Tuiono Teanau; Boyack RachelACCIDENT COMPENSATION (INTEREST ON INSTALMENT PLANS) AMENDMENT BILL In CommitteeDebate resumed from 30 May.Clause 6 Schedule 1AA amended (continued)CHAIRPERSON (Teanau Tuiono): Members the House is committee on the Accident Compensation (Interest on Instalment Plans) Amendment Bill. When we were last considering this bill we were debating clause 6. Clause 6 this is the debate on the amendment to Schedule 1AA of the principal Act and the Schedule. The question is that clause 6 stand part.RACHEL BOYACK (Labour—Nelson): Thank you Mr Chair. It's a real pleasure to continue the committee stage into this bill. The last time we were debating it I think we'd spent a significant amount of time on that committee stage and I was reading through the Hansard from the beginning of the debate into clause 6 and just noting some of the comments I had made there and then what I have done as a result of those comments.So one of the questions I had for the Minister which I think is a very fair question is whether he would consider an amendment to the bill so that the percentage increase on levies collected by instalments over a three-month and six-month period were permanently set at 0 percent.The reason I raise this—and I am very interested in a response from the Minister because I think this is a fair question—the practice over many years has been that there are three types of instalment payments that can be used in order to add that interest payment to the instalments which helps compensate ACC somewhat for the reduction in revenue that they get essentially by having an instalment plan in place.So what clause 17 talks about is essentially we're putting this into statute but what we're doing is we're setting it into regulation. So the Minister will have the ability through regulation to actually set these percentages of interest collected going forward. The reason we're doing that—which just to remind the committee—is because this has actually been a practice in place at ACC for a very long time and there has been concern around the legality of that. That is why we're here so just reminding the committee of that.In my contribution the last time the House was in committee on this matter I'd asked the Minister about whether he would put an amendment in to specifically make the three-month instalment period and the six-month instalment period that are outlined there in clause 17A and B permanently set at 0 percent. Because what the bill does is it sets them at 0 percent until regulations are made and there is a risk that when regulations are made that the Minister and ACC may determine to actually increase that from 0 percent and I think keeping it permanently set at 0 percent would be a pragmatic and fair thing to do.So I have tabled an Amendment Paper in the House tonight that would add new clause 17A to the schedule. What that would do is it would permanently set the interest payment on that instalment of the levy at 0 percent for three months and at 0 percent for six months and you would continue to keep—until regulations are set—the 2.73 percent for the 10-month instalment.So I asked the Minister about this previously. I foreshadowed during that contribution that I would put an amendment in and I'm very keen to hear from the Minister around how he seeks to look at that. I do note that my colleague from the Green Party has put a couple of Amendment Papers in tonight and I intend to speak to those as well; I'm sure we will hear from him also. So just noting to the Chair that I think there's some usefulness in discussing those amendments.There's one that I think could work one that possibly won't so I'm quite keen to take a contribution on those as well if we have time before the House rises at 10 o'clock but I note that my colleague will probably want to speak to both of those amendments as well.So very keen to hear from the Minister on whether he would look at supporting my Amendment Paper that I've tabled tonight.