Speech to 2010 Plain English Awards

‘Plain’ English does not mean simplistic, dull or inexpressive English. In his article, ‘Answering the Critics of Plain Language’, plain English campaigner Joseph Kimble notes: “Plain English is the style of Abraham Lincoln, and Mark Twain, and Justice Holmes, and George Orwell, and Winston Churchill, and EB White. Plain words are eternally fresh and fit. More than that, they are capable of great power and dignity.”We often hear humourous stories of terrible uses of English. But the abuse of English by government, government departments and business is not funny. Why? Because it has a direct effect on productivity and on New Zealand’s economy.In this respect, I can think of no more important example than the language used in legislation. I want to talk briefly about that topic tonight.Clear and accessible law is a fundamental part of the rule of law. People need to be able to understand legislation. The courts need to be able to interpret legislation.For this to happen, Parliament needs to do its job properly. Waffly and imprecise wording is of no use to anyone.The Law Commission has rightly said that our statute law, as a whole, currently lacks coherence, is untidy, and can be difficult to understand and use.I support the efforts of the Parliamentary Counsel Office and Law Commission to address this problem by tidying the statute books and making them easier to understand. The Legislation Bill 2010, which I introduced in the House last month, aims to modernise and improve the law relating to the publication, availability, reprinting, revision, and official versions of legislation.I was laughed at when I said in the House that I was excited by the bill. But I was telling the truth. This bill could do great things.The Parliamentary Counsel Office, for which I am responsible, aims to use clear English in bills. I think New Zealand has some of the best legislation drafters in the world. Admittedly, Parliament and its select committees sometimes muck up their careful work but that’s democracy.The plain English approach has not always been the approach taken in New Zealand legislation. Much of our old legislation is wordy and hard to understand. One real shocker is from the United Kingdom, contained in the Banking Act 1979 Appeals Procedure (England and Wales) Regulations 1979, which say that: “Any reference in these regulations to a regulation is a reference to a regulation contained in these regulations.”Can you believe it? What a pointless sentence.Things have gotten so bad that some people overseas have suggested citizens should be allowed to sue Parliament for legislative negligence. Legislative negligence means such an obvious inattention to the consequences of the wording of legislation that, if the work had been done by the lawyer drafting a lease, will, trust deed or other legal document, it would have amounted to professional negligence.This proposal is fundamentally daft but I think it underlines the importance of Parliament doing its job properly. The language used in legislation has huge consequences. One unnecessary word in an Act can lead to years of litigation in the courts.It takes a great deal more skill to write in plain English than in dense, complex English, a principle summed up by Mark Twain, who apologised for the length of some correspondence by saying he didn’t have time to write a short letter, so wrote a long one instead.The development of clear and concise writing must be a priority for our education system and a goal for all of us. We should follow the maxim of Antoine de Saint-Exupery that “perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away”.In the interests of practising what I preach and being concise, I will finish my comments here. These are important awards; they honour the otherwise unsung heroes who, from behind their desks, are fighting for clarity.Keep up the good fight; it is worth it.

Christopher Finlayson

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Community and Voluntary Sector Minister recognises ‘amazing contribution’ of volunteers

Community and Voluntary Sector Minister, Tariana Turia, has expressed her heartfelt appreciation to the volunteers, friends and families who have so willingly expressed the hand of manaakitanga in supporting the communities of Otautahi.”People throughout Canterbury have shown when the going gets tough, the tough get going - putting aside their anxieties and fear, to give their time, skills and energies to others” said Mrs Turia.”It has been wonderful to see the way people have stepped up to the mark, in their own way.  Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu has set up their facebook page to provide the space for whanau to send messages of support; youth groups have also used Facebook to get mobilised - setting up work teams to clear the streets of silt and rubble”.”And of course the amazing contribution of volunteers in formally organised groupings such as Civil Defence Centres, the Welfare Centres, and the Red Cross has been seen in the long hours of dedicated efforts”.Mrs Turia was particularly enthusiastic about the local time-banking scheme in Lyttelton.  Ten percent of Lytteltonians have signed up to the challenge of checking on the elderly, providing drinking water, helping the Fire Brigade and creating that necessary central space for people to come together.”Time Banking is a wonderful concept that grows self-help by trading skills in a community. Members of a Time Bank share their skills with other members within the community and are given time credits for the work they do. They can then “cash-in” the credits they gain to get the services and support they need”.”This is a great example of community resilience and the generosity of spirit that helps everyone to get through the trauma of events as they have unfolded, in the wake of the Otautahi earthquake” said Mrs Turia.

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There are three cultural grants pools every year for arts / cultural / events organisations. Traditionally, all three of them have the same amount of funding allocated for that particular time of year. This time, the Council has allocated more money out of the yearly pool into the next round of grants - the round that could ultimately fund a lot of activities during Rugby World Cup 2011. This round closes on31 October.The Council’s Grants Manager, Jenny Rains, says the Council is expecting a lot of interest in that particular grants pool, and people should start working on their application now.”If you want to put on an event or show around the time of Rugby World Cup 2011, now is the time to get thinking about your application and what you wish to do. Council staff can help you with the logistics of applying, but we need you to get working on it now. Applications close at the end of October - which really isn’t that far away.”Jenny says the changes will affect the two other grants rounds for this year - the July 2010 round and the March 2011 round.”Both rounds have less funding allocated to them. But, we’re doing our best to ensure that organisations are not too affected by this,” says Jenny.The Council’s Strategic Events Manager, Andy Scotland, has certain types of acts and events in mind for Rugby World Cup 2011.”What we’re aiming for at the moment is a type of ‘Festival Carnivale’ that will run from 9 September right through to 23 October - so that’s a long stint. It’s a great opportunity to show off what we can do and how well we can do it.”We’re looking for events or activities that showcase the city’s culture, heritage and diversity. They need to also entertain the Wellington community as well as the thousands of tourists who’ll be here during that time,” says Andy.The Council will provide extra help to applicants in the lead-up to the deadline on 31 October. More information will soon be available in the Grants section on this website.

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  Attending ‘virtual’ Taupo District Council meetings proves popular

In addition to the live webcasting of Council meetings, viewers can now access the on-demand, archived footage of the Council meetings at a time convenient for them via council’s website.The live webcast is already proving popular with plans to webcast the Council meeting on Wednesday 8th September at which Council will review the changes to the draft Taupo Urban and Commercial Structure Plan.Communications Manager Suzanne Takiwa says Council were offered free trials by two prospective providers and were able to compare the viewer experience, cost and value added services before making a decision to accept the offer from Tandem Studios.  She said there was a steady stream of live feedback during the broadcast both locally and right around the country with very positive comments.Ms Takiwa says, “Tandem not only provided a seamless viewer experience but are also offering extra services such as editing and archiving at less cost.  After undergoing a steep learning curve implementing the webcasts, we now believe the ability to access the footage on-demand is critical.”Google analytics tracked around 275 visits during the three hours the meeting was being broadcast with another 80 or so visits during the rest of the day.“Given we have 42% ratepayers out of the district, the ability for people near or far to attend ‘virtual’ Council meetings at their convenience is especially relevant.  The reality is we very rarely get anyone coming along in person so we are thrilled to be able to open up the business of Council to our ratepayers and residents,” said Ms Takiwa.  “It will be interesting to see how many more people make use of the on-demand service over time.”Those wanting to watch the meeting can access the link via Councils website here and viewers are encouraged to provide feedback via the Taupo District Council Facebook page.“There is a link on both websites to our facebook page and we will announce upcoming meetings, as well as other information of interest via facebook as well as the usual channels,” said Ms Takiwa.

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The Awards, sponsored by Mary-Jane Rivers, the McCombs-Rivers family and Alison Broad, celebrate community engagement, excellence and energy in adult community learning.Circus Kumarani from Dargaville, Northland began in 2003 with a show involving members from two disability providers and local school children. Four groups of disabled adults attend classes weekly, as well as children, youth and community members. The group’s purpose is to provide circus skills for all ages and abilities and use these as a means to, not only support individual learning and confidence, but to break down barriers between groups. Circus Kumarani looks for opportunities to bring all the different groups together for open stage nights, special workshops, rehearsals and shows including “Circus Infusion” 2009 involving 111 members with representatives from across the whole community.The Kaipara District Council has included working with Circus Kumarani in its draft Long Term Community Plan, as it sees the Circus as being “of significant benefit to the community”.Flax Roots Whānau, Rawene, Hokianga provides training in low budget digital documentary film making. It was formed to offer employment opportunities in the Hokianga area and to record the history of community members, harnessing their collective experiences.Anyone can take part thanks to the very low fees. The course has had positive impacts on its participants and has been the catalyst for the annual Short Film Festival in Rawene, leading to some film-makers entering the International Short Film Festival. Opportunities for paid work in filming and editing have also been created. Local events have been filmed and archived, developing a storehouse of knowledge for future generations.The courses have a strong community-based Tikanga component. Whanaungatanga promotes peer learning and support as well as mentorship within foundation-level and advanced classes.Circus Kumarani and Flax Roots Whānau are just two of the many innovative community learning initiatives recognised throughout Adult Learners’ Week / He Tangata Mātauranga. Inspirational learners and teachers will also be honoured at award ceremonies all over Aotearoa. Each year around half a million adult New Zealanders participate in adult learning programmes.This year’s theme ‘Learn for Today and Tomorrow – E ako mō tēnei mā me āpōpō’ emphasises the immediate impact of learning on the lives of adults and their communities and the way it strengthens long term opportunities especially in a time of economic uncertainty.For more information on the Dynamic Community Learning Awards check the Adult Learners’ Week website: http://www.adultlearnersweek.org.nz

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