7 The effort I spearheaded in the 1980s was to have a superior law Bill of Rights of which the Treaty of Waitangi was a part. That effort failed in its ambitious aim of making the Bill of Rights superior law to which all other law was subject. Let me quote the policy of the Labour Party on the topic, one that I wrote in 1984:⁵ “It is the policy of the Labour Party to introduce a Bill of Rights for New Zealand.   It will be based on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which New Zealand has ratified.  It will provide: (a) guaranteed protection for fundamental values and freedoms; (b) restraint on the abuse of power by the Executive and Parliament; (c) restraint on the abuse of power by other organizations; (d) an authoritative source of education about the importance of fundamental freedoms in a democratic society; (e) a judicial remedy to individuals who have suffered under a law or conduct which breaches fundamental rights; (f) a set of minimum standards to which public decision-making must conform.” How the 1990 Act developed 8 After a lot of debate the Bill of Rights was enacted as an ordinary statute that gave the courts interpretative powers in respect of the provisions of the Bill, section 6 providing, “Wherever an enactment can be given a meaning that is consistent with the  rights  and  freedoms  contained  in  this  Bill  of  Rights,  that  meaning  shall  be preferred to any other.”    9 Yet in the assessment of Professor Philip Joseph the effect of the Bill of Rights has been significant.  Writing in 2001 he said, “Today, the Bill of Rights is an integral   part   of   our   jurisprudence   and   represents   one   of   the   major   legal developments of the modern era.”⁶ This outcome was not self-evident when it was enacted  since  it  was  originally  designed  as  a  much  more  potent  measure  that                                                  5   Geoffrey Palmer  Unbridled Power: an Interpretation of New Zealand’s Constitution and Government (2 ed, Oxford University Press, Auckland, 1987) 282-283. 6    Philip A Joseph Constitutional and Administrative Law in New Zealand (2 ed, Brookers, Wellington, 2001) 1018. 4