Jump to content

Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Acts: Difference between revisions

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Line 41: Line 41:


===Select committee===
===Select committee===
The Justice Committee received 55 submissions by early July 2018. Nine submitters supported the Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill's intentions but thought it should be limited to list MPs. Another submitter supported the Bill but recommended amendments. Six submitters including the Clerk of the House, Benjamin Molineux, the Legislation Design and Advisory Committee, Professor Jack Vowles, Alec Van Heldingen, and Philip Evans suggested amendments to the legislation.<ref name="Departmental Report">{{cite web |title=Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill - Departmental Report |url=https://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-NZ/52SCJU_ADV_75706_56349/ff3cd400d771f8512bb2a463c2af3370b45e7132 |publisher=[[New Zealand Parliament]] |access-date=15 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210615080914/https://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-NZ/52SCJU_ADV_75706_56349/ff3cd400d771f8512bb2a463c2af3370b45e7132 |archive-date=15 June 2021 |date=2 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>
The Justice Committee received 55 submissions by early July 2018. Nine submitters supported the Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill's intentions but thought it should be limited to list MPs. Another submitter supported the Bill but recommended amendments. Six submitters including the [[Clerk of the New Zealand House of Representatives]], Benjamin Molineux, the Legislation Design and Advisory Committee, Professor Jack Vowles, Alec Van Heldingen, and Philip Evans suggested amendments to the legislation.<ref name="Departmental Report">{{cite web |title=Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill - Departmental Report |url=https://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-NZ/52SCJU_ADV_75706_56349/ff3cd400d771f8512bb2a463c2af3370b45e7132 |publisher=[[New Zealand Parliament]] |access-date=15 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210615080914/https://www.parliament.nz/resource/en-NZ/52SCJU_ADV_75706_56349/ff3cd400d771f8512bb2a463c2af3370b45e7132 |archive-date=15 June 2021 |date=2 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>


The remaining 40 submitters including former National MP [[Lockwood Smith]], blogger [[David Farrar]], former Green MP [[Keith Locke]], Annette Hamblett, activist [[Maire Leadbeater]], and the National Party opposed the Bill on the grounds that it constricted the freedom of MPs to dissent from their parties and the executive. The [[New Zealand Human Rights Commission]] and the [[New Zealand Law Society]] expressed concerns that the Bill clashed with the [[New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990]]'s provisions on free speech and association.<ref name="Departmental Report" /> Former Greens co-leader [[Jeanette Fitzsimons]] also expressed opposition to the Bill, stating that it "offends the freedom of conscience, freedom of speech, and freedom of association. Integrity cannot be legislated for. It is a matter of conscience and judgment."<ref name="Stuff Waka jumping bill">{{Cite news |date=2018-09-27|title=Waka jumping bill finally passes, with begrudging support of Green Party|url= https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/107427225/waka-jumping-bill-finally-passes-with-begrudging-support-of-green-party |access-date=2020-08-02|work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]]|language=en|archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20210316110741/https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/107427225/waka-jumping-bill-finally-passes-with-begrudging-support-of-green-party|archive-date=2021-03-16|url-status=live}}</ref>
The remaining 40 submitters including former National MP [[Lockwood Smith]], blogger [[David Farrar]], former Green MP [[Keith Locke]], Annette Hamblett, activist [[Maire Leadbeater]], and the National Party opposed the Bill on the grounds that it constricted the freedom of MPs to dissent from their parties and the executive. The [[New Zealand Human Rights Commission]] and the [[New Zealand Law Society]] expressed concerns that the Bill clashed with the [[New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990]]'s provisions on free speech and association.<ref name="Departmental Report" /> Former Greens co-leader [[Jeanette Fitzsimons]] also expressed opposition to the Bill, stating that it "offends the freedom of conscience, freedom of speech, and freedom of association. Integrity cannot be legislated for. It is a matter of conscience and judgment."<ref name="Stuff Waka jumping bill">{{Cite news |date=2018-09-27|title=Waka jumping bill finally passes, with begrudging support of Green Party|url= https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/107427225/waka-jumping-bill-finally-passes-with-begrudging-support-of-green-party |access-date=2020-08-02|work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]]|language=en|archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20210316110741/https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/107427225/waka-jumping-bill-finally-passes-with-begrudging-support-of-green-party|archive-date=2021-03-16|url-status=live}}</ref>

Revision as of 08:59, 15 June 2021

Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018
New Zealand Parliament
  • This bill amends the Electoral Act 1993 in order to enhance public confidence in the integrity of the electoral system by upholding the proportionality of political party representation in Parliament as determined by electors.[1]
Royal assent3 October 2018[1]
Legislative history
Introduced byAndrew Little[1]
First reading30 January 2018[1]
Second reading2 August 2018[1]
Third reading27 September 2018[1]
Related legislation
Status: Current legislation

The Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018 is a bill that amends the Electoral Act 1993 to allow the expulsion of members of the New Zealand Parliament who choose to leave their party or are expelled from their party, making their seats vacant. The bill was passed on 27 September 2018 as part of the coalition agreement between the Labour and New Zealand First parties and the Green Party's confidence-and-supply agreement with Labour.

Legislative features

The Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018 inserts six new clauses into Section 55 of the Electoral Act 1993. Section 55A states that:

  • The seat for a Member of Parliament (MP) becomes vacant if they cease to be a parliamentary member of the political party for which they were elected for.
  • If the MP delivers a written notice confirming that they have resigned the parliamentary membership for the party they were elected for or if they wish to stand in Parliament as an independent MP or a member of another political party. This rule does not apply to MPs elected as independent members.
  • The defecting MP's parliamentary party leader delivers a notice confirming their resignation or expulsion to the Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives.[2]

History

Background

The Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018 was intended to address the issue of waka-jumping, a New Zealand colloquialism describing the practice of MPs switching political party between elections, taking their parliamentary seat with them and upsetting the proportionality of political party representation in the New Zealand Parliament.[1][3][4]

In an attempt to address the issue of party switching, the Fifth Labour government had passed the Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2001 with the support of Labour's coalition partner Alliance. It required any MP who had entered Parliament via a party list to resign from Parliament if they left that party's parliamentary caucus.[5] Despite the Act's intentions, parties were still able to find legal loopholes. When the Alliance split in 2002 due to disagreements over New Zealand's involvement in the War in Afghanistan, Jim Anderton nominally remained the leader of the Alliance within Parliament, while campaigning outside Parliament as the leader of the newly-founded Progressive Party.[6] These internal divisions within the Alliance led Prime Minister Helen Clark to call an early general election in 2002.[7]

The Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2001 was only used once to expel Labour MP Tariana Turia, who subsequently became one of the founders of the Māori Party.[8] The 2001 Act later expired during the 2005 New Zealand general election as its sunset clause came into effect.[5] A proposed Bill to replace the 2001 Act in 2005 failed.[9]

First reading

On 30 January 2018, the Justice Minister Andrew Little introduced the Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill into Parliament. During the first reading, several National Party MPs including Amy Adams, Judith Collins, and Nick Smith opposed the bill, claiming that it would favor party apparatchiks over MPs' electorates and stifle democracy. The bill was defended by several government MPs including Labour MP Clare Curran, New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball and Green MP Golriz Ghahraman, who argued that it would preserve democracy by preventing party switching and upholding the proportionality of Parliament determined by electors. The Bill pass its first readings along party lines with 63 in favour (Labour, New Zealand First, and the Greens) and 57 opposed (National and the ACT Party). The bill was then referred to the Justice select committee.[10]

Select committee

The Justice Committee received 55 submissions by early July 2018. Nine submitters supported the Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill's intentions but thought it should be limited to list MPs. Another submitter supported the Bill but recommended amendments. Six submitters including the Clerk of the New Zealand House of Representatives, Benjamin Molineux, the Legislation Design and Advisory Committee, Professor Jack Vowles, Alec Van Heldingen, and Philip Evans suggested amendments to the legislation.[11]

The remaining 40 submitters including former National MP Lockwood Smith, blogger David Farrar, former Green MP Keith Locke, Annette Hamblett, activist Maire Leadbeater, and the National Party opposed the Bill on the grounds that it constricted the freedom of MPs to dissent from their parties and the executive. The New Zealand Human Rights Commission and the New Zealand Law Society expressed concerns that the Bill clashed with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990's provisions on free speech and association.[11] Former Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons also expressed opposition to the Bill, stating that it "offends the freedom of conscience, freedom of speech, and freedom of association. Integrity cannot be legislated for. It is a matter of conscience and judgment."[12]

Second reading

The Bill passed its second reading on 2 August 2018 by a margin of 63 to 57. Labour, New Zealand First and the Greens supported the Bill while the National and ACT parties opposed it.[13]

The Bill was then submitted before a Committee of the whole House on 26 September 2018.[1]

Third reading

The Bill passed its third and final reading on 27 September 2018 by a margin of 63 to 57. Labour, New Zealand First and the Greens supported the Bill while the National and ACT parties opposed it.[14] The Bill was passed as part of a coalition agreement between Labour, New Zealand First and the Greens. Though the Greens opposed the Bill, they reluctantly supported it due to the terms of their confidence and supply agreement with Labour. New Zealand First' leader Winston Peters had secured the bill during coalition negotiations with Labour following the 2017 New Zealand general election.[12]

The Bill's sponsor Andrew Little welcomed the passage of the bill, arguing that only voters should determined the parties represented in Parliament. National MP Nick Smith vowed to repeal the law if National was elected into government and attacked New Zealand First leader Winston Peters as "master-puppeteer making fools of us and a joke of this Parliament". Peters countered that MPs disagreeing with their caucus should resign and "put it on the line in a by-election." Meanwhile, Green Party leader Jame Shaw described the Bill as the "most difficult decision" that the party had taken over the past year but accepted it as part of their confidence and supply agreement with Labour.[15]

Repeal attempt

On 29 July 2020, National MP David Carter summitted a member's bill called the Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill into Parliament, seeking to repeal the Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018[16] The Green Party defied other government parties to support the repeal bill, infuriating Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters who denounced the Greens as "untrustworthy" coalition partners. The Greens had previously supported the 2018 legislation due to their support agreement with Labour despite their opposition to the law. [17]The Bill passed its first reading by 64 to 55 votes; with National, the Greens, ACT, and independent MP Jami-Lee Ross voting in favor and Labour and New Zealand First voting against. The Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill was then referred to the justice select committee.[18]

Following the 2020 New Zealand general election, a second reading for the Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill was held on 12 May 2021. Since David Carter had retired during the 2020 election[19] , National MP Nick Smith sponsored the bill during it second reading.[20] The second reading was deferred until 9 June 2021. The repeal bill was defeated by a margin of 65 (Labour) to 55 (National, Greens, ACT, and the Māori Party) votes.[21]

Notes and references

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill". New Zealand Parliament. Archived from the original on 2 August 2020. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill". Legislation New Zealand. Parliamentary Counsel Office. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  3. ^ "Maori Party vote vital to save 'waka-jumping act'". The New Zealand Herald. 23 October 2005. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2011.
  4. ^ Simmons, Geoff (27 July 2018). "'Waka jumping' is the wrong name for this junk law. Here's five better options". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  5. ^ a b Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2001 (PDF) (105). 21 December 2001.
  6. ^ Geddis, Andrew (2002). "Party-hopping". New Zealand Law Journal: 137–138.
  7. ^ Martin, John (2004). The House: New Zealand's House of Representatives, 1854–2004. Palmerston North: Dunmore Press. p. 330. ISBN 0-86469-463-6.
  8. ^ Geddis, Andrew (11 January 2018). "Who controls the past now, controls the future". Pundit. Archived from the original on 15 February 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  9. ^ "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill 3-1 (2005), Government Bill". New Zealand Legislation. Parliamentary Counsel Office. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  10. ^ "Electoral Integrity Amendment Bill — First Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 30 January 2018. Archived from the original on 14 June 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill - Departmental Report". New Zealand Parliament. 2 July 2018. Archived from the original on 15 June 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Waka jumping bill finally passes, with begrudging support of Green Party". Stuff. 27 September 2018. Archived from the original on 16 March 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  13. ^ "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill — Second Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 2 August 2018. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Bill — Third Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ McCulloch, Craig (27 September 2018). "Waka-jumping bill passes into law after heated debate". Radio New Zealand. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
  16. ^ "Members' bills: Defying sad odds". Radio New Zealand. 2 July 2020. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  17. ^ "Dead rat spat back up: Green Party vote to repeal waka jumping law with National, infuriating Winston Peters". Stuff. 29 July 2020. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  18. ^ "Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill — First Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 29 July 2020. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  19. ^ New Zealand National Party (30 July 2020). "Waka-jumping Repeal Bill Passes First Reading". Scoop. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  20. ^ "Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill — Second Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 12 May 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ "Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill — Second Reading". New Zealand Parliament. 9 June 2021. Archived from the original on 14 June 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Electoral_(Integrity)_Amendment_Acts&oldid=1028663026"