumer Affairs) Link to this
Yes. Under the Consumer Guarantees Act all goods sold in New Zealand must be safe and fit for the purpose for which they are intended. Recent voluntary recalls are one of the examples of the system working well.
How can we possibly have very good standards, when many nations, including the United States, Japan, and the nations that make up the European Union, have all implemented standards against adverse formaldehyde levels, yet this Government is still allowing poisonous pyjamas to be sold to unaware parents, despite tests showing levels up to 900 times the amount that causes harm?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD Link to this
International standards for formaldehyde in clothing and textiles range from 20 parts per million to 1,700 parts per million, and those standards are considered safe in, respectively, Japan and Germany. What we are saying is that goods must be safe and fit for the purpose for which they are intended, and we are now testing a range of clothes, which will determine whether they are safe and fit for their purpose under New Zealand’s understanding of that. If they are not, then swift and appropriate action will be taken. We are using for the test the current European standard. I also point out that clothing needs to be labelled and that formaldehyde is water soluble. So washing clothes and airing them means that they will be safe.
How can she tell us that the New Zealand system is working when only 17 product recalls have occurred in New Zealand in the past year, compared with more than 200 in Australia in the same time, and when the blankets recalled yesterday because of adverse formaldehyde levels were the same as those recalled a month ago in Australia for exactly the same reason?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD Link to this
It is often because those goods that have been recalled in Australia may not be available in New Zealand. For example, the importer of the blankets the member refers to is not even sure whether any of those blankets have been sold in New Zealand. We are taking appropriate action, and the whole of the New Zealand system works by a chain of responsibility, from manufacturers and importers through to retailers and citizens. I am fascinated that the representative of the party that is supposed to be about advocating individual responsibility and supporting robust markets now appears to want the taxpayer to have an officer—a bureaucrat—standing next to every consumer. We take responsibility at every step.
Is she still planning to meet with the Chinese Ambassador, as she said she would last Sunday; if so, how exactly will such a meeting protect and keep our children safe from the flaming and poisonous pyjamas that have come from a number of countries?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD Link to this
What I said on Sunday, having consulted the Prime Minister and the Minister of Trade, was that when the tests come back, I will, if it is necessary, ask the Chinese Ambassador to come and discuss what steps China is taking to make sure the goods that are manufactured there are safe. I would very vehemently support the New Zealand Herald editorial this morning, which stated that we need to keep these problems in perspective and that nobody wins a trade war: “The embarrassments China has suffered will turn out for the better if importing countries keep a sense of proportion and do not exploit them for short-sighted protection …”—or, I should say, for political advantage. New Zealanders can be confident that we have good systems.
Will the Minister then answer the question she did not answer yesterday and tell us why there is a standard for the size of small parts in toys for children but no specific standards for the chemicals used to produce clothes for children or for the use of lead in paint to produce the toys for children?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD Link to this
New Zealand has very good health standards for lead in paint. Any painter and anyone with an old house will tell us that. I would also say that we have standards where there is a danger demonstrated. So children have died through choking by swallowing small parts that have come off toys and other objects. It is a very serious matter. It is a very serious matter, and that is why we have standards. I have not yet seen any demonstrated proof that anyone in New Zealand is at risk from formaldehyde, although I would point out that my mother, as a zoologist, used to work with her hands in formalin, and is, at age 76, in rude good health.
Madam SPEAKERWhat response does she have to the press release that stated: “As responses go, the Minister, on behalf of her government, appears not to be interested in dealing with a crisis that is occurring right here, right now …”?
Hon JUDITH TIZARD Link to this
I would say that as Minister of Consumer Affairs I am passionately concerned about the well-being of New Zealanders—all of them: children and adults. We have overarching legislation that enforces very good standards of health, and, where there is any demonstrated danger, we take very quick action.