Ghahraman GolrizGOLRIZ GHAHRAMAN (Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand): Thank you Mr Assistant Speaker. It's a pleasure to rise in support of this bill which is part of a framework of revisions that this Government is committed to making to the way that economic policy is set for New Zealand to reflect the realities of the 21st century but also to reflect a more nuanced useful way of reviewing our economy and how well we're doing as a country.As others have mentioned the current Reserve Bank Act is almost 30 years old now so we did need a review. The Government announced last year that there would be a review of the Reserve Bank Act in two parts. This bill reflects the first part of that review. It seeks to as a starting point change or to expand the breadth of the purpose of monetary policy that's set by the Reserve Bank to include maximum sustainable employment. It's almost surprising that that wasn't a part of the purpose of our monetary policy. This bill of course retains what was previously the sole purpose of the Reserve Bank's monetary policy setting or sole consideration which was price stabilisation. That is of course very important. It's really important to consumers it's important to business people and it's actually most important to lower socio-economic communities that inflation is controlled and is stabilised. That is an important purpose of the Reserve Bank's work that is being retained. But the purpose has expanded to include sustainable employment because we recognise that actually well-being should include not only employment but actually quality employment that is sustainable.That fits really well with the rest of the work that this Government is committed to including the work we're doing on the well-being indicators and the well-being Budget that was introduced as well. Other jurisdictions have both explored and introduced these types of measures including what's being proposed and adopted through this bill in terms of sustainable employment which is to say that the well-being of an economy shouldn't be limited to myopic focuses like price stabilisation—that we need to look at what is in fact in the interests of having a stable economy across the board and that includes quality employment. So we're doing that. We're introducing that as part of actually a big revision and an update of our economic focus but also law.The second big change or much needed change that's being recognised and adopted by this bill is something that actually the Reserve Bank had already been doing by way of practice which is to make its decisions by way of a committee. So what's called a monetary policy committee is being adopted. It will be a committee of five members to seven members with two external members at any given time. That is to recognise that actually evidence shows committees make better decisions than individuals because they bring a diversity of perspectives of expertise and points of view that get tested through participation of a group—of a diverse group. So that is a welcome change and as I say it's actually something that the Reserve Bank has already been practising itself because as it has developed as an institution it has recognised that this is best-practice decision-making. So we're reflecting that.I just wanted to point out a couple of parts of the bill that no one else has picked up on as such. I remembered these bits being pointed out by my colleague Green Party MP Chlöe Swarbrick who's particularly interested in public participation in politics—that is to say that in schedule 3 clause 3(2) of new schedule 2 she found actually requires that the committee develop a process for advice from the public on policy that it adopts which is to say that we're lifting the lid a little bit on a part of our policy-making process or type of policy monetary policy that's probably a bit of a mystery to the public. But this requirement for further consultation or consultation at all is lifting the lid on that.There's also a requirement that this bill produces that the bank must publish its proposed policy online on its website which will create a far bigger level of transparency and through that accountability because as we know when policy is made in secret and without consultation there's very little by way of accountability—especially policy that is usually considered so complex as monetary policy.Those are two further welcome and much more modern changes to our monetary policy that are coming in through this bill. So I happily commend the bill to the House. Thank you.