Rahui Katene Westpac New Zealand Bill Speech
te-pati-maori
Thu Jun 16 2011 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Rahui Katene Westpac New Zealand Bill Speech
Thursday, 16 June 2011, 9:48 am
Speech: The Maori Party
Westpac New Zealand Bill
Rahui Katene, Finance Spokesperson for the Maori Party
Wednesday 15 June 2011
Mr Speaker, over the last few months, when I've stood in this chamber to debate a bill - like the Westpac New Zealand Bill - I have had one of those de ja vu moments - those experiences of being here before.
It's something that we in Christchurch are calling GroundHog Day - been there done that move to ready on.
It's an experience akin to being on the set of a rolling movie called the Emperor's New Clothes.
Some of the House might remember that story -it's the story in which two weavers promise the Emperor a new set of clothes - clothes that are invisible to those unfit for their positions, stupid or incompetent.
When the Emperor parades before his subjects however a voice rings out "he isn't wearing anything at all".
Now of course there's no-one in this House that could be said to be unfit for their positions, stupid or incompetent - and so to my relief I am of course fully clothed in front of you all.
But what may be invisible is the cloak of steel that every Christchurch MP wears when we come back to this House - a cloak that reflects the courage, the grit and the sheer determination of all of our constituents as they will themselves to face another day in the wake of the ongoing tremors of the earth.
The point of the story is just to point out the utter contrast that Christchurch MPs encounter, as we try to reconcile the reality of our lives at home with our business in the House.
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It is such a constant challenge to focus on the events of the legislative day, when back in Christchurch my Aranui office is unusable again or it was until this morning, the water is out; the roof has partially fallen in and worst of all for my staff, the TV is munted!.
Following the double whammy of after-shocks on Monday, my constituents in the eastern suburbs are once again confronting the challenge of cleaning up the liquefaction. We had people staying in the Cowles Stadium welfare centre again; the water tankers are out on the roads; the Farmy Army and the Student Army are getting themselves prepared to get out on the streets again.
And throughout it all, fatigue and tension overwhelm us all.
But it's not just the nerves and the buildings that have taken a physical lot. Our economic position is once again threatened by as much as six billion dollars estimated in new damage.
Mr Speaker, I lay all this before the House, as part of the context in which we consider this Westpac New Zealand Bill.
The entire economy, and in particular the Canterbury economy, is in such a state of uncertainty as we reel to the impacts of earthquakes and related damage.
We must ensure we respond to such uncertainty by acting in decisive ways, to improve efficiencies and to do whatever is necessary in any quarter, to achieve the stability we all desire.
And so in that sense, we turn to this Bill, knowing that it is part of a move to improve compliance and accountability in the banking section, to ensure the efficient conduct of Westpac New Zealand's core business.
The Maori Party supports the intention of this bill to vest certain assets and liabilities of Westpac Banking Corporation into Westpac New Zealand rather than remaining incorporated in Australia.
It is consistent with the Reserve Bank's local incorporation policy and it complies with the overall direction to bring such banks home.
We understand also that legislation is the only means by which the vesting of these assets and liabilities in Westpac can be effected efficiently and economically, - and as such, of course we will support this move.
As I understand it, both Westpac Banking Corporation in Australia and Westpac New Zealand will be able to continue to share information and intellectual property.
These are all factors that we can support in this third reading of the Westpac Bill.
In particular we have support for the basic principles of a local incorporation policy as it is consistent with the Maori Party policy position of keeping things local; of investing in our own sovereignty.
Six months ago, Ngai Tahu leader Mark Solomon, along with Tuku Morgan, Naida Glavish and Ngahihi o te ra Bidois attended a meeting on public private partnerships hosted by Sir Ron Carter with all the major banks and forty major companies.
At that meeting there was a big banner asking: "Are iwi ready to invest?" Mark Solomon faced the gathering and told them that their question was back to front. He suggested that instead the question should be 'are you ready to invest with iwi?' as we have stood in front of you for 150 years and been absolutely invisible".
There's something in his comment, I think , to consider as we reflect on the direction outlined in this Bill, of trusting in our own domestic market.
Finally, while we will support this Bill at its third and final reading, I would just note that at some point in this House we need a full discussion about the leadership that the banking and the finance industry in putting in place measures to prevent against the damaging impacts of a global recession.
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