25 SEPTEMBER 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is praising Speaker Trevor Mallard’s push for reform of Parliamentary urgency.
“These measures should see more transparency in our law making,” says Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director Jordan Williams.
“Parliamentary urgency should be used in cases of genuine emergency. Instead, we’ve seen successive Governments use it
for their own political agendas, driving through new laws, including new taxes and spending, without due scrutiny.”
“Taxpayers are losers when MPs, often for political reasons, try to avoid calm and collected consideration of new laws
or taxes. The Speaker is rightly pushing for better scrutiny of proposed laws and protecting the rigour of Parliamentary
process.”
“Recently the Government used urgency to push Auckland’s Regional Fuel Tax through its final stage. This isn’t a left-right issue – the last Government did
similar things. It’s a pox on both major parties’ houses.”
“There is good reason new taxes and new spending must pass an extensive parliamentary process. Each stage is a chance
for analysis from the Opposition, select committees, the media, and members of the public. When the process is rushed,
we can expect to see the intentional or unintential misuse of Parliament’s powers.”
ENDS