“In a speech today, Winston made a number of assertions aimed at establishing a false picture that Chinese immigrants take more from New Zealand than they contribute.  This is far from the truth,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Chinese families who immigrate here are hard-working people who move to make a better life for themselves and their children.   In the process, many start their own businesses, employ staff, pay taxes, invest heavily in education and contribute to the growth of New Zealand’s economy.

“Every year, thousands of Chinese students arrive on our shores to pay top dollar to gain qualifications from our universities.   The universities benefit from increased revenue, and the students’ time here, immersed in our culture, serves to strengthen economic ties between China and New Zealand.

“China is New Zealand’s second biggest trading partner.  In 2011, bilateral trade between our two nations amounted to $12.7 billion and this will continue to grow.

“Tourism is one of our most significant export industries.  Why shouldn’t the Government do all it can to attract wealthy Chinese visitors to our country to spend their tourist dollar?   Australians don’t even need a visa to visit New Zealand, so the idea that some Chinese visitors getting ‘fast-tracked’ visas amounts to special treatment is laughable.

“Winston also claimed that non-resident Chinese buyers are one of the major drivers behind the Auckland housing affordability crisis.  This is unfounded.  The latest BNZ-REINZ survey shows that Chinese buyers represent a mere 1.3 per cent of the market.  We don’t hear Winston complaining about the British who buy more homes than the Chinese do.

“The ACT Party rejects Winston’s claims that Chinese are somehow ripping New Zealanders off.   Chinese migration and trade is of significant benefit to the New Zealand economy and, unlike NZ First, the ACT Party welcomes their contribution,” Mr Boscawen said.

Mr Pratt made the comments on Radio New Zealand’s Nine To Noon show today.

“The so-called ‘schoolyard bully’ is, in reality, a violent young man with over 72 convictions.   He is exactly the type of criminal three strikes was intended to target,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Mr Whaanga’s first strike was for two aggravated robberies where he made threats of violence while armed and hit one victim over the head numerous times for $68 and a skateboard.

“His second strike and final warning was for another two aggravated robberies where once again he attacked two separate victims.

“Mr Pratt tries to make excuses by focusing on what Mr Whaanga took, claiming it is unfair for someone to be sentenced to a second strike for stealing a mere $68 and a skateboard.   It’s not what he took, but the violence that he used to do it which is the issue.

“Three Strikes targets New Zealand’s worst violent repeat offenders to keep them off our streets.

“Mr Whaanga now has two and a half years, while he is serving his sentence, to address his problems and become a productive citizen.  If he doesn’t change his ways, and commits another strike offence, he will go to jail for a very long time,” Mr Boscawen said.

“In a press release this afternoon, Mr Parker said ‘gas and coal generators’ carbon costs are incorporated into the price paid to hydro, wind and geothermal generators, despite the fact they have zero or low carbon emissions.’

“In other words, Mr Parker  is conceding that Labour’s ETS allows hydro, wind and geothermal generators to make windfall profits at New Zealanders’ expense,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Time and again I stood up in the House and said that Labour’s ETS would create windfall profits for renewable generators and it would hurt those on low-comes the most. But Labour didn’t care.

“In the same release, Mr Parker goes on to say that ‘under Labour’s [new energy] policy only companies whose generated electricity emits carbon will be able to charge for it.’  What this means is Labour is now trying to sell itself as the saviour of a problem it created.

“The point of introducing Labour’s ETS was to push the price of electricity up so that New Zealanders used less of it.

“Mr Parker needs to explain why he favoured giving renewable generators a windfall gain two years ago, and what has changed in the past two years to make him change his mind?

“I would wager that this has nothing to do with caring about energy prices for households and everything to do with Labour’s campaign to upset the asset sales programme,” Mr Boscawen said.

“The whole point of their Emissions Trading Scheme was to drive up electricity prices so that people used less of it,” Mr Boscawen said.

“The ETS lifts the marginal cost of producing electricity, and, as it’s the marginal cost that sets overall prices, all generators get the benefit of the higher price, regardless of whether they have to pay the carbon tax.

“The result is that those generating renewable energy make windfall profits at householders’ expense.

“I spoke out against the ETS because it would impact the most on those who could least afford it.   But the Greens and Labour, who pretend to care about the poor, were more than happy for the price to rise.

“They didn’t care about high power prices hurting New Zealanders then, but now that they want to put a spanner in the works of the asset sales programme, they suddenly claim to care.

“These parties are willing to hurt all New Zealanders by eroding the value of state owned assets, and also private assets, such as Contact Energy, which are owned by New Zealand investors and Kiwisaver schemes.

“They are a bunch of hypocrites who only care about power prices when it suits their political agenda,” Mr Boscawen said.

“ACT and National in Government are committed to ensuring that New Zealand consumer law is effective and workable.  The Consumer Law Reform Bill delivers on that commitment,” Mr Boscawen said.

“This Bill represents the most significant changes to New Zealand’s consumer laws in more than 20 years.  It will bring much-needed clarity in an era of online shopping, extended warranties and self-checkouts.  It will strengthen consumers’ rights and simplify business compliance by replacing seven existing consumer laws with updated Consumer Guarantees, Fair Trading, and Weights and Measures Acts – as well as a new Auctioneers Act that sets a licensing regime for auctioneers.

“Some of the key changes include: extending the Disputes Tribunal’s jurisdiction to cover complaints about misleading and deceptive conduct; subjecting all new goods sold via auctions – and all goods sold by professional traders through online auction sites – to the acceptable quality provisions of the Consumer Guarantees Act; prohibiting unsubstantiated claims and requiring traders and retailers to ensure their claims are valid; and reconsidering how the Consumer Guarantees Act could apply to electricity and carrier services.

“The Consumer Law Reform will reduce costs and confusion, and make it easier for consumers and businesses to understand their rights and obligations.

“Strong and relevant consumer legislation is important for both consumers and businesses.  These changes will allow consumers to shop with greater confidence and, for business, will help to create a level playing field where reputable suppliers are protected from the inappropriate market conduct of unscrupulous competitors,” Mr Boscawen said.

“For the ETS to have any semblance of credibility the Government must first clarify its purpose and whether that purpose is achievable.  There must also be some benchmark against which progress can be measured,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Dr Wright was also wrong when, in her submission to the ETS Review Panel 2011, she urged the Government to ensure that agriculture is included in the ETS in 2015.  Agriculture is New Zealand’s primary industry, and it would be extremely foolhardy to undermine the foundation of our economy by including it in a scheme that has no clear purpose.

“In fact, ACT’s submission to the Panel identifies no fewer than nine different instances where the purpose of the ETS is unclear – in speeches by Climate Change Minister Dr Smith, in the legislation itself, and in the Panel’s consultation document.

“ACT’s submission also highlights the fact that the ETS should be both measurable and achievable but actually lacks an explicit and achievable purpose, as well as benchmarks against which progress can be assessed.

“This being the case, the ETS should be completely scrapped.  At the very least, Dr Wright’s exhortations should be ignored and agriculture excluded – the Government cannot afford to further disadvantage our increasingly fragile economy by forging ahead with an ETS more prohibitive than those of our major trading partners,” Mr Boscawen said.

ACT’s submission to the ETS Review Panel 2011 can be read at http://www.act.org.nz/files/Submission_ETS_Review_Panel.pdf

“According to research commissioned by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, New Zealanders greatly underestimate the cost of scams.  Of 1,000 people surveyed, 90 percent believed New Zealanders lose under $300 million a year – but the cost is closer to $450 million per year,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Added to this is the immense emotional cost to scam victims.  The Ministry’s Scamwatch website (www.scamwatch.govt.nz) receives around 3,500 reports annually, including from people who have lost everything – their home, their savings, etc – by falling victim to a scam.

“The Ministry’s research also showed that most New Zealanders believe that scams originate in Africa in and Asia when, in fact, scammers can be based anywhere in the world – it’s incredibly easy for a scammer to set up a fake email address and then claim they are in London, or to phone and claim they’re in Sydney, when they’re actually somewhere else entirely.

“Recent scams that the Ministry has issued alerts on include rental property scams, computer cold-calling scams, tax back scams, and charity scams that arose in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake.  Anyone who comes across these, or other scams, is encouraged to report them to Scamwatch in order to help others avoid falling victim.

“Scammers rely, and prey, on human vulnerabilities and money sent overseas is virtually impossible to recover.  New Zealanders need to stay on their guard and remember the old message: if something seems too good to be true, then it probably is,” Mr Boscawen said.

“This was the final stage of the implementation of the Financial Service Providers Dispute Resolution regime that began in December and covers banks, insurance companies, financial advisers, finance companies, brokers, money managers and KiwiSaver providers,” Mr Boscawen said.

“Prior to this regime only banks and insurance companies had an independent body to hear complaints.  Now anyone handling New Zealanders’ money must be registered and be part of one of four free dispute resolution schemes – the Insurance & Savings Ombudsman, the Banking Ombudsman, the Financial Dispute Resolution, and Financial Services Complaints Limited (FSCL).

“These services cover all aspects of the financial services industry and provide consumers and small businesses with an avenue to seek resolution should a dispute arise with any kind of financial service provider.

“Consumers need confidence when transacting in the marketplace – and especially when dealing in financial matters.  Access to free and independent disputes resolution will ensure that high standards are maintained in the financial industry, and will give consumers confidence that they will be treated fairly where a dispute arises,” Mr Boscawen said.

For more information about dispute resolution services, visit http://www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/for-consumers/how-to-complain.

“In Parliament today, in response to my Oral Question, Finance Minister Bill English ruled out prospecting land listed in Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act,” Mr Boscawen said.

“The Government currently lives beyond its means – borrowing $300 million a week and preparing to borrow more in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake.  The economy is already on its knees, and Mr English has just announced that it will take an extra year for the Crown accounts to return to surplus.

“This situation cannot be allowed to continue.  We need to get the economy back on its feet as quickly as possible and, to do so, must consider every option we have available to us.

“New Zealand currently has around $80 billion in mineral resources sitting beneath Schedule 4 land.  At the very least, we should be prospecting this land to ascertain whether or not mining these resources would generate enough jobs and revenue to help turn the economy around and rebuild Christchurch.

“This shows why we need ACT.  Mining is an obvious solution to our economic woes but National’s too timid to allow it,” Mr Boscawen said.

“The Consumer Law Reform Bill represents the most significant changes to consumer laws in more than two decades and brings much-needed clarity in an era of online shopping, extended warranties and self-checkouts,” Mr Boscawen said

“Under the Consumer Law Reform, seven existing consumer laws will be replaced by updated and more understandable Consumer Guarantees, Fair Trading, and the Weights and Measures Acts. 

“Some of the key changes include:

• The Disputes Tribunal jurisdiction will be extended to cover complaints about misleading and deceptive conduct.
• New goods sold via auctions – and all goods sold via online auction sites – will be subject to the acceptable quality provisions of the Consumer Guarantees Act.
• A prohibition on making unsubstantiated claims will require trader and retailers to take steps to ensure their claims are valid.
• Rules surrounding direct sales, such as door-to-door or telemarketing sales, will apply to all types of transactions, including cash or credit. This used to apply to credit agreements only.
• Auctioneers will have to be registered and will have to meet a number of minimum standards, included accounting for the proceeds of an auction, displaying their licence and complying with the law.
• Carrier services, such as couriers, will be subject to the Consumer Guarantees Act.

“These changes will reduce costs and confusion, and make it easier for consumers and businesses to understand their rights and obligations.

“The Bill will also strengthen the enforcement powers of Government agencies, allowing faster and more effective action to remove unsafe products from the market.  It will give courts new powers to ban individuals who repeatedly breach consumer laws.

“Strong and relevant consumer legislation is important for both consumers and businesses.  These changes will allow consumers to shop with greater confidence and, for businesses, will help to create a level-playing field where reputable suppliers are protected from the inappropriate market conduct of competitors.

“National and ACT in Government are committed to ensuring that New Zealand has effective, workable consumer laws, and removing those that are no longer relevant or useful.  The Consumer Law Reform is part of the Regulatory Reform Agenda, and we hope the changes it implements will be in place by the end of the year following consideration by Parliament,” Mr Boscawen said.

For more information on the Consumer Law Reform visit www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/legislation-policy/policy-development/consumer-law-reform.