Why do we have a high cost of living? Because even when you break the law in NZ at the expense of your customers, the penalties are so small its worth doing. White collar crime pays here. The best policy for a government on matters of economic wrong-doing by powerful interests is, "Talk quietly & carry a big stick", attributed to Teddy Roosevelt. It was promoted in a paper of mine, which Nobel Laureate, George Akerlof, husband of former US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, called "important". The message is that the best policy for economic growth & fairness is to have relatively light regulation but "aggressively prosecute those who misuse the freedoms granted under such a policy" (quoting Akerlof). By stark contrast, National's (Luxon - Willis) policy is, "Talk your mouth off about monopolies & cost of living, and carry a toothpick, white flag of surrender, or do grubby back-room deals". On that note, our Deep Throat Informers tell us how National MPs are up to no good. ANZ Bank (former National PM John Key was Chair, and its more recent Chairs flew to Japan & India with Luxon in Airforce planes) & ASB Bank face a class-action lawsuit. In the past few days it has been uncovered that National Party Members of Parliament want it thrown out.
The Big Banks already admit to breaches of the disclosure requirements of the Credit Contracts & Consumer Finance Act, after a Commerce Commission investigation. Under that law, they must repay all interest and costs associated with a loan for the non-compliance period, regardless of materiality. Thousands of affected Kiwi borrowers are entitled to large payouts. Their law-suit awaits judgment. So what have the Prime Minister, or members of his Caucus, or both, done? Nothing less than try to thwart the Justice system of NZ. Parliament cannot typically shut down law-suits. The PM keeps telling us he cannot legislate to overwrite the Treaty of Waitangi and freedom of the courts to adjudicate it. Yet that's exactly what he wants to do when it comes to Big Business dispossessing the weak, meek and vulnerable in NZ. He's trying to pass into law what he calls, "The Credit Contracts & Consumer Finance Amendment Act". It is retrospective, backdated to 2015, and so shuts down the existing class-action law suit. That suit is seeking enforcement of the law that was in place when the breaches occurred. National Minister of Commerce Simpson said the reason for the retrospective Bill is, “balance and equity in terms of allowing the courts to make decisions that are not going to be overly harsh.” Do folks know he's saying that he wants "balance & equity" to be tilted in favor of the Big Oligopoly Banks and against the little guy, because he regards the Big Banks as the ones suffering injustice? My view is that the new Commerce Minister and Prime Minister should be prosecuted over this matter.
