Lees-Galloway IainIMMIGRATION (INTERNATIONAL VISITOR CONSERVATION AND TOURISM LEVY) AMENDMENT BILLFirst ReadingHon IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY (Minister of Immigration): I move That the Immigration (International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy) Amendment Bill be now read a first time. This bill amends the Immigration Act 2009 to provide for the collection of the international visitor conservation and tourism levy and to extend Immigration New Zealand's authority to use automated decision making to include an electronic travel authority (ETA). The tourism sector is a vital part of New Zealand's economy and it is experiencing rapid growth. In the past few years we've gone from just over three million international visitors coming to New Zealand to just under four million. Over the same period those visitors have collectively increased their spending by $1.3 billion to a total of $16.2 billion. Tourism is consistently one of the top export earners for New Zealand. Tourism also creates inclusive growth by distributing economic opportunities and bringing social benefits across our regions cities and communities. It allows us to celebrate our unique Māori culture. International visitors buy our goods and services which contributes to the success of other export sectors and grows our reputation internationally. Recent visitor growth has increased the benefits of tourism but it has also had an impact on New Zealand including increased pressure on our infrastructure and roads overcrowding at high-demand areas and attractions and pressure on our natural environment—the very thing international visitors come to see. The recent speed and scale of international visitor growth—35 percent in the last five years—has effectively outstripped the capacity of our system to respond in some areas. This means that the economic growth and other opportunities afforded by this growth are not being fully realised and the pressures created are not always adequately managed. Currently some of those cost pressures are being managed by ratepayers and taxpayers while others go unmet particularly where there is limited scope to charge visitors for use or access.This Government believes it is important that international visitors contribute directly to the infrastructure they use and the natural environment they enjoy whilst here in New Zealand. We are therefore introducing a targeted international visitor levy (IVL) that will contribute to substantive changes in the way our tourism system works. It is important that this bill be passed under urgency to enable the levy to be collected from July and the ETA to come into effect from 1 October. These dates have been widely communicated for both the ETA and IVL. Delays would cause confusion for travellers potentially having implications for carriers who are gearing up to support introduction. A delay would also reduce the total amount Government would collect in the first year of the levy.The ETA is an important step in strengthening New Zealand's border security in line with international best practice. It will provide Immigration New Zealand with more information sooner about 1.5 million visitors a year from 60 visa waiver countries. The ETA will enable Immigration New Zealand to refuse boarding to people who do not meet our character requirements whether they are seeking to travel by air or by cruise vessel. This bill will allow the Minister of Tourism to introduce a levy on international visitors which will enhance the visitors' experience and support local communities. The levy will be used to fund conservation protecting and enhancing our beautiful landscapes and iconic species one of the reasons people choose to come to New Zealand. The levy will also fund infrastructure projects so visitors will be making a direct contribution to those costs removing some of the burden of hosting visitors from local communities. The bill also ring-fences the levy for tourism and conservation consistent with feedback from public consultation. The bill sets out what the regulations used to charge the levy may do. This includes who is liable and who is exempt from paying the levy the amounts or method of calculating the levy and how the levy is to be collected. The bill will also amend the Immigration Act to require the Minister of Tourism to undertake appropriate consultation before making any regulations. That requirement does not apply to the first set of regulations made under the amendment Act as the Government has already consulted widely on the introduction of the levy. To ensure the levy remains fit for purpose the bill amends the Act to require the department—in this case the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment—to review the levy amount at intervals of no more than five years. Finally the bill extends Immigration New Zealand's authority to use automated decision-making to include an ETA which is mandatory from 1 October. The benefits of automated decision-making include making better use of immigration officers' time by triaging applications and enabling faster responses for visitors to New Zealand.In developing this bill I would like to acknowledge the efforts of members who have contributed to and supported this bill's development especially the Minister of Tourism and the Minister of Conservation. This bill will provide an important funding mechanism for New Zealand's tourism and conservation sectors. It will support more sustainable and managed growth in tourism reducing potential negative impacts on New Zealanders. I commend this bill to the House.