Last night, Parliament predictably sent George Hawkins' latest act of wowserism to select committee by an overwhelming margin. What's not reported is how long it took - the debate started late because National Party MPs decided to filibuster by dragging out the two local bills earlier in the day. Later, they filibustered again on Sue Bradford's Corrections (Mothers With babies) Amendment Bill, rising to contribute such gems of insight as "It is very appropriate that the bill is called Mothers with Babies because it relates to mothers and babies..." Well, I guess its nice to know they're literate.
The immediate victim of this foot-dragging seemed to be the Waste Minimisation Bill, which National ostensibly supports. But due to their foot-dragging, it did not start its committee stage last night, and now may not pass before the election. The real target however may be Darien Fenton's Minimum Wage and Remuneration Amendment Bill. With members' time so tight, every hour matters, and National's childish delaying tactics may have been sufficient to ensure it has no chance of getting its committee stage and third reading before the election. Unless, of course, the government adopts it.
