Urgency

I move, That urgency be accorded—the introduction and passing through all stages of the Adoption Amendment Bill; the first reading and referral to select committee of: the Defence (Workforce) Amendment Bill; the Local Government (Auckland Council) (Transport Governance) Amendment Bill; the introduction, first reading, and referral to select committee of: the Retail Payment System (Ban on Merchant Surcharges) Amendment Bill; the introduction and passing through all stages of the Income Tax (FamilyBoost) Amendment Bill; and the remaining stages of: the Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill; and the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Scheme—Forestry Conversion) Amendment Bill.

The House is proposing to go into urgency this week for several bills. The Adoption Amendment Bill must be passed through all stages to prevent adoptions from proceeding where the safety of children could be at risk, and to ensure no new applications are lodged between the bill’s introduction and Royal assent, as applications would otherwise take a significant time to process once the legislation is enacted. I hope and trust that all members of the Parliament will agree with the need for urgency in relation to this bill, and I understand other parties have been briefed by the responsible Minister, as is appropriate.

There are three bills going to select committee: the Defence (Workforce) Amendment Bill, the Auckland Transport governance bill, and the retail payment systems bill. The Government’s desire is to get those bills to a committee for further consideration as soon as possible.

We’re also passing through all stages of the Income Tax (FamilyBoost) Amendment Bill. It’s a short bill. It’s been flagged by the Government previously to put more money in the pockets of new families. It takes effect on 1 October, so it does need to be passed by that point. It’s a tax bill being dealt with through all stages.

The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill has to be passed by the end of September to allow the Customs Service to make necessary adjustments before the changes come into force.

The Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Scheme—Forestry Conversion) Amendment Bill needs to be passed as soon as practicable to allow Government departments to set up the systems needed for the new regime.

So urgency, I think, is more than justified on these occasions.