Foreign Affairs (Consular Loans) Amendment Bill
This is the debate on the new section 12A to be inserted into the Foreign Affairs Act 1988, β(Consular Loans)β. The question is that clause 5 stand part.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. I just wondered if I could ask the Minister a couple of questions that Iβm sure people might be interested to know. Can the Minister give us a sense of the quantum of money and the number of loans that have been made in recent years, perhaps in the last two or three years, just to give people a sense of how many Kiwis seek help from embassies and consulates overseas and what sort of amounts they borrow?
Yes, yes, Iβm happy to provide that information. Most loans are for under $5,000 with a repayment schedule of up to 12 months. In exceptional circumstances, a loan can be issued up to $20,000. To retain some flexibility the legislative authority is greater than that. In respect of how many loans have been made in recent months, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, around $2.5 million of loans were made. That was mainly to support assisted departure flights back to New Zealand and, in some situations, some small loans to allow people to shelter in place. And, of that, over 70 percent has already been repaid. I think, from memory, I also saw somewhere else that in the period from 2014 to 2020, there were generally less than 10 consular loans per year and the average loan was just over $1,000.
Clause 5 agreed to.
Clause 6 New Schedule 1 inserted
π£οΈ Spoke in this debate (3)
- Hon Jacqui Dean (New Zealand National Party β Member for Waitaki)
- Hon David Parker (New Zealand Labour Party β List Member)
- David Seymour (ACT New Zealand β Member for Epsom)