Sharples Pita: Business Law Reform Bill — First Reading 
Sharples Pita: Business Law Reform Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:632;Page:4245] 
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
: 
 It is a long trip from Taupo to Dubai but for Tuwharetoa fashion designer Peter Loughlin it is a trip he makes regularly in his determination to connect with home. Peter was honoured as Outstanding Maori Business Leader for 2005 by the University of Auckland business school. Peter dresses some of the world’s most influential and wealthy women through his House of Arushi. That fashion house is known for exclusive jewel-encrusted and fine-beaded dresses. It is considered to be one of the Gulf region’s most prestigious labels. Clientele include the royal families of Kuwait Qatar Saudi Arabia and Oman who are all happy to purchase a House of Arushi design for—if they are lucky—$200000. Every year through Peter’s foundation scholarships a young Maori designer is supported to travel to Dubai and work alongside Peter gaining experience with materials and techniques rarely used at home. 
Such is the nature of Maori business. The splendour of indigenous leadership entrepreneurship and innovation encapsulated in Maori enterprise has captured the world while back at home Maori business has become so mainstream that it is now offered as a major for the BCA degree at Victoria University. Maori business success has earned us an international reputation as entrepreneurs. A status of excellence has been acquired through the fruits of diligence perseverance and preparation. 
The Maori Party draws on that success in considering the proposals in the Business Law Reform Bill to reduce compliance costs particularly for small businesses without risking a business’s stability and potential for success. The key overriding factor in the bill is that the operation of business can be clear efficient and effective. How could we argue with that? The Maori Party is proud to celebrate Maori business as a major contributor to the New Zealand economy but we know that for far too many Maori enterprises a dream run is short-lived. Sadly the correlation of Maori business with longevity is not well established. We must do all we can to deliver on expectations and aspirations to create a climate of success—not a climate that is submerged under the flood of too many great ideas without the structure of a framework to pin them on but a climate in which we can actively manage our inspiration. 
The bill before the House today forms part of that climate of success. It is part of an incremental approach to improving existing business law by making small high-priority changes to reduce some of the costs of complying with legislation. The proposals in the bill demonstrate the importance of planning in order to create a culture of expectation whereby nothing but success will suffice. The strength of Maori businesses must be incorporated throughout the proposals to ensure that the downstream effects of the legislation are experienced by all. 
The Maori Party has raised the profile of Maori entrepreneurship many times before in this House. We have shared the results of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor which confirmed that Maori are the third most entrepreneurial people in the world and that about one in three Maori in the35 to 44 years age range are business entrepreneurs. But the great sticking point has been that although Maori are great starters-up of business only 37 percent of Maori entrepreneurial start-ups survive for 3½ years compared with 62 percent in the general population. In February this year we put on public record our questions to the Government as to why these world-class entrepreneurs are lacking the sustainable support to make the risks worthwhile. We asked why the Government was seduced by big-talking big spenders with big budgets from offshore and neglecting our own indigenous entrepreneurs. So in this respect we welcome the initiatives presented in this bill to increase investment in coaching mentoring and networking projects in order to promote entrepreneurship. 
Such initiatives as that taken by Peter Loughlin in setting up his Arohanui Victoria Memorial Trust so as to spread his success with Maori designers from home enhance our capacity to extend manaakitanga through the sharing of wealth knowledge and resources. Indeed the Maori Party is pleased to endorse information sharing as the central aspect of this bill both to reduce business costs and administrative workload and for business security reasons. The Maori Party has always argued for the reduction of business compliance costs particularly for small businesses while at the same time wanted to ensure that there remain adequate frameworks for those businesses’ continued stability and success. We strongly support the proposals to amend the Financial Reporting Act by removing unnecessary or excessive preparation audit and filing requirements. 
The move to standardise financial reporting with international standards will also have spin-off benefits for international companies doing business in Aotearoa. Such changes move toward easier smoother and lower-cost operations. We are hopeful that such changes will support the development of indigenous vanguard companies a concept that business analyst Rod Oram raised at the recent Hui Taumata in terms of the originality born out of Maori roots that is nurtured through astute management and smart strategies for international markets. The House knows of the spiralling global interest in authentic indigenous experiences and products. The Maori Art Meets America event held in San Francisco last August was a classic example when the arrival at the Golden Gate bridge of the ceremonial waka at the coming of dawn inspired the interest of up to 9 million people who were then a potential client group to watch Maori artists in ta moko and weaving at work. 
Other Maori businesses such as Tohu Wines and Cultureflow have successfully capitalised on their indigenous edge drawing on unique Maori concepts and culture as defined by Maori to achieve a top-quality business reputation at home and overseas. The proposed amendments to the Companies Act outlined in this bill will we hope protect the quality of that reputation through also insisting on applying rigorous quality standards to any offshore investors. We welcome the fact that directors currently banned in Australia will now be unable to direct New Zealand companies. Similarly we commend the move towards information sharing which will mean that overseas-registered companies do not have to repeat file with the New Zealand registrar if they have already filed similar information elsewhere. 
Finally I will make some comments about the proposed changes to the Friendly Societies and Credit Unions Act that will enable credit unions a greater ability to grow their business without introducing unmanageable risks. Credit unions and building societies were created in low socio-economic or rural areas where their members were either socially or economically excluded from banking activities. Credit unions have a proud history amongst our people for helping to spearhead Maori businesses when other support was hard to find. Indeed the Maori Party contends that friendly societies and credit unions grew out of the expression of local rangatiratanga. The Nga Hau e Wha Credit Union in Pukekohe is believed to have been the first Maori credit union. The union established in 1962 offered low-interest loans and taught budgeting assisting Maori in ways that other lending institutions were unable to do. The initiative quickly spread to my own tribe Ngati Kahungunu. Wiremu Te Tau Huata established He Toa Takitini Credit Union. In Kawerau and Bay of Plenty Monita Eru Delamere promoted credit unions as embracing the philosophy of pooling resources and sharing with others which has always been the trademark of Maori business. Our success has derived from the skills and expertise we have acquired in whanau collaboration and networking. These initiatives are still with us today. Indeed just outside Opotiki the innovative enterprise of Ngai Tai iwi in establishing the Torere bank has provided a solid financial infrastructure to strengthen subsequent projects. 
The Maori Party sees the proposal for a common bond envisaged in this bill as building on the legacy of community self-sufficiency as led by tangata whenua activities. The potential development of new community relationships through new memberships could lead to new types of business relationships and collaborations that are the hallmark of our own Maori Party business development and community development policies. As a total package the Maori Party welcomes the initiatives proposed in the Business Law Reform Bill and we will look forward to the select committee deliberations to learn of even more models of indigenous enterprise and entrepreneurship that can help lead this nation forward and make “Made in Aotearoa” a prestige label across all markets.