Williams Andrew: Credit Contracts and Financial Services Law Reform Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWilliams Andrew: Credit Contracts and Financial Services Law Reform Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 10 April 2014. Volume:697;Page:17169. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]ANDREW WILLIAMS (NZ First):I take a call on behalf of New Zealand First on the Credit Contracts and Financial Services Law Reform Bill. It is very appropriate to come after the Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Sam Lotu-Iiga with whom I had a discussion today on this very subject. I asked the Minister whether he would reconsider the aspect of capping the interest rates. He advised me that that was not going to be possible and he gave me various reasons. I am somewhat disappointed Minister because you come from the very area that is one of the most affected by loan sharks by high interest rates and by racketeers. The people whom you represent and are Minister of desperately need all the protection that they can get. They are the most vulnerable the Pasifika people. My colleague here Le’aufa’amulia Asenati Lole-Taylor can confirm that in the area of South Auckland in the Manukau area these people are very vulnerable. They need every assistance to ensure that they are not ripped off by some of these racketeers.So it is disappointing that the National Government just cannot see fit to go that extra step. It is bringing this bill through but it cannot go that extra step to put caps on interest rates. Caps have been introduced in the UK the USA Canada Japan Australia and much of Europe. This Government says it sees no justification for doing it here in New Zealand yet so many of our major trading partners so many of the countries that we have some of the closest contact with have done this. Therefore there can be no justification for this Government saying it does not think it is appropriate to do it when so many of these other countries based on a huge amount of case studies and past history in this area have seen fit to do so.It is also most concerning that this bill will go through but that the suggested amendments from Carol Beaumont in relation to those caps will be lost 61 votes to 60. They will be lost by one vote. They will be lost by the one vote of the Hon Peter Dunne. I use the word “honourable” very loosely because in this case if he was to do the honourable thing he would vote for the amendments as he voted back in 2010 for the Credit Reforms (Responsible Lending) Bill a member’s bill that was then in the name of Carol Beaumont. Back then United Future voted in favour of that bill and that bill said: “The amendments to the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003 will require lenders to seriously consider the actual means of a prospective borrower and their ability to service the debt and will allow for the prescription of maximum annual percentage rates of interest payable in respect of consumer credit contracts. Rules applying caps to annual interest rates now apply in many overseas countries including the United States Canada and Australia.” That was in that bill and the vote on that bill was lost by 59 votes to 63 but those who voted for it included United Future.So the Hon Peter Dunne was happy to vote for that and have caps 3 years ago but yet recently in the media he has said that he has never supported it and never did support it. He has done the usual flip-flop of a Minister. As the Rt Hon Winston Peters said in the case of Peter Dunne “he will double-cross that bridge when he comes to it.” In this case he has double-crossed the bridge when he has come to it because he is on record—and I have a letter here also confirming it—saying that he supported that bill and was sorry that it did not go through. He wrote a letter and I have got the letter here. He said: “I was very pleased to hear from you … thank you for taking the time to write to me and for your [kindness]. I was happy to support this bill and was very sorry that it did not proceed past first reading. I hope that further progress will be made on this issue in future.” Well this is the future Peter Dunne—this is the future. This is 2014. We now have a bill that would allow if the Government accepted the amendments caps to go on interest rates.At a time when people can be absolutely ripped off with interest rates rising to three digits—hundreds of percent—why should poor vulnerable people be paying interest rates of hundreds of percent in some cases when this Government has the ability to support putting caps on interest rates? It is just absolutely diabolical in this day and age that this Government cannot see sense in doing this when our trans-Tasman sister country Australia has done it and when so many of these financial people operate on both sides of the Tasman as well. Why should they have constraints in Australia but not have constraints here in New Zealand? It does not make sense. Why does this Government often say “Oh we are trying to harmonise with Australia as much as we can so that businesses both sides of the Tasman know what the rules are and so do the banks and everybody else—you know so we’re harmonised.” and yet here is an instance where the Government will not harmonise with what is happening in Australia? It is just absolutely nonsensical.In the case of the Hon Peter Dunne New Zealand First can say to him that once again he is selling out taking the baubles of office and giving the one vote that is required to stop those caps going in. If he followed what his party’s principles stand for—and also we have confirmation that people within United Future are saying that they would like to see these caps in place. They cannot understand why Peter Dunne himself is not supporting the capping of rates. Peter Dunne is obviously a one-man show voting for his own self-interest and not voting on the basis of what many of the people in his own party would say. He is basically voting to ensure that he keeps his ministerial portfolios his Crown limousine and all the baubles of office so he will give the one necessary vote to ensure that credit caps are not put on interest rates.In closing New Zealand First will just say once again that we are very disappointed. We will be supporting the bill overall because it does significantly help vulnerable people. It will enhance the whole situation in terms of those who are most affected and who require credit. But at the same time when the bill comes through the Committee stage we will be expressing grave concerns as to why the Government is once again letting down low and middle income earners in this country and is not seeing sense by doing that.