Bakshi Kanwaljit Singh: Third Readings —Text is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBakshi Kanwaljit Singh: Third Readings —[Sitting date: 04 November 2015. Volume:709;Page:7716. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]KANWALJIT SINGH BAKSHI (National): Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker for the opportunity to contribute to the third reading of these bills. I acknowledge the previous speaker Phil Goff and I will try to address some of the points he has raised.New Zealand is one of the least corrupt countries in the world as has been said time and again. And it is not just us who are saying it; it has been said by a lot of international agencies. The Hon Phil Goff mentioned Transparency International. That organisation has just released a press release that has good news about New Zealand’s Defence Force. The 76-question Government Defence Anti-Corruption Index shows the New Zealand Defence Force is leading our region. This 2015 index just released by the United Kingdom Special Defence Project gives the New Zealand Defence Force high marks for a strong integrated system across every risk area assessed by the index such as “personnel procurement operations political and finance.” This proves that New Zealand is not just the least corrupt but that it is also working very well for us in all areas.This National-led Government has worked on many fronts to ensure that we maintain and also continue to honour some of the international treaties that we have signed. To maintain our country’s reputation and keep it being a responsible member of the international community we are working in that direction. Organised crime is a global issue and we need to make sure New Zealand is not vulnerable to attacks that are easily spread through illegal frameworks in financial systems and through technology from the organised crime network.The Hon Phil Goff also mentioned some of the issues such as methamphetamines money-laundering and human trafficking. He said these are the domestic issues but I do not think these are just domestic issues—they have a connection internationally. And that is why we have been working hard to ensure that we are ready to tackle these issues. The Government has worked on many fronts in the previous 7 years. The Hon Phil Goff mentioned that we signed a treaty 11 years ago and he asked what this Government has done in the past 7 years. I would like to ask him what he did in the 4 years he was a Minister—nothing. At least we are working in the direction of honouring those treaties.We also passed the Criminal Proceeds Recovery Act in 2009 which allows law enforcement agencies to recover the proceeds of crime. This money is then used for other law enforcement initiatives. The Act is working very well. The police have recovered millions of dollars from criminal proceeds and that money has been used in other areas. Another law that was passed was the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009. That Act helps law enforcement agencies to detect and deter serious crime such as drug dealing tax evasion and fraud. This Act makes it easier to recover money gained illegally and it has helped to close those loopholes that criminals use for money-laundering.Before I go any further I would like to acknowledge the officials for their contribution and their support and I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of the Law and Order Committee members during this process. I would like to highlight some of the key issues that have been dealt with in this bill such as banks now being required to report to the financial intelligence unit within the New Zealand Police all wire transfers that are above $1000 or any physical cash above $10000 being deposited into the banks. This ensures that the transactions are very transparent and can be tracked right back to the bottom. Redrafting of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 to specify that intent to conceal is also not required any more—we have to declare all those transactions to the financial intelligence unit.Some of the issues that were raised by the Hon Phil Goff have been addressed and I think he will be happy to learn that these issues have been resolved. With these words I commend this bill to the House.