Urgency

I move, That urgency be accorded the passing through their remaining stages of the Tariff (New Zealand-Hong Kong, China Closer Economic Partnership Agreement) Amendment Bill, the Trans-Tasman Proceedings Bill, and the Taxation (Annual Rates, Trans-Tasman Savings Portability, KiwiSaver, and Remedial Matters) Bill; the first readings of the Legal Services Bill, the Misuse of Drugs Amendment Bill, and the Insolvency Practitioners Bill; the passing through their remaining stages of the Limitation Bill, the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Bill, the Motor Vehicle Sales Amendment Bill, the Privacy (Cross-border Information) Amendment Bill, the Trade Marks (International Treaties and Enforcement) Amendment Bill, and the Human Assisted Reproductive Technology (Storage) Amendment Bill, and any bills into which any of those bills may be divided; the first reading of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Amendment Bill; the second reading of the Antarctica (Environmental Protection: Liability Annex) Amendment Bill; and the second reading and remaining stages of the Inquiries Bill.

Urgency is being moved in order to gain extra sitting hours so that the House might be able to deal with a range of Government business where there is essentially quite a large amount of support from other parties in the House, beyond those that are just part of the Government confidence and supply arrangements.

Periodically the Order Paper will be crammed up with legislative requirements that the wider number of people in the House can support. In the end the orderly function of the House is assisted, as the year progresses, by occasionally having an extension of hours. I point to Government notice of motion No. 2 on the Order Paper where there has been an expression of desire by the Government to get more hours. I accept that for Opposition parties granting the extension of hours is quite an extraordinary thing. So we have developed a practice in this Parliament of notifying well in advance of when we intend to take urgency for this type of motion—a motion that has a number of bills well supported. How far we get through that motion is a matter for discussion. With those brief explanations, I put the motion.

I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. Sorry, I apologise to the Leader of the House if I missed this: did he confirm that we would be having question time each day?

💬 Hon Gerry Brownlee: It comes after.

Thank you.