Oral Questions

11. to the Minister of Corrections: Does he stand by his statement regarding community sentences, “we expect offenders to complete their hours”?

Yes. Eighty percent of community sentences are completed, so there is still room for improvement. I also expect my officials to balance attendance against individual’s employment and family responsibilities, as well as other potential barriers such as health concerns or, for example, a global pandemic.

💬 Simeon Brown: How many offenders sentenced to community service had hours remitted under COVID-19 alert level 1, and how many hours were remitted?

💬 SPEAKER: Hang on, I’m just going to review that question and contemplate whether, in fact, it flows from the original question. I’ll let the member answer it, but I do want to warn members that there has to be a relationship either between the question and/or the answer and the supplementary, and jumping from a very general statement to a very specific one is not absolutely allowed.

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Well, we did have a lockdown that kept people safe from COVID, and Corrections did its part. Now, this member has a very unhealthy fixation on a very few number of people who have traffic offences and the non-payment of fines.

💬 SPEAKER: Order! Order! Can I just say to the member, I think suggesting that members have unhealthy fixations in current times is not a good thing to do.

💬 Simeon Brown: Why, when businesses were allowed to open and workers go back to work, was Corrections still remitting hours for offenders sentenced to community service during level 1 according to parliamentary written question No. 14424?

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Well, again, if the member had listened to the answer to the primary, I also expect my officials to balance attendance against individuals’ employment and family responsibilities—

💬 Hon David Bennett: They broke the law.

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: —as well as other potential barriers such as health concerns or, for example, the pandemic. And I hear someone over there saying, “Oh, they broke the law.” We’re talking about the lowest level of offenders who had traffic offences and the non-payment of fines on the very day that his leader jokes about 29 people escaping from prison under her watch. It goes to show that the National Party has got their priorities wrong, and it’s certainly not the party of Key and English.

💬 Greg O’Connor: What other reports has he received on adherence by offenders to sentences imposed on them?

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Well, I’ve seen one report that claims that between 2008 and 2011, and in the year 2016, there were no escapes from prison. I understand that the member in question said her eyebrows were raised, indicating she was joking. So let me be clear: my eyebrows are level. This is just not true: 29 people escaped Corrections’ custody under that member’s watch. The new leader and her false claims are just proving again that the team opposite just ain’t what it used to be.

💬 Simeon Brown: How does the Minister stand by his statement “we expect offenders to complete their hours”, when over 138,000 hours have been remitted from the sentences of more than 5,500 offenders, with hours continued to be remitted even under level 1 when New Zealanders were going back to work?

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Well, again, Corrections deals with 40,000 offenders on any given day; three quarters of them are dealt with by community corrections. So what this member is talking about, over a long period of time, is a very small percentage of offenders—those who have traffic offences and the non-payment of fines, compared to the Leader of the Opposition, who jokes about 29 serious offenders escaping from prison under her watch. She thinks it’s a joke. That is not the party of Key and English any more. They have got their priorities very mixed up.

💬 Simeon Brown: So is the Minister telling the House that people serving community service sentences shouldn’t have to complete their sentences?

💬 Hon KELVIN DAVIS: No.

Question No. 12—Social Development

12. to the Minister for Social Development: What recent announcements has she made about supporting New Zealanders towards financial security?

Today, Minister Faafoi and I announced the strengthening of debt solution advice and services across New Zealand to combat debt in the wake of COVID-19. This Government is putting an additional $4.3 million over two years towards two key initiatives. Firstly, we’re investing in existing specialist debt solution services. These have qualified experts that our budgeting services can access free of charge to support their clients with more specialised advice on debt restructuring and repayment agreements between debtors and creditors. Secondly is the expansion of debt consolidation loans for clients who would be able to repay their debts if these were restructured into low-cost or interest-free loans. This Government knows that the COVID response and recovery is about responding to people’s immediate needs while also planning for the future. That’s why we will also be working with stakeholders and communities to develop a comprehensive national debt solution for all New Zealanders.

💬 Priyanca Radhakrishnan: What difference will this make for families in debt?

💬 Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: This funding is about sheltering indebted individuals and whānau from the financial, health, and social impacts of overwhelming debt. For many families, a reason they don’t have enough money is that their income is drained by high interest rates, repayments, and penalty fees. Well-supported low- or no-interest debt consolidation loans are a way to help them out of this trap. We estimate that around 2,000 people will get access to specialist debt support and 1,400 people could get access to, and benefit from, debt consolidation microfinance loans or help with variations to high-cost loans. Through these initiatives, families will not only be able to have support to address their immediate needs but will help develop the skill set to enable them to move forward from situations of problem debt and build more prosperous futures.

💬 Priyanca Radhakrishnan: How does this align with other Government work to address problem debt?

💬 Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: Today’s announcement builds on the $35 million of extra funding for core building financial capability services that I announced recently to address cost pressures for our budgeting services and enable them to increase their capacity as part of the COVID response. In December last year, the Government passed the Credit Contracts Legislation Amendment Bill, which required significant improvements to lending practices. Due to COVID, we brought forward the cap on the total amount of repayments, so, from 1 May this year, anyone who takes out a high-cost loan never has to repay more than twice what they have borrowed. We have also put in place regulations for all mobile traders and truck shops, including ensuring they assess affordability before agreeing to sell goods on credit. This Government is investing in the wellbeing of our people and communities in the wake of COVID-19 and putting in place our plan for a strong and stable future for New Zealand.