Labour has had to use urgency, yet again, to fix up a legislation cock-up of their own making. They seem to really have tits for hands:
MPs have been forced back to the House to correct an error which may have seen hundreds of Australians incorrectly charged for staying in managed isolation.
The bill is being rushed through the House under urgency this morning – the House does not usually sit on a Friday.
Government MPs speaking to the bill, including Emily Henderson, defended the use of urgency saying the bill fixes a “technical hiccup”.
Many speeches in the House this morning were shorter than usual, one lasted less than 10 seconds with an MP simply telling the House: “I support his bill.”
NZ Herald
This is the standard of debate from Labour MPs:
And:
National are understandably not amused:
“It’s a shoddy process, in a shoddy way by a shoddy Government,” National’s shadow leader of the House Chris Bishop said.
In August last year, Parliament passed a bill “in a hurry”, according to Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins.
The legislation allowed the Government to charge people for staying in managed isolation.
After MIQ charges were introduced in August 2020, there was a carve-out for New Zealanders returning home, as well as Australians who lived in New Zealand.
However, visiting Australians were being charged for MIQ. The Government recently learned that may have been unlawful, because under immigration law, Australians automatically got residents visas when they entered New Zealand, regardless of the visa that they travel on.
Oh, look, more “unlawful” behaviour from the Government. No matter; quick, pass a law correcting their unlawfulness.
They really do have tits for hands when it comes to legislation.
Please share this article so that others can discover The BFD