Street Maryan: Student Loan Scheme (Exemptions and Miscellaneous Provisions) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Street Maryan: Student Loan Scheme (Exemptions and Miscellaneous Provisions) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:656;Page:5861] 
Hon MARYAN STREET (Labour) 
: 
 I rise to take a brief call on the Student Loan Scheme (Exemptions and Miscellaneous Provisions) Amendment Bill. I congratulate the Minister on bringing the bill to the House. Labour will be supporting the measure. 
I just want to make a couple of points in response to what I see as some of the major provisions in this bill albeit one that is fairly technical in nature. First of all interest-free loans were introduced effective from 1 April 2006 by the Labour Government specifically for the purpose of encouraging New Zealand students to stay in New Zealand to study or to work. One of the patterns that became apparent during the exercise of the student loan scheme was that students would complete their degrees and leave New Zealand as soon as possible because they could get a stay or a holiday from payments while they were overseas. The purpose of making interest-free loans applicable was to encourage our brightest and best to stay here. This bill seeks to provide that same facility and same motivation to students who reside normally in what are still quaintly called parts of the realm of New Zealand—that is Niue the Cook Islands Tokelau and the Ross Dependency—for half a year. The 183-day figure simply represents half a year. Extending the interest-free loan provision to these borrowers is justifiable because our particular relationship with these people is more than simply administrative and legislative; it binds us quite closely to them in all sorts of ways. So extending this provision of being able to access interest-free loans even when they return to their home country for a period is a reasonable thing to do. 
I also make mention of some of the anomalies that have been corrected which the Minister alluded to briefly in his introductory speech. Restoring the hardship relief provisions to reflect their original intention is I think an appropriate thing to do. The intention of legislation sometimes gets a little distorted in practice and over time we can see where things are beginning to strain at the outer limits of legislation. Corrections of anomalies that become apparent are required; that is a good thing. 
I also wish to refer to the provision in this legislation that allows for students who are going overseas to study on arrangements that are reciprocal or scholarship arrangements to also access interest-free loans. That provision is hugely important for the development of our human capital in New Zealand. If all our brightest and best students go offshore to pursue postgraduate study and we cannot entice them to come back with an interest-free loan then we defeat the purpose of New Zealand’s very good tertiary education system. It seems to me that this mechanism is useful and will encourage New Zealand students to take up postgraduate study in the first instance. Although I would not for a moment denigrate any of the postgraduate facilities that we have in this country because they are exceptional and they hold their own place in the world’s league tables of tertiary and postgraduate research institutions sometimes having the opportunity to study postgraduate courses offshore allows our young people to come back with a different perspective a renewed vision of what is possible for New Zealand and in fact an overseas degree that can only help to enhance the human capital in New Zealand. 
The other technical amendments in this legislation do not require a great deal of analysis or comment. I am willing and keen to support this bill as it stands. Thank you.