John Banks
ACT Leader
September 12 2012
Banks welcomes changes to Local Electoral Act
ACT Leader John Banks today welcomed National’s proposed changes to the Local Electoral Act to clean up Labour’s
legislative mess.
“The Labour Party’s Local Electoral Act 2001 has been ridiculed by lawyers up and down the country as unclear, unfair
and unworkable. It needs to be fixed,” Mr Banks said.
“Prominent electoral law expert Graeme Edgeler says the law is ‘derisory’ and ‘unclear.’ He says he re-read the Local
Electoral Act a few times and each time reached a different conclusion.
“How can anyone be reasonably expected to comply with a law that cannot be understood – even by the legal profession?
“No candidate for public office should have to go through what I have been through.
“These changes are well overdue,” Mr Banks said.
Local Government Minister David Carter’s Statement: http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/proposed-changes-local-electoral-law
Graham Edgeler’s post can be found at: http://publicaddress.net/legalbeagle/the-law-may-be-that-stupid
ENDS