What the M.P.s were saying Accident compensation: all ways

Press, 13 September 1976, Page 2

What the M.P.s were saying Accident compensation: all ways

By CEDRIC MENTIPLAY Pri ate members have) their own ideas abc how; accident compensation; should work. These range} fron *' installation of an all-seeing eye to determine l : bility, to a God-like compassion which would save us all from the consequences incur bv partial liability. Mr M. A. Connelly (Lab., ; Wigram I is delighted at the “initiatives” taken by thj [Accident Compensation Commiss . in promoting! accident prevent io .. “The first essentia! for t t-i joying the quality of * i, to have life itself.” he said. “It is where logic and humanitarianism unite. am satisfied that a labour force is more loyal and gives better productivity to those firms who pay attention to safety factors and good healthv working condit’ons.” Mr Connelly would like to see the commission’s -activities extended n <o the health field, "and even into other !fields in which it mig be said the commission has no I responsibility.” He amplified this, remarking that an advisory committee had been set-up on isafetv in the home. “The commission collects ; premiums from the breauwinners of ; 11 famfl'es,” he i said. "Although this money I comes in under a category (relating to accide , ..ipen'sation, it could well be used

• to promote safety and im- • prove health and the environJment on a broader spectrum. 'I Relevant areas for comamisrion activity, he suggested, included the safety of I toys, the checking >f design--1 sta.. .ards in playground i equipmen even co- . operation with the depart- ; ments of Health and Educa-I . don into the effects of exces-l sive smoking, drinking and; drug-use. More awareness Mr D. F. Quigley (Nat.,j Rangiora) spoke of the lack! • I of appreciation by many! people, including sc e mem-} , hers of Parliament, of tl difI ferenc.es between the provisions of the Accident Comi pensation Act and the prei vious Workers’ Compensa- ■ tion Act and the motor • vehicle ird-party insurance. | “Should the taxpayer be • asked to pay r >re so that sickness and other benefits i could be increased?” he said. • “Should .hose persons who i contribute to the * -“-’--nt • and compensation scheme < pay higher levies :o Oat lari ger benefits can be paid?” Mr Quigley explained that in the first year of the Acci- • dent Compensation Act there i had been more than 105,000: claims. Last vear there had) l beet, an increase of 2..4 per ■ cent on this, because of > growing public awarenezj. • There was also increasin'; ' absenteeism —whic. ’he re- ■ port of the commission I blamed on the fact that the

employer paid the first!< week’s v. ..ges of an em-: ployee off through accident.'! This was a massive impost,ll ■ when added to the V y theji ' employer paid, he said. Ab-4 seuteeism related to this . P I ment had to be looked at inh any examin . >n of the act.il it I Overseas liability ’ , In discussion on Friday!; (about the Estimates, Mr B.! 1 • G. Barclay (Lab.. Christ-] ichurch .Central) said that!' 'members of New Zealand! ..teams injured in competition): overseas were in a special! i position which should be! .clearly established before; [the teams left this country. After a discussion on the ! ex gratia payment made to the goalkeeper of the New • Zealand hockey team, Trevor i Manning, for an injury incurred at the Olympic ; , Games, Mr Barclay asked : what was the position of i members of the All Black j team in South Africa, who had a real likelihood of , suffering serious injury. • The Minister of Internal ! Affairs (Mr Highet): To the i best of my knowledge they i are covered by insurance. His Parliamentary Under- • Secretary (Mr K. M. Com- I i her): They are covered by ijaccident compensation. The Minister of State (Sir ' Keith Holyoake): They may be covered either way. Mr Barclay: Shouldn’t we ; • have a clear answer on this i one? There are many cases i ■ of multiple cover which turn

lout to be no cover at all. ; The Foreign Travel Tax; (Repeal Bill, sponsored by Sir! (Basil Arthur (Lab., Timaru); ;received short shift by the' i Government, but gave Oppo-I I.sition members another! i chance to express their disjgust not. only at the imposition of travel tax, but at (he I way the validating legislation was passed through all — under urgency — (in one evening. : Sir Basil included the forieign travel tax with the payroll tax, the import deposit (scheme, and the sales tax on I machinery and spare parts, ias “a growing list of ill-con-; ;ceived political blunders that, as surely as night follows day, will be counted against this Government at the first available opportunity.” He described the situation as “so bad that there is a strong temptation to let the Government stew in its own juice.” Mr N. J. Kirk (Lab., Sydenham) suggested that the Minister of Tourism (Mr Lapwood) seemed to be right out of the picture as far as Government consultation went. “Last April he said he thought it necessary that travel between Australia and; New Zealand should remain tax free, and last July he told the member for Southern Maori (Mrs TirikateneSullivan) that he was not aware of any Government plans to introduce a travel! tax. “The Associate Minister ofi

Finance (Mr Wilkinson) is also out of the picture when he talks of the travel agents’ association being in favour of the tax,” said Mr Kirk. “If he were to read ’The Press’ of last Tuesday he would see that the Travel Association has not only recorded its opposition, but has made detailed submissions to the Minister of Tourism calling for the repeal of the tax.” Treachery?

During discussion of the Estimates on Friday, Mr R. L. G. Talbot (National, South Canterbury) charged the Opposition and other minority groups with raking every opportunity to undermine New Zealand overseas.

“The Opposition has been traitorous, and stands indicted for its attempt, for some short-term politcial reason, to damage New Zealand throughout the world,” said Mr Talbot. “Groups like H.A.R.T. and C.A.R.E. have been in contact with minority groups in Africa and other countries that are ruled by fear and torture. They are the people Labour has been lining itself up with.” Mr Talbot said that the Government stood behind every country trying to improve the lot of its people in a developing world. This was becoming increasingly (recognised by fair-minded ■people the world over, he (said.