Connell Brian: Courts and Criminal Matters Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Connell Brian: Courts and Criminal Matters Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:626;Page:21703] 
BRIAN CONNELL (National—Rakaia) 
: 
 Mr Perry’s contribution was a very fine contribution and I would like to ask him when he is doing his factoring not to forget that in addition to the $1.5 million this initiative will bring which is $1.5 million of the $600 million - odd due the Government expects to get another million dollars from the advanced voluntary compliance arising out of its publicity surrounding this initiative. So there will be $2.5 million but $1 million will come from those thugs who thumb their noses at law— 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: Yeah right! 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: Yeah right! I suppose is the term that comes to mind. The other thing I should add before I turn my attention to Part 3 specifically is that the increased ongoing annual operating costs to fund this initiative—this comes from the officials—is estimated at $750000. So that is the increased operating cost per annum. Then there is an additional set-up cost of $938000. That is a total cost of $1.7 million to recoup $1.5 million. Do members understand the maths? $1.7 million to capture $1.5 million—and the Government wonders why we are having a little bit of trouble following its logic. 
I turn my attention to Part 3 clause 9. That is the component that broadens the number of authorised people who can issue warrants for arrest. That sounds good but I want to share with members exactly what happens now and they can ask themselves whether it will make any difference. One of the submitters to the Law and Order Committee told us that once the prescribed fee has been paid the collections unit of the District Court takes over and attempts to serve the judgment debtor with an order for examination. The submitter said that all too frequently the collections officer responds that: “The defendant has moved to another address. The house is vacant. Please provide additional information for the collections officer to attempt to serve again.”—then there is one little line and it is the show-stopper—“The order for examination hearing will not proceed.” They go to all the trouble of doing that they go back to the court the court rules again the deputy registrar directs the warrant to arrest against the judgment debtor and it is issued. 
What happens next is all too common. The court writes in relation to the application for a warrant to arrest the judgment debtor: “The collections officer’s notice of non-execution advises that the defendant has moved to another address. Please provide additional information for the collections officer to attempt execution again.” The submitter said that they were getting pretty frustrated by this point that they were looking to the Government to help them out and that they failed to see how this law would help them. They go to a lot of trouble and supply a lot of information through their own devices which the Government agencies say they simply could not get hold of—they even find out where the debtor lives even though the Government says that it could not do that. 
They supply the new address to the court and they try again to effect the execution of a warrant to arrest and the response usually is: “Defendant is not known at this address.” They write and tell the crooks that they are coming then wonder why they are not there when they arrive. “The defendant is not known at this address.” says the flatmate who has been slipped 20 bucks to say that. “The defendant has moved overseas.” We could follow Mr Prebble’s argument—and I think it has some merit—that we ought to just let debtors go. Why do we want to intercept them anyway? The trouble is that some of them come back and that is when we want to pick them up. “Please provide additional information for the collections officer to attempt execution again.”—that is the bit that really rotates them. 
They have received that three times with that little show-stopper at the bottom that the order for examination or warrant will not proceed. We are asked to believe now that this bill is going to change all of that.