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A bill was passed granting sweeping powers to the police to potentially enter homes without arrest warrants while enforcing Covid-19 alert level rules.
The Covid-19 Public Health Response Bill was quickly brought to Parliament in time for Alert Level 2, but it came under intense scrutiny by the Opposition.
He approved 63 votes in favor and 57 against.
The National Party and the Law did not endorse the bill, saying it was an overreach, they distrusted New Zealanders and did not allow the orders to be properly scrutinized.
But the government said it was necessary to ensure the continued fight against Covid-19 and created more responsibility, not less.
The Human Rights Commission said it was “deeply concerned” about the lack of scrutiny of the bill and its hasty process “is a major failure of our democratic process.”
The law establishes the legal framework for future alert levels since there is no longer a state of emergency. It effectively allows the Minister of Health to issue an order that would make alert level rules legally enforceable.
That could include, for example, the ability of the police or “compliance officers” to close certain facilities or roads, prohibit certain types of travel or congregations, or require people to be physically distant or to stay in their bubbles in if necessary.
It would also allow searches without private property order if there was a reasonable belief that alert level rules were being breached.
It is the first legislation related to Covid that has not had the support of all political parties.
The bill was amended at the committee stage this morning.
At the request of the Maori Council, the specific reference to marae was removed and the Government added the requirement that a search without order be reported to the corresponding marae committee.
Attorney General David Parker said it was written in the bill with the intention of providing more protection.
“It’s actually something that doesn’t remove protections; it actually adds them. But nonetheless, Māoridom doesn’t want that. They want to be the same as non-Māoridom with respect to those premises,” Parker said.
He told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the law is important.
“These enforcement powers are necessary, but are not a substitute for voluntary compliance.
“However, you need it on the margins, because people who voluntarily comply want to know that people who are breaking the rules can comply with the rules.”
He says the powers in the bill are justified, such as allowing police to enter property without a court order.
“We have now scaled it down so that, below level two, the only time the police can enter with an entry warrant is to potentially break a party.”
The original two-year sunset clause has been mitigated by an amendment to see the legislation updated every 90 days, or more if necessary.
But the National Party still opposed the bill.
National deputy Gerry Brownlee said he “puts too much power in the hands of one person: the Prime Minister” because there was also no mention of what advice he needed to make a decision.
Education Minister Chris Hipkins said when Brownlee introduced legislation restricting civil liberties after the Canterbury earthquakes, he felt uncomfortable voting for it, but “it was the right thing to do.”
