Thursday, November 09, 2006



Drinking age: the vote

The Herald has posted voting lists for last night's vote on the Sale of Liquor (Youth Alcohol Harm Reduction: Purchase Age) Amendment Bill:

Ayes:

  • Jim Anderton (Progressive Coalition, Wigram)
  • Chester Borrows (National, Whanganui)
  • Peter Brown (New Zealand First, List)
  • John Carter (National, Northland)
  • Ashraf Choudhary (Labour, List)
  • Bob Clarkson (National, Tauranga)
  • Johnathan Coleman (National, Northcote)
  • Gordon Copeland (United Future, List)
  • Clayton Cosgrove (Labour, Waimakariri)
  • David Cunliffe (Labour, New Lynn)
  • Brian Donnelly (New Zealand First, List)
  • Harry Duynhoven (Labour, New Plymouth)
  • Taito Phillip Field (Labour, Mangere)
  • Christopher Finlayson (National, List)
  • Te Ururoa Flavell (Maori Party, Waiariki)
  • Craig Foss (National, Tukituki)
  • Martin Gallagher (Labour, Hamilton West)
  • Jo Goodhew (National, Aoraki)
  • Sandra Goudie (National, Coromandel)
  • Hone Harawira (Maori Party, Te Tai Tokerau)
  • John Hayes (National, Wairarapa)
  • Phillip Heatley (National, Whangarei)
  • Shane Jones (Labour, List)
  • John Key (National, Helensville)
  • Annette King (Labour, Rongotai)
  • Colin King (National, kaikoura)
  • Winnie Laban (Labour, Mana)
  • Nanaia Mahuta (Labour, Tainui)
  • Wayne Mapp (National, North Shore)
  • Ron Mark (New Zealand First, List)
  • Sue Moroney (Labour, List)
  • Pita Paraone (New Zealand First, List)
  • Winston Peters (New Zealand First, List)
  • Ross Robertson (Labour, Manukau East)
  • Eric Roy (National, Invercargill)
  • Tony Ryall (National, Bay of Plenty)
  • Dover Samuels (Labour, List)
  • Pita Sharples (Maori Party, Tamaki-Makaurau)
  • Nick Smith (National, Nelson)
  • Barbara Stewart (New Zealand First, List)
  • Paul Swain (Labour, Rimutaka)
  • Georgina te Heuheu (National, List)
  • Anne Tolley (National, East Coast)
  • Chris Tremain (National, Napier)
  • Tariana Turia (Maori Party, Te Tai Hauauru)
  • Judy Turner (United Future, List)
  • Doug Woolerton (New Zealand First, List)
  • Richard Worth (National, List)
  • Dianne Yates (Labour, List)

Noes:

  • Shane Ardern (National, Taranaki-King Country)
  • Chris Auchinvole (National, List)
  • Rick Barker (Labour, List)
  • Tim Barnett (Labour, Christchurch Central)
  • David Bennett (National, Hamilton East)
  • Paula Bennett (National, List)
  • David Benson-Pope (Labour, Dunedin South)
  • Georgina Beyer (Labour, List)
  • Jackie Blue (National, List)
  • Mark Blumsky (National, List)
  • Sue Bradford (Green, List)
  • Don Brash (National, List)
  • Gerry Brownlee (National, Ilam)
  • Mark Burton (Labour, Taupo)
  • Chris Carter (Labour, Te Atatu)
  • David Carter (National, List)
  • Steve Chadwick (Labour, Rotorua)
  • Charles Chauvel (Labour, List)
  • Helen Clark (Labour, Mt Albert)
  • Judith Collins (National, Clevedon)
  • Brian Connell (National, Rakaia)
  • Michael Cullen (Labour, List)
  • Lianne Dalziel (Labour, Christchurch East)
  • Jacqui Dean (National, Otago)
  • Peter Dunne (United Future, Ohariu-Belmont)
  • Ruth Dyson (Labour, Banks Peninsula)
  • Bill English (National, Clutha-Southland)
  • Russell Fairbrother (Labour, List)
  • Darien Fenton (Labour, List)
  • Jeanette Fitzsimons (Green, List)
  • Phil Goff (Labour, Mt Roskill)
  • Mark Gosche (Labour, Maungakiekie)
  • Tim Groser (National, List)
  • Nathan Guy (National, List)
  • Ann Hartley (Labour, List)
  • George Hawkins (Labour, Manurewa)
  • Tau Henare (National, List)
  • Dave Hereora (Labour, List)
  • Rodney Hide (ACT, Epsom)
  • Marian Hobbs (Labour, Wellington Central)
  • Pete Hodgson (Labour, Dunedein North)
  • Parekura Horomia (Labour, Ikaroa-Rawhiti)
  • Darren Hughes (Labour, Otaki)
  • Paul Hutchison (National, Port Waikato)
  • Sue Kedgley (Green, List)
  • Keith Locke (Green, List)
  • Moana Mackey (Labour, List)
  • Steve Maharey (Labour, Palmerston North)
  • Trevor Mallard (Labour, Hutt South)
  • Murray McCully (National, East Coast Bays)
  • Damien O'Connor (Labour, West Coast-Tasman)
  • Mahara Okeroa (Labour, Te Tai Tonga)
  • David Parker (Labour, List)
  • Allan Peachey (National, Tamaki)
  • Jill Pettis (Labour, List)
  • Lynne Pillay (Labour, Waitakere)
  • Simon Power (National, Rangitikei)
  • Katherine Rich (National, List)
  • Mita Ririnui (Labour, List)
  • Heather Roy (ACT, List)
  • Clem Simich (National, List)
  • Lockwood Smith (National, Rodney)
  • Maryan Street (Labour, List)
  • Nandor Tanczos (Green, List)
  • Lindsay Tisch (National, Piako)
  • Judith Tizard (Labour, Auckland Central)
  • Metiria Turei (Green, List)
  • Nicky Wagner (National, List)
  • Kate Wilkinson (National, List)
  • Maurice Williamson (National, Pakuranga)
  • Margaret Wilson (Labour, List)
  • Pansy Wong (National, List)

No abstentions - everybody voted!

The results have also been entered into the CommoNZ archive of conscience votes here, which allows them to be searched and compared with votes on previous bills. And lining up the results side by side, its clear that both an awful lot of MPs changed their minds between the first and second reading. It's also clear that a few who opposed lowering the drinking age in the first place have accepted that there is no going back now, and that it is untenable to remove rights from people who can vote. By contrast, the number of people who voted for a lower age in 1999 and who now think they made a serious mistake is limited to two: Wayne Mapp and Nick Smith.

In terms of the party split, National and Labour were mixed (with Labour being more heavily opposed than National), ACT and the Greens were 100% against, while NZ First and the Maori Party were 100% in favour.

6 comments:

Out of interest, what happens with proxies on a conscience vote? Do MPs leave them with the whips?

I think Helen Clark and Don Brash are both in London at the moment.

Posted by Rich : 11/09/2006 02:11:00 PM

Rich: yes, in the general case. A sizable number of the votes tend to be proxies, most people who aren't actually speaking. They could be left with anybody, strictly, but usually they're given to one of the whips.

Posted by Anonymous : 11/09/2006 03:04:00 PM

To be fair, the ayes included people who thought there ought to be more debate, they were not necessarily all in favour of a 20 age.

Metiria Turei's speech, for example, lamented the fact the bill as introduced addressed both the purchase age and the supply of alchol to minors and that as reported from select committee only addressed the purchase age. She seemed supportive of the idea that supply to under-18 might be restricted by law, but not that sale to 18+'s should. Given these views it might have been sensible for her and the Greens to support the second reading of the bill so that in the committee of the whole house she could propose that the purchase age be 18, but the supply to minor provisions thrown out by the select committee be re-incorporated.

Who knows whether any or many of those who did support the bill being read a second time did so not because they supported it as it stood, but because they recognised that it could be amended into a law that would do something (rather than the one reported by the select committee, which wouldn't).

Posted by Graeme Edgeler : 11/09/2006 03:11:00 PM

Ah, that'll be why it didn't come through from the whip's office...

Posted by Idiot/Savant : 11/11/2006 01:30:00 AM

I'm pleased with the outcome, however, Fairbrother (Labour) and Tremain (National), both representing Napier, said they would listen to their electorate before voting, now why did one vote 'for' and the other 'against'?
Do they really take note of 'what Napier people want?' Can it be that one of them is lying?

aladin

Posted by Anonymous : 11/11/2006 08:24:00 PM

most of the country seems to want the drinking age to go up and I expect the demographic that splits that mostly is age as opposed to geography - So I would say the one who voted against are not representing their constituants (you argue that is good or bad I guess).

Posted by Genius : 11/12/2006 08:52:00 AM