Rodney on Electoral Finance Bill

Some good stuff on Rodney’s blog re the Electoral Finance Bill.

Firstly he notes the Bill is so restrictive that even the movie “We’re here to help” would potentially be banned under the Bill if it passed into law.

Also Rodney has stated that

The Human Rights Commission gave a powerful submission to the Justice an Electoral Committee last week.

The Commission stated the Electoral Finance Bill could have a “chilling effect on the expression of political opinion”, and then went on to say:

“The Bill in its current form represents a dramatic assault on two fundamental human rights that New Zealanders cherish; freedom of expression, and the right of informed citizens to participate in the election process. It requires radical change.”

Quite.

I have put the motion down that the Committee simply discharge the Bill. It’s that bad. That vote will be this week.

Failing that I have put the motion that officials redraft the Bill with the Commission’s help and we can the Commission back with the officials to reconsider the Bill.

I can’t imagine MPs will reject the Commission’s offer of help. It will be an interesting test of the government’s true motive.

Indeed it will. Incidentially I was asked on ZB this morning whether You Tube campaigning was a way around the Electoral Finance Bill, and I think they were surprised when I said the Bill casts it net so widely it will be illegal for someone to upload to You Tube a political video they have created at home for say $1, unless they go off to a JP and sign a solemn declaration about the limits of their activities, and then sends a copy of that affadavit to You Tube.

Also people should note that the NZ Institute of Chartered Accounts also submitted that the entire audit section of the Bill was unworkable and unenforceable – Whale Oil has the NBR articles on this.

So just consider how vastly different any amended Bill is going to be, if it will even be workable.   And also consider how the Government doesn’t want to give us a chance to have any input into the amended Bill.