No money in Budget for 'key' drone
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RNZ News
22 minutes ago
- RNZ News
'Really, really well off people' needing help with problem debt
A new report by FinCap says the ongoing cost-of-living crisis has led to an increased debt burden for many people. Photo: RNZ Financial mentors say problem debt isn't only a problem for the lowest-paid New Zealanders, and action is needed to stop debt collectors "deliberately distressing" struggling people . FinCap, which represents the country's financial mentors, has released its latest Voices report, outlining data for 2024. It was to be presented at Parliament on Thursday morning. The report shows mentors are dealing with a growing number of clients, despite the number of people working in the field dropping. From 19,543 closed cases in 2021, there were 25,140 dealt with last year. The top reason that people were experiencing hardship was the cost of living, responsible for 29 percent of cases. FinCap said mentors had reported much more engagement with people who might previously have not needed assistance, including those in work and not receiving a benefit, and people with home loans . Ten percent of the mentors' clients were people who owned their own homes. That is up from 7.5 percent in 2021. The mentors reported an 88 percent increase in the number of people seeking help who earn more than $1000 a week in the past three years. One mentor who was not identified, but worked in a regional centre, said they had seen some "really, really well off people". "In their previous lives, [they] have been extremely well-off, had really, really good jobs. And then just one thing has unravelled and then slightly another thing and then ... Trying to negotiate our systems seems to have caught them out." People earning more than $1000 a week were spending a median 19.7 percent of their money on groceries, compared to 25 percent for people earning $250 to $499. One in eight closed cases resulted in a client taking money out of KiwiSaver. Car loans were 21 percent of all unique debts reported, at a median $10,230. People with a car loan reported expenses exceeding income by 10 percent, and those without a car loan by 6 percent. But the percentage by which expenses exceeded income had decreased for those with a loan, and risen for those without. "The ongoing cost-of-living crisis has led to an increased debt burden for many people. Many of the whānau financial mentors work alongside are resorting to KiwiSaver hardship withdrawals just to make ends meet or avoid further debt," FinCap's report said. FinCap says many consumers feel vulnerable, especially if they are not familiar with the laws governing the debt collection process. Photo: 123RF Chief executive Fleur Howard said "unreasonable" debt collection practices were making the experience worse. She said debt collectors did not have incentives to consider the impact of their actions on the people they were chasing for money. "The consumer protections financial mentors might use to challenge unreasonable debt collection conduct can be unclear or unactionable depending on which industry the debt originated from. "Debt collection issues can be overwhelming for many whānau who have multiple debts being chased. Interactions with debt collectors can be confrontational, intimidating, and stressful." Many consumers felt vulnerable, especially if they were not familiar with the laws governing the process. "They can feel there is no option but to pay unrealistic demands relative to their financial circumstances, despite this meaning they might not be able to afford food to eat." Howard said debt collectors were sometimes contacting people unreasonably frequently, calling at unreasonable hours, calling other family members or employers and applying unreasonable fees and interest. Sometimes people were being coerced into paying debt that had previously been written off. Howard said the rules on debt collector conduct should be tightened. She said it was still not even possible to tell who the country's debt collectors were. The line between legitimate behaviour and harassment needed to be more clearly defined. "Financial mentors tell us they are working with people who are being harassed and coerced by debt collectors at work, at home, and on social media. This can endanger people's employment and embarrass them in front of their communities," Howard said. She said it seemed deliberately distressing. "These tactics force people to agree to repay debts they may not be legally responsible for, and repayment plans they can't afford. This can send people into a spiral of missed repayments, and see small initial debts balloon in size. "There are debt collection agencies who act responsibly, but the lax legal framework creates a wild west situation, where some unscrupulous debt collectors act unethically. "The Financial Services Reforms Bills currently before Parliament and the government's planned review of the Fair Trading Act are important opportunities to fix the law around debt collection." The Green Party supported the call for action. "We support the calls to regulate debt collectors, including greedy behaviour by Buy Now Pay Later companies. We also agree that the government needs to address the core issue by lifting income levels so families can survive without falling into debt or poverty," said Green Party spokesperson for commerce and consumer affairs, Ricardo Menéndez March. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
22 minutes ago
- RNZ News
Scientists urge coalition not to weaken methane target
The group has written to Climate Change Minister Simon Watts setting out the legal and trade consequences of a lower methane target. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Climate scientists have urged the Climate Change Minister to not weaken the country's methane target, after a landmark ruling out of the United Nations' highest court. Last week, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found countries can be held responsible for paying reparations for damage caused by their greenhouse gases. At the time, Lawyers for Climate Action said the ruling put further pressure on the government's climate plans, including any changes to the biogenic methane target. The group has now written to Simon Watts, cc'ing the prime minister, foreign affairs minister and trade minister, setting out the legal and trade consequences of a lower target. In the letter, they say reducing the target would breach New Zealand's obligations under the Paris Agreement, as well as its free trade agreements with the United Kingdom and the European Union. They maintain it's "highly arguable" local agricultural exporters would have an unfair advantage over European producers if New Zealand lowered its methane target, putting around $635 million of export revenue at risk. They also say a lower target would see New Zealand join the likes of Russia and the United States in being one of the few countries to weaken its emissions reduction targets since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2016. "Any such decision could have significant reputational, trade, and economic consequences for New Zealand, as our major trading partners continue to push forward on their Paris Agreement commitments," the letter says. Asked if the government planned on reducing the methane target, Watts said Cabinet hadn't made any decisions and he'd have more to say about it "soon". "Our methane target must be scientifically based and practical, ensuring we don't shut down kiwi farms," he said. Lawyers for Climate Action chief executive Jessica Palairet said the EU had the ability to take trade sanctions against New Zealand if it thought it had breached its climate commitments. "That's why this matters so much and the reason we wrote last week is because for the first time, we had authorised guidance from the world's top court on what it might mean for a party to effectively implement Paris, what it might mean to take an action that materially affects the object and purpose of Paris. "We're concerned that a weakening of New Zealand's methane targets would do just that and expose New Zealand to the risk of trade sanctions." Palairet said an earlier letter , in which 26 international climate change scientists accused the government of "ignoring scientific evidence", showed the strength of concern felt in her community. "It underscores the level of international concern and concern from the scientific community and how worrying this decision is. This isn't a decision that's being made on the basis of science. "It's a decision that's being made on the basis of politics to try and weaken New Zealand's ambition on methane in the face of international independent scientists advising the government not to do this." Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii The Green Party has been critical of the National-ACT coalition agreement to review what a methane target based on a "no additional warming" principle would look like. Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick said the fact the government would not rule out weakening the country's methane target after this review was "deeply concerning". "We said at the time that they were setting up a smoke screen for downgrading climate ambition and unfortunately given the minister's lack of ability to rule things out it is pretty clear that they are intending to downgrade our climate ambitions. "If they were to downgrade our biological gasses target that would mean either that they are downgrading ambition as a whole or that they are expecting all of the rest of the economy and households to pick up the slack." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
an hour ago
- NZ Herald
Surcharge ban a win for consumers but will it save them money?
But will it ultimately save shoppers money? This is the question, after the Government revealed its proposed surcharge ban this week. The Retail Payment System (Ban on Surcharges) Amendment Bill is expected to be introduced by the year's end, and the change made by May. The proposed ban follows the Commerce Commission's decision to reduce bank interchange fees that businesses pay to accept credit card payments. This change is expected to save businesses about $90 million a year. Surcharges at the till allow businesses to recoup additional costs associated with providing certain payment methods, such as credit cards and contactless. New Zealanders are paying up to $150m in surcharges every year. The Government says this includes excessive surcharges of up to $65m. Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Scott Simpson describes them as 'a hassle and an unwelcome surprise' for shoppers at the till, and says consumers will be able to 'shop with confidence knowing how much they will pay for their purchases'. The Commerce Commission will oversee enforcement. Consumers will be entitled to a refund if a business applies a surcharge. Consumer NZ welcomes the change, describing it as 'a no-brainer'. Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young is pleased changes are being made but warns that retailers will continue to face costs to accept debit and credit card payments and 'these costs will likely be added to product prices in future'. Hospitality New Zealand agrees, saying the move could result in higher prices because margins are tight. There was strong criticism from Dairy and Business Owners Group chair Ankit Bansal, who argues the proposed changes unfairly target small retailers instead of fixing the real problem – the banks. 'The reality is that large retailers enjoy significantly lower banking fees, while small businesses – with no power to negotiate – are left paying inflated rates.' The Government deserves praise for tackling the wider issue of costs associated with people using certain credit cards and contactless cards in shops. The reduction in interchange fees will help businesses. The surcharge ban will be positive for consumers and mean a more transparent process. But it's a fair bet that most businesses, especially those under pressure, will be unable to absorb any extra cost. Some consumers may well ultimately end up paying higher product prices at the till to compensate. Sign up to the Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
