Heatley Phil: Student Loan Scheme Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
Heatley Phil: Student Loan Scheme Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
[Advance Copy - Subject to minor change before inclusion in Bound Volume.] 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY (Minister of Energy and Resources) 
 on behalf of the Minister of Revenue: I move  
That the Student Loan Scheme Amendment Bill be now read a third time 
. The measures contained in the bill are designed around two principles: that the student loan scheme should be fair and transparent and that borrowers should be responsible and accountable for the repayment of their loan. In relation to the first principle of ensuring fairness across the scheme the bill removes the ability for New Zealand - based borrowers to offset losses against income in order to reduce their liability for student loan repayment purposes. The bill also proposes to extend pay-period assessments to the earnings of all borrowers and remove annual square-up assessments for borrowers’ salary and wage earnings. To maintain fairness borrowers who have significantly overpaid their repayment obligations on a pay-period basis will still be able to apply for a refund whereas those who have significantly underpaid will have catch-up deductions made.  
In relation to the second principle that of encouraging borrowers to take responsibility for their loan repayments from 1 January 2013 the Inland Revenue Department will be able to receive contact details provided to StudyLink by all new loan applicants as a condition of securing a loan. This will help the Inland Revenue Department to maintain contact with borrowers who leave New Zealand to travel overseas or who change addresses frequently. Finally the bill reduces a current repayment overseas holiday provision from 3 years to 1 year. Again this measure is designed to encourage overseas-based borrowers to resume their repayment obligations within a reasonable time frame.  
These are the main features of the Student Loan Scheme Amendment Bill. The measures were part of a suite of changes announced in Budget 2011 to take effect from 1 April this year. Although the general election and resulting lapse of legislation has had the effect of delaying the passage of this and other bills 1 April is the date that employers and the Inland Revenue Department have worked towards for implementing the proposed changes. In the interests of cost-effectiveness for employers and certainty to borrowers 1 April 2012 should therefore remain the date upon which the measures in the bill become effective. For some time now the Inland Revenue Department has been preparing to implement these changes and this will be completed by this weekend—by this weekend.  
As always I am grateful for the efforts of all those who have contributed towards the passage of this bill so far. My thanks go to the officials across several agencies who have collaborated on the policy development work and the drafters who worked on the detail of the draft legislation—thank you very much for working so closely with me and of course with the Hon Peter Dunne. I also want to thank those who made submissions on the bill to improve its application in practice.  
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I think one of the terrible things—I am not going to draw to your attention something that I am not allowed to but can I just ask that as the Minister does it he makes the changes to indicate he is reading it on behalf of someone else.  
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Lindsay Tisch) 
: The Minister is making a speech. I called the Hon Phil Heatley to make the speech; I did not call the Hon Peter Dunne or say “speaking on behalf of the Hon Peter Dunne.” The Hon Phil Heatley can continue his speech in the manner to which he has become accustomed.  
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I again reiterate that I thank the officials for working very very closely with me and also with my colleague the Hon Peter Dunne. I also want to thank those who made submissions and I wish to thank the Finance and Expenditure Committee for its consideration of the proposed reforms and its recommendations to improve their overall effect. As it now stands we have another very practical mechanism for achieving greater integrity and transparency across the student loan scheme and it is with great pleasure that I again commend this bill to the House.