7 July 2022
Luke
[FYI request #19629 email]
Dear Luke
Official Information Act request: New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 section 7 reports
Thank you for your email of 9 June 2022 requesting information under the Official Information
Act 1982 (OIA), in which you ask:
1. How long after a government bill is introduced into the House of Representatives,
does the Attorney-General typically release his section 7 report?
Please note I am not asking for the legal requirement under s 7(a) of the New
Zealand Bill of Rights Act, but rather, the actual average time it has taken for David
Parker to release a section 7 report on a government bill.
As Attorney-General, I am not subject to the OIA when performing my law officer functions,
which includes my responsibilities under section 7 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990
(NZBORA). However, I have chosen to provide the following information in the hope that it
might be useful.
If the Attorney-General considers that a government bill is inconsistent with one or more of the
rights or freedoms affirmed by NZBORA, they table a report in Parliament when the bill is
introduced.
The Attorney-General is not responsible for further publication of reports under section 7 of
NZBORA but they are made publicly available on Parliament’s website. Please find below
information on the section 7 reports I have tabled in Parliament since I became Attorney-
General:
Government bill
Introduction to Parliament
Smokefree Environments and Regulated
24 February 2020
Products (Vaping) Amendment Bill 2020
Land Transport (Drug Driving) Amendment
30 July 2020
Bill 2020
Taxation (Income Tax Rate and Other
1 December 2020
Amendments) Bill 2020
Government bill
Introduction to Parliament
Child Protection (Child Sex Offender
17 March 2021
Government Agency Registration)
Amendment Bill 2021
If the bill is consistent with the rights and freedoms affirmed in NZBORA, the Ministry of Justice
or Crown Law advice on the bill is generally published on the Ministry of Justice website shortly
after a government bill is introduced. As this publication is not a formal requirement, there is
no set timeframe for publication. It will generally occur within a few days of introduction of a
government bill. Advice on non-government bills is published after publication is authorised by
the Attorney-General.
2. As the Water Services Entities Bill is a government bill that was introduced into the
House on 2 June, why was a section 7 report not released on that same day as
required by s 7(a) NZBORA?
I did not present a report under section 7 of NZBORA for the Water Services Entities Bill (the
Bill) because I am only required to present a section 7 report when I conclude that a bill
appears to be inconsistent with the rights and freedoms affirmed in NZBORA.
The Ministry of Justice advice about the Bill was published on the Ministry’s website on
7 June 2022. That advice found that the Bill appears to be consistent with the rights and
freedoms affirmed in NZBORA. The advice is available at: justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/
Publications/20220525-NZ-BORA-Advice-Water-Services-Entities-Bill-2.pdf.
3. When does the Attorney-General expect to release his section 7 report on the Water
Services Entities Bill?
As the Bill appears to be consistent with NZBORA, I do not expect to release a section 7 report
on it.
I trust you find this information useful.
Yours sincerely
Hon David Parker
Attorney-General
