Choudhary Ashraf: Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Choudhary Ashraf: Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
[Sitting date: 22 June 2010. Volume:664;Page:11972. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Dr ASHRAF CHOUDHARY (Labour) 
: 
 First of all I acknowledge the good work that the previous Minister of Commerce Lianne Dalziel did in this area. I have known her for a number of years and she is Labour’s financial guru. A number of bills in this area were started by her and she is now the chair of the Commerce Committee. I have had the opportunity on at least two or three occasions to sit on that committee. I must acknowledge that Lianne Dalziel single-handedly runs the nitty-gritty of the finance matters in that committee. I have heard even the Government MPs acknowledge the hard work that Lianne Dalziel does on that committee. I also acknowledge that other colleagues such as Sam Lotu-Iiga and other friends have done good work on the committee. 
I will speak briefly about the people who are subject to some of the if you like abuse by financial advisers. I live in Auckland and my colleagues Pansy Wong Melissa Lee and Sam live there too. We are aware of some of the concerns that the ethnic communities—the Pacific communities and the Asian communities—have particularly about this area. Those concerns comprise two parts. One concern is about financial illiteracy if you like. I am aware that a lot of people in Auckland have very little literacy in the area of finance and economics. They are often at the receiving end of wrong information and wrong advice and they get ripped off. At the other end there are unfortunately people in the same communities who have some financial knowledge and literacy but who exploit their own people. I have heard a lot of stories about a number of people who have been exploited by so-called financial advisers. Often they are ripping off their own people in their own communities which is very sad. 
The Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill is a technical bill to tighten up the provisions in the current legislation and clearly it is designed to help the people who are at the receiving end of wrong advice from financial advisers. I am very pleased that these issues are being tidied up particularly given the fact that there are loan sharks out there and particularly financial advisers who are ripping off people and selling mortgages that are unaffordable to some of the people who do not understand all the details about those issues. Also in the savings area elderly people who have some savings want to put them in the right place. 
I welcome Ross Robertson to the Chamber and also my colleague Su’a William Sio. They have just arrived probably from Auckland. They have been doing a good job out in the community particularly in the area of the vulnerability of our people. [ 
Interruption 
] I say to John Hayes that I feel he should acknowledge the good work that Lianne Dalziel has done. This is only his second term in the House and he probably does not know about all the hard yards that have been done in the past. I say to John that we should give credit where it is due. Hard work has been done in the past and we should acknowledge that. John Hayes has done some work on foreign affairs; I think we can acknowledge the work that he has done over the years. 
There are risks involved and I think we need to particularly help the people in our communities who have very little knowledge and understanding of financial matters. This bill is designed to help those people. I support this bill. Thank you.