Sometimes a debate on what might seem an unremarkable piece of legislation can reveal more about our Members of Parliament than the legislation itself.
Now that’s not to undersell the Self-contained Motor Vehicles Legislation Bill which looks to tackle the problem of careless disposal of human waste by so-called Freedom Campers polluting the rivers and streams of this. Presented by the Minister of Tourism Stuart Nash, the Bill’s first reading threw up some insights into the lives of at least two MPs and the marketing mindset of another pair.
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Stuart Nash wants “high quality” tourists coming to New Zealand Photo: ©VNP / Phil Smith
“Freedom campers travel widely, spending money in local communities. Some also contribute by participating in our seasonal workforce and volunteering,” Nash explained.
“However, not all freedom campers respect our natural environment, nor the communities that host them. Of particular concern are freedom campers who stay in cars or vans with sleeping platforms that are not self-contained. Abuse of freedom camping by domestic and international travellers not only damages our "100% Pure" brand; it erodes public support for tourism and undermines its social licence to operate.”
The need for action to prevent Freedom Campers from polluting is widely supported, with MPs like Nelson's Rachel Boyack able to attest that the impacts are not confined to rivers and beaches.
"Friends of mine who live on a street in Nelson, called Weka Street—I have a number of friends who live on that street; it's very close to Trafalgar Park—wrote to me earlier this year and said 'Our neighbourhood was previously plagued with non-self-contained campers parked on our streets overnight, with urinating in our gutters and on our footpaths. Worse was deposited under the bushes in the park, of course, and occasionally on our front lawns, mine included'," she said.
Branding
The Tourism Minister has made no bones about his aim for New Zealand’s tourism sector to aim for “high-quality tourists” - indeed he portrays the country as a brand to sell.
This was echoed by his Labour colleague Jamie Strange who cited a “ unique opportunity to encourage high-value tourists to come to New Zealand, high value, high wage”.
“The Minister has recognised that, and the Minister is bringing in legislation, like this piece of legislation here, which will improve New Zealand's brand. It will improve the value proposition that New Zealand offers,” Strange said.
However the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March had concerns about this way of looking at tourism and people.
“Personally, I really do not subscribe to the Labour Party's rhetoric around creating a high-value tourism industry, because I just think it's very loaded. Like, what do we mean? I just heard a member talk about bringing high-wage tourists, and the idea that rich tourists actually are less wasteful, I think, is not necessarily grounded in reality, because actually rich tourists can also be some of the people who end up spending the most, in some of our most-polluting aspects of the tourism industry," Menéndez March told the House.
“So I do hope that, throughout this process, we can take much more nuanced views that do not throw dog whistles out in terms of the people that we talk about when we refer to tourists."
Green MP Ricardo Menendez March speaking in Parliament's debating chamber Photo: Phil Smith
Revelations
After all this talk about high value tourists, it was refreshing to hear a revelation from Labour’s Glen Bennett.
“I rise this evening as a lapsed member of the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association, I have to confess. For those who are members in this room—I'm sure there are many of you—you know that moment when you get your wings. I know you know; those red and grey wings you get to put on the front of your campervan with your number of the Association. As you proudly drive through the rural roads of Aotearoa, you get that little wave you give to others as you see them with their wings,” he said to a jovial response from his colleagues.
“Actually, our campervan—they have to have a name, right? So Campy was its name; I thought it was quite appropriate for a same-sex couple. So as we'd drive Campy through the streets and the highways and byways of New Zealand, it was always nice to know that we had, firstly, access to over 2,000 places to go and enjoy camping overnight, but secondly, to know that we have a fully self-contained campervan.”
National MP Joseph Mooney was impressed by Bennett’s revelation and shared some of his own life experiences and recollections of cycling and tramping around the South Island.
“I'll just say, from my personal experience, I didn't wing my way around but I remember over 20 years' ago I had hurt myself in a cycling crash and couldn't work. I was overseas, and I decided to come back to New Zealand and cycle around the South Island. My legs still worked and one arm still worked, so I could hang on to the handle bars. I chucked a backpack on the back of the bike so I could go tramping. I cycled around the South Island, interspersed with tramping along the way. Looking at this freedom camping bill, I was like "Man, would I have been caught by this?", and I probably would have been. Camping within 200 metres: there are times when it's pouring with rain and you're in the middle of nowhere,” Mooney recalled.
Labour MP Glen Bennett speaks in the debate on Conversion Practices Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
“For example, I cycled between Nelson Lakes to Hanmer via Rainbow Road, located in the Molesworth Recreation Reserve. You know, that took a couple of days. I was actually cycling with this American guy that I'd met along the way. We cycled for about a week together, I think. I remember cycling through that area and he had this little tape recorder strapped on his handle bars—this was back in the days when people used tape recorders—and had Bob Dylan playing. So there we are, cycling through the middle of the mountains, no one else around, Bob Dylan playing, and living the dream. I can tell you: there were no toilets anywhere. There were no composting toilets. There were no toilets strapped to the bicycle. It just wasn't happening. But being responsible campers, there's ways and means of ensuring that you don't leave something behind that shouldn't be left behind.”
Now it’s unclear whether Joseph Mooney’s humble experiences roaming in the wild fit the country’s brand that Stuart Nash wishes to promote. But the debate offered useful insights into who some of our MPs are: freaks, just like the rest of us.
National Party MP Joseph Mooney Photo: ©VNP / Phil Smith