Parliament sat under urgency this week creating a Wednesday which didn't end till Friday.
Urgency is a Government tool which means MPs can work for longer hours and pass bills more quickly than usual.
The Leader of the House Chris Hipkins said about 50 hours was lost during the Covid-19 lockdown at alert level 4 and shortened sitting days at alert level 3.
The House: Parliament's debating chamber Photo: ©VNP / Phil Smith
"That has caused delays to many of the bills that I have just mentioned. With the House soon to be out of action again for a couple of months during the campaign, there is a need to ensure that much of the legislation on the Order Paper is progressed without any delay."
MPs are required to be at Parliament for scheduled sitting days which are outlined on a calendar. They have to turn up in the debating chamber on Tuesdays and Wendesdays from 2pm-10pm and Thursdays 2pm-6pm.
Urgency means that time can be extended up until midnight, require MPs in the chamber from 9am, and make them turn up on a Friday as well, effectively adding an extra 22 hours to the MPs' time in the House.
Urgency also tweaks another rule which says a bill cannot go through more than one stage per sitting day - this allows MPs time in between to familiarise themselves with any changes that may have been made.
Under urgency a bill can be put through more than one or even all of its stages in one sitting often skipping the select committee process which involves public consultation and takes about six months.
After the Covid-19 lockdown there were some bills which were introduced and passed quickly through their stages under urgency but Mr Hipkins said the reason for urgency this time was different.
"The other bills that are part of the motion will pass through only one stage. For most of them, this will be the second reading and then there will be an interval where there is a need for any other amendments to be considered if they are required," he said.
"It's important to note that, for the vast majority of these bills that I have put forward for this urgency motion, the process is in no way being truncated. The effect of the urgency motion is simply to extend the number of hours that Parliament is sitting."
The only process that was truncated was Mr Hipkins speaking to the urgency motion. A minister moving a motion for urgency has to justify why it's needed but the Speaker Trevor Mallard had heard enough.
"Order! I think the member is required to give brief reasons; he's done that."
Twenty-one bills were listed for MPs to work on and they managed to finish up at 4pm on Friday 26 June.
See how far they got here: Daily Progress in the House
