PARLIAMENTARY REPORT
and the kind of advertising that is targeted totally at young people. Until those things are done we
NEW ZEALAND Mr Kevin Hague, MP
need to raise the age to a point where we know that fewer of our young people are going to be dying on the roads and dying from the damage done by alcohol abuse. And, at some time in the future, once we are old enough and mature enough to deal with all the other issues in terms of access, price, and availability, we can come back to the issue of age.”
“Raising the age is not fair”
(New Zealand First) said: “Arguments for relativity to other ages as a justification for 18 are also specious. Some people say that if you can join the army and fight for New Zealand at the age of 17, you should be able to buy alcohol. In fact, the army is a highly disciplined environment where obedience and compliance are absolutely central, whereas a high degree of disobedience and very bad behaviour is what happens with young people imbibing alcohol.” “The split age is not a useful compromise.”, because “the argument that somehow young drinkers in on-licence premises are more responsible or better behaved there is specious.” Mr Kevin Hague, MP,
(Green) said: “Rather than being a common-sense compromise, the proposed split age is actually muddled. It has enforcement problems. Of particular concern to me as a member who lives in a rural area is that it will create the likelihood of increased drink- driving as young people are forced to go to licensed premises that are some distance away from their homes in order to drink.” Mr Tim Macindoe, MP,
(National) would have preferred to reinstate the law as it was before the purchase age was lowered to 18 in 1999, when liquor sales to people aged under 20 were prohibited unless those people were accompanied by a parent, guardian, or spouse aged at least
Mr Gareth Hughes, MP
according to Mr Gareth Hughes, MP, (Green). “On your 18th birthday you are given a raft of rights and you are given a raft of responsibilities. You can vote, you can fight, you can smoke, you can gamble, you can even get elected to a council…but under these changes you could not go and buy a bottle of wine to have with dinner.” Mr Denis O’Rourke, MP,
20. He said: “This debate is not a matter of blaming young people for New Zealand’s binge drinking culture; it is about trying to protect them from it. It is not about restricting their rights; it is about enhancing the rights of those who love and care for them to guide them in safe and responsible choices as they move into the adult world.” In the election, the option
or gender identity” and was “underpinned by principles of love, fairness, and equality of opportunity for all New Zealand citizens”. She noted that the Bill had “attracted passionate reactions from a number of quarters”, but pointed out that it would not “require any person or church to carry out a marriage if it does not fit with the beliefs of the celebrant or the religious interpretation a church has. Once a marriage licence is obtained by a couple, it does not oblige a minister or celebrant to marry that couple”. “It is the state’s role to uphold our laws and our international obligations and to ensure that everyone has equality under the law. The church can discriminate, but the state should not and cannot.” Mr Jamie-Lee Ross, MP,
Mr Jami-Lee Ross, MP
of 18 years received 50 votes, the option of 20 years received 38 votes, and the option of a split age received 33 votes. As there was no clear majority, the split age option was eliminated. The result of the second vote favoured having the purchase age at 18 years over having it at 20 years, by 68 votes to 53. The committee reported progress at the conclusion of the voting. It will debate the remainder of the bill at a later date.
Redefining marriage Since 2004 same-sex couples have been able to have their relationships formally recognized in New Zealand, but a member’s Bill, if passed, would allow same-sex marriages. The Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, in the name of Ms Louisa Wall, MP, (Labour), received its first reading on 29 August. Ms Wall told Members that her
Mr Tim Macindoe, MP 326 | The Parliamentarian | 2012: Issue Four
Bill sought to “define marriage as between two people regardless of their sex, sexual orientation,
(National) asked: “Why should Parliament tell some New Zealanders that they do not have the same freedoms as others?” “Allowing same-sex couples to marry has absolutely no impact on couples who are already married, and we should not be afraid of it.” Mr Hague,asked: “What is so dreadfully wrong in allowing other New Zealanders of
Ms Nikki Kaye, MP
a different disposition to make a long-term public commitment to someone they love?” “Young New Zealanders overwhelmingly support this Bill.” Ms Nikki Kaye, MP, (National) told the House. “When I look to the future of this country and
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