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Speaker 1 (00:09):
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Speaker 2 (00:16):
We are talking about the repeal of Good Friday and
Easter Sunday as restricted training Day's bill. Now we heard
from our political edits Jason Wolf who's been in Parliament
and the bill was voted down. The bill sponsor was
Act Party MP Cameron Luxton, and he joins us, Now,
Hi are.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
You, Cameron Coyle?
Speaker 3 (00:35):
How are you very good?
Speaker 2 (00:36):
I've got Matt Heath here as well, so I'm going
to just say this Cameron, to me, it's a bit
of a surprise that was voted down. I take it
you were surprised as well well.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
I mean it was drawn nine months ago and I've
been lobbying extremely hard and talking to every MP I could,
because I think it's a complicated ish bill for people
to get in their head around sometimes. And also you
know there's a lot of different things being touched, so
everyone's got their own special interest, so it's kind of
hard to get the gauge of where people are at.
(01:08):
Last time this bill came up got thirty seven votes
in favor. This time it's got forty nine, which means
you know, there was some work done in lobbying, and
I think proud of what I did, trying to represent
New Zealanders who want to have a bit of choice
and freedom on how they spend their Easter with their
friends and family. And you know it's done. Its damsh
(01:29):
It's a bit of a shame that other parties didn't
see the value of that, but we've done what we could.
Speaker 4 (01:36):
Probably, speaking who voted against.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
It, well, it's sort of hard to say just yet
until the House's officials do the proper tality, but I
mean I will say on the side voting, yes, I
didn't see members from parties other than ACT and National
out there, so we'll remain to be seen who voted against.
But I think the fact that you know, there's been
(01:59):
polling done that shows a majority of New Zealanders, so
from every who support every party across the House, actually
wanted to see this change. And so the fact that
party leaders were whether officially or unofficially, whipping their members
to vote against it, it just sort of shows I
wish people had taken it more seriously and actually represented
(02:21):
the communities which they represent, which is a majority wanting
to see a change.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
You've been doing the hard week behind the scenes, Cameron,
to try and drum up the votes. When you got
pushback from members, why what was the big reason for
their pushback.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
There was a lot of concern about workers' rights and
people spending time with their families. So I think it
is absolutely a fair concern, a fair worry, and it
was something I bill mitigated because currently, if you want,
if your employee would like their employee to work on
Good on Easter Sunday, they must give that employee four
(02:55):
months notice and a four weeks notice. Sorry, I a
very big day going through this four weeks notice before
the date to get that. Employees are not objection to
vote to working, so saying if I don't want to work,
I don't have to and there's no repercussions. My bill
is extending that to include Good Friday. So it's actually
(03:17):
increasing worker protection and workers' rights and increasing choice for
all New Zealanders. So trying to make that point clear
to people as I'm struggling to do it to you
right now that after talking about it all afternoon, you
get a bit tongue tied. But look, I think trying
to get that across That is actually increasing choice for
all New Zealanders, and our enjoyment of the Easter weekend
(03:38):
was the key part. There was other issues when people
talk about the religious aspect and how important the Christian
faith is in New Zealand, and I agree entirely. This
builds nothing did nothing to impinge upon that. If people
wanted to take the day off and spend it in
religious observance, they could So they wanted to go and
(03:59):
play a round a mini part or go to the
go karts, they could do that too. So it was
basically increasing choice for all New Zealanders without taking rights
away from anybody. It feels like something that should have
been supported across the House, but as the cards fell,
perhaps not.
Speaker 4 (04:14):
We're talking about Cameron Luxton, the sponsor of the repeal
of Good Friday and Easter Sundays, Restricted Trading Days, shopping trading,
Sale of Alcohol Amendment bill. Will you be continuing the fight, Cameron?
Speaker 3 (04:27):
Will you?
Speaker 4 (04:27):
Will you be attempting to bring this bill back? This
git pulled out of the hat, this bill.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Yeah, that's right. So as a private members bill, it's
a bill which I brought to the House and like
I said, actually it's been done before. Chris Bailey, another ACTMP,
tried it in the last something's very similar in the
last parliament and that was the one that was voted
was only thirty seven in favor, not a majority, this
one forty nine. Like I say, it's good to see
(04:54):
an improvement, and that me personally. I've got another Member's
bill in the tin which I'm quite passionate about, and
I think considering the the arguments which I've just heard
in the House opposed to it, I don't think that
there was an engagement with the ideas, perhaps putting that
nicely from the other parties. So I think maybe, you know,
(05:16):
my new my next members bill, if I'm so lucky
to have that drawn, might have a better chance in
this Parliament. But I'm sure someone's going to pick it
up again in the future because it's a perennial issue
that annoys New Zealanders every year. We hear about it
every year. I mean the Warbirds over Wanaka fiasco and
Wanaka last year was a prime example where you know,
(05:37):
the the two supermarkets just opened despite it being illegal
to actually serve the huge amount of tourists that had
come to the area. So it's not working for New Zealanders,
which means one day it will be fixed, but it
isn't today.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Well, Cameron Onman, I've got mixed views on this. Would
any part of you found a little bit bad if
we've gone through I mean just a little part, because
I mean when we when we cancel these traditions, you're
not canceling it, but when we diminish them, they never
come back. So that's that's a whole lot of time
and history and ways people have celebrated things that then
change forever. So would there been a little bit of
(06:11):
you that will that has nostalgia for those quieter times, Well.
Speaker 3 (06:17):
It depends how you mean quiet times. I mean my
worry is that our country and I said it in
my speech in the House, which I worry that people
who have got a sort of a warm view of
the history of New Zealand and that we spend our
time if we're not doing something horrible and commercial, like
going doing something wholesome, maybe going to the garden or
go to the beach, maybe a lake shore somewhere. But
(06:39):
in reality, you know, things have changed. New Zealanders live
in subdivided properties, They live in townhouses without gardens perhaps,
and we've got screens basically everywhere, so I'm worried that.
You know, people do actually choose to go and enjoy
themselves in other ways, and if they're not given those options,
you know, a lot of people will probably see their
(07:01):
kids on screens more often, or even the adults, which
isn't actually a good outcome. So I do agree it's
an Eastern is an important tradition. Well, bill wouldn't have
changed a single public holiday, including the two Easter public holidays,
but they would have maintained their special circumstance. Even it
would have increased it because it would be the only
two days of the year where someone could refuse to
work without consequence. Yeah, so I think you can say,
(07:25):
you know, traditions are important. Also, New Zealand is changing.
It's changed rapidly over the last few decades. We need
to actually adapt to that and that's what my bill
was trying to do.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
Well, Cameron, thank you very much for stepping out of
the house to have a chat with us, and hope
you have a merry Christmas.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
Yeah, merry Christmas to you gentlemen.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Thank you very much. That is Cameron Luxton at party
MP who was a sponsor of this particular bill that
has been voted down. That is something that pops up
time in Tom again. He said the votes were getting nearer,
it's closer to passing.
Speaker 4 (07:53):
It will definitely happen. And I totally see his point
of view, and I totally see your point of view,
and I totally see the majority of the texts coming
through a point of view. But just part of me
thinks that having a couple of days, a few days
a year when most things are and we know that
most members of a family are going to be available
to get together and things may be just a little
(08:15):
bit quieter for a day, And he said, you know,
people will probably just be on the screen. So maybe
they will, but maybe they won't.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
Who knows.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
It's a fair argument for more.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
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