Select Committee Business

From 20 to 27 September 2002

Committee meetings

There were two committee meetings, both in the parliamentary complex.

Reports presented

(available at www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz/cgi-bin/select-reports)

Commerce

- 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Commerce

- 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Communications

Government Administration

- Statutes Amendment Bill (No 2)

Committee notes

(for further information on an item, please contact the committee staff noted in brackets)

Commerce (Clare Sutherland, SC-Commerce@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee did not meet this week. It will be meeting next week to consider the Consumer Protection (Definition of Goods and Services) Bill and the Crown Minerals Amendment Bill. The committee will also consider Vote Energy and Vote Consumer Affairs and receive a briefing from the Audit Office on Vote Economic, Industry and Regional Development. This will be followed by public hearing of evidence from 12.15 pm to 12.55 pm on that vote from the Minister of Economic Development and departmental officials.

Education and Science (Angela Van Dam, SC-ES@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee did not meet this week, as the House is not sitting. Its next meeting will be on Wednesday, 2 October, when it will hear evidence on the National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa) Bill. This section of the meeting will be open to the public, in Room G.011, Parliament House, from 10.45 am to 1.15 pm.

Last week the committee presented its report to the House on the 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Education. The report can be viewed at the Office of the Clerk website.

Finance and Expenditure (Fay Paterson, SC-FE@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee did not meet this week. It will be meeting next on Wednesday, 2 October to receive a briefing from the Inland Revenue Department on the Taxation (Annual Rates, Maori Organisations, Taxpayer Assessment and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, and will start hearing submissions on that bill. The meeting will be open to the public in Room G.005, Parliament House, between 10.30 am and 12.20 pm.

Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade (David Sanders, SC-FD@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee is meeting on Tuesday, 1 October and Thursday, 3 October next week to consider the Climate Change Response Bill.

Government Administration (Lesley Ferguson, SC-GA@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee has reported back to the House the Statutes Amendment Bill (No 2). This bill, if enacted, would make miscellaneous amendments to 28 different Acts. It is defined in Standing Order 258(1)(e) of the House of Representatives as an omnibus bill because it consists entirely of amendments to Acts and provides for unrelated and non-controversial amendments to a number of Acts that are already in force. These amendments are unrelated to the implementation of any particular policy objective.

The committee meets next week to consider its inquiry into the weathertightness of buildings in New Zealand.

Health (Catherine Parkin, SC-Health@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee met all day on Wednesday, 25 September. In the morning, it heard evidence from the Minister of Health, Hon Annette King, on the 2002/03 Estimates of Appropriation for Vote Health. In the afternoon, the committee heard from submitters on the Smoke-free Environments (Enhanced Protection) Amendment Bill, and Supplementary Order Paper 148. The committee will hear further submissions on the bill next Wednesday, 2 October, from 11.00 am until 1.00 pm and from 3.30 pm until 6.00 pm. These hearings will be open to the public, in Room G.006, Parliament House.

Justice and Electoral (Louise Sparrer, SC-JE@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee met on Wednesday, 25 September to consider the Prostitution Reform Bill. The meeting was open to the public from 10.00 am to 12.20 pm, for hearings of evidence. The committee heard four selected groups that had previously made submissions on the bill. These were: New Zealand Prostitutes Collective, PUMP (Pride and Unity for Male Prostitutes), Society for the Promotion of Community Standards and Maxim Institute.

The committee’s next meeting will be on Wednesday, 2 October in Room G.005, Parliament House. The committee will continue its consideration of the Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Bill and the Clean Slate Bill, the Retirement Villages Bill and the Prostitution Reform Bill. The hearing of evidence on the Retirement Villages Bill will be open to the public between 10.00 am and 12.00 pm.

Law and Order (Tracey Rayner, SC-LO@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee did not meet this week, as the House was not sitting. It will next meet on Wednesday, 2 October. The meeting will be open to the public from 10.30 am to 11.30 am during a hearing of evidence on the 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Corrections. The committee will also be considering the Criminal Investigations (Bodily Samples) Amendment Bill.

Local Government and Environment (Marie Alexander, SC-LGE@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee is currently considering the Local Government Bill. On Thursday, 3 October from 9.00 am to 10.00 am, the committee will hear further evidence on the bill from Local Government New Zealand and the Local Government Forum. The committee will also hear evidence from the Minister of Conservation on the 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Conservation.

Maori Affairs (Julian Kersey, SC-MA@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee will next meet on Thursday, 3 October. It will hear evidence from the Office of Treaty Settlements on the 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Treaty Negotiations. It will also hear evidence from Te Puni Kokiri on the Estimates for Vote Maori Affairs.

The committee is currently calling for submissions on the Maori Purposes Bill (No 2). The deadline for submissions is Friday, 25 October 2002. The bill has three major components. It amends:

- the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 to give the Waitangi Tribunal express power to replace members for reasons of illness or other circumstances that prevent them from carrying out their duties. The amendment will also clarify the position as to changes of Tribunal membership in three inquiries: the Wellington Tenths Inquiry (Wai 145), the Hauraki Inquiry (Wai 686) and the Kaipara Inquiry (Wai 674)

- the Broadcasting Act 1989 to reflect a Cabinet decision in 2000 to transfer the responsibility for Maori broadcasting policy and Te Reo Whakapuaki (Te Mangai Paho) from the Minister of Broadcasting to the Minister of Maori Affairs

- the Maori Land Amendment and Maori Land Claims Adjustment Act 1926 to increase the number of fishing licenses available to members of Ngati Tawharetoa for Lake Taupo, from 50 to 200.

Copies of the bill can be purchased from Bennetts Government Bookshops.

The committee requires 20 copies of each submission. Those wishing to include any information of a private or personal nature in a submission should first discuss this with the clerk of the committee, as submissions are usually released to the public by the committee. Those wishing to appear before the committee to speak to their submissions should state this clearly and provide a daytime telephone contact number. For further guidance on making a submission, our publication Making a Submission to a Parliamentary Select Committee can be found on our web site at www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.

Submissions should be addressed as follows:

Julian Kersey

Clerk of the Committee

Maori Affairs Committee

Parliament Buildings

WELLINGTON

Contact for further details:

Mahara Okeroa (Committee Chairperson) on (04) 471 9999 or

Julian Kersey on (04) 471 9043 or SC-MA@parliament.govt.nz

Transport and Industrial Relations (Lyn Main, SC-TI@parliament.govt.nz)

The committee will next meet on Thursday, 3 October to examine the 2002/03 Estimates for Vote Labour and to consider further the Health and Safety in Employment Amendment Bill. The examination of Vote Labour will be open to the public from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm.

Closing dates for submissions

Committees are receiving submissions on the following items with the closing date shown:

Government Administration

Inquiry into the Weathertightness of Buildings in New Zealand (21 October 2002)

Government Superannuation Fund Amendment Bill (No 2) (21 October 2002)

Justice and Electoral

Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Bill and Clean Slate Bill (27 September 2002)

Local Government and Environment

Masterton Trust Lands Bill (4 October 2002)

Maori Affairs

Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) (25 October 2002)

Regulations Review

Subordinate Legislation (Confirmation and Validation) Bill (2 October 2002)

Standing Orders

Remuneration Authority (Members of Parliament) Amendment Bill (30 September 2002)

General

You can find further information about select committees on our website at www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz. If you require additional information or have any feedback on the contents, please contact:

Ethan Tucker

Parliamentary Officer (Select Committees)

ethan.tucker@parliament.govt.nz

Compiled in the Select Committee Office, Office of the Clerk, 27 September 2002

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