Webb DuncanWATER SERVICES ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY AND CONSUMER PROTECTION BILLSecond ReadingHon Dr DUNCAN WEBB (Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs): Thank you Mr Speaker. I present a legislative statement on the Water Services Economic Efficiency and Consumer Protection Bill.DEPUTY SPEAKER: That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon Dr DUNCAN WEBB: That is excellent. I move That the Water Services Economic Efficiency and Consumer Protection Bill be now read a second time.This bill is part of a suite of legislation designed to give effect to the water services reforms. It introduces an economic regulation and consumer protection regime with the Commerce Commission as regulator which will ensure the new entities promote the long-term interests of consumers by providing services that are efficient effective and responsive.New Zealand's water infrastructure and services are not meeting the needs of our communities in that the quality of service does not reflect what consumers demand. There has been long-term under-investment in water infrastructure there are inefficient pricing practices and a lack of transparency around costs and there are mounting concerns about the capability of the water services sector to deal with Government and community expectations.The Water Industry Commission for Scotland estimated the investment required to deal with these issues in New Zealand is between $120 billion and $185 billion. This investment needs to be made for the health and wellbeing of our water and our people now and into the future. The water services reforms will ensure the costs paid by households remain at a reasonable level while these investments are undertaken. The new entities will provide the scale and operational efficiency to provide high-quality water services at a price that is much more affordable for New Zealanders in the years to come.This bill will subject the new water services entities to an economic regulation and consumer protection regime with the Commerce Commission as the regulator. The commission has experience in implementing economic regulation in other utility sectors such as telecommunications electricity and fuel as well as enforcing consumer protection legislation. A Water Services Commissioner will be appointed to ensure the new economic and consumer protection regulation role is given the focus and prominence it requires. The wider water services reforms will ensure that New Zealanders benefit from upgrades to water infrastructure. The bill complements the wider reform package by providing for economic regulation and consumer protection including minimum quality standards and dispute resolution.I would like to thank the members of the Finance and Expenditure Committee for their consideration of the bill. I would particularly like to acknowledge the chair Ingrid Leary and the former chair Rachel Brooking. Thank you both for ensuring the bill undertook a robust and democratic process. Further given that the committee was considering this bill and the Water Services Legislation Bill I want to thank the committee for the extensive work—and I do know it's very hard—that went into considering submissions and providing recommendations on both of these bills at the same time.The committee considered 136 written and 65 oral submissions on this bill. I thank those submitters for their thoughtful and extensive feedback—hearing from the public is key to our democratic process. Every comment that submitters made was considered fully and the resulting changes have significantly improved this bill. I would also like to thank members of Waikato-Tainui Maniapoto Raukawa Te Arawa River iwi Tuwharetoa and all representatives of iwi that have participated in this process to date for their constructive and thoughtful engagement. It has resulted in improvements to the bill I present today.On 7 June the committee reported the bill back to the House recommending several amendments which I endorse and I would like to mention a few of those key amendments. The committee recommended an additional qualification for the Water Services Commissioner who will be responsible for the commission's functions under the bill. We established this role to recognise the impact that water infrastructure has on water quality and the importance of Te Mana o te Wai. The committee also recommended that knowledge of Te Tiriti and its principles and perspectives of Māori and tikanga Māori should be added to the list of qualifying domains for the position of commissioner.The committee made several recommendations to strengthen the commission's oversight of the entity's obligation to promote urban growth under the Water Services Entities Act 2022 including mandatory disclosure requirement relating to how an entity is fulfilling its obligation in relation to growth; ensuring the Minister and the commission take into account the obligations of the entities in relation to supporting and enabling planning processes growth and housing and urban development; providing for the commission to monitor compliance with the development code that entities are required to make under the Water Services Legislation Bill and provide enforcement mechanisms for contraventions; and making it explicit that a developer is a consumer.In supporting equity and fairness across the reforms the committee recommended that the consumer dispute resolution service should be aimed at handling small disputes in a more accessible way than the courts. This involves allowing both parties to appeal and capping compensation at $50000 to enhance alignment with other schemes. The bill empowers the commission to establish minimum service standards through a service quality code with the committee suggesting inclusion of a non-exhaustive list of code topics for improved guidance during its development.Additionally the committee recommended that the commission prioritise safeguarding vulnerable consumers' interests in the delivery of water services. Thanks again to the committee's efforts. I think this bill will provide greater benefits to New Zealanders. Continuing to progress this bill will ensure that water services are meeting the needs of our people and our communities for generations to come. I commend this bill to the House.DEPUTY SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be agreed to.