The Enabling or Validating Legislation is an Enormous Con

As I blogged yesterday here, Labour has no intention of paying the money back. DPF has come to a similar conclusion.

The only thing that needs Validating legislation is the FY 2004/2005 money Labour filched from the Treasury. The FY2005/2006 funds can be paid back this year and no questions will be asked - it is not overdue - the accounts have not been signed off yet...think of it as short term loan Michael, Helen, Pete, whoever...

However what Cullen is planning is a montrous rort. Cullen is a cunning stunt. His planned legislation is wide ranging and far reaching. He is looking to solve more problems than just the FY2004/2005 theft. He is planning to use momentum to steamroll the thicker of the smaller parties; By panicking the Greens, NZ First and others into supporting his Validating legislation. Cullen actually plans to make legal all his illegal payments in the 2004/2005 and 2005/2006 years and also make legal his planned expenditure on Pledge cards and similar expenditure going forward.

This legislation is not aimed just at Validating the earlier rorts it is aimed squarely at allowing Labour to continue to raid the Treasury for its electoral purposes, without any accountability or come back.

Labour is planning to ram all this legislation through under urgency and therefore without the usual processes of parliamentary scrutiny like select committees. Without even those checks and balances Labour will run riot.

All parties have to demand that any validating legislation applies only to the FY2004/2005. They should also demand that it is properly scrutinised by parliament. However that is secondary if the legislation applies only to FY2004/2005.