Barry Soper: ZB senior political correspondent on the Government calling for a rural banking inquiry

Finance Minister Nicola Willis has asked the Finance and Expenditure and Primary Production Committees to lead a joint inquiry into banking.

The investigation will be primarily focused on rural banking, and submissions from banks and chairpersons and chief executives will be expected.

ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained what this means for the wider rural sector.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Barry Soper, Senior Political Correspondence with US. Hey, Barry, good afternoon.
So what I mean the farmers have been asking for
this inquiry into rural banking for such a long time.
What's finally sparked it?

Speaker 2 (00:09):
Well, you'll probably be aware. In February, the Primary Production
Select Committee they opened a briefing into rural banking lending
and they heard from numerous numerous concerns from farmers and
they thought that other rural communities would also feel the
same way. So based on that feedback, the committee considered

(00:34):
the issue was worthy of further scrutiny. And that's what
Nikola willis. She's asked the Primary Production Committee to work
with the Finance and Expenditure Committee to look at the
banks in this country and how they treat the rural sector.
I've been talking around the rural sector today, Heather, and look,

(00:55):
the interesting aspect to me is that they do not
like the banks and the way they're being treated by
the banks. And what they say is rather than lending
the money, the banks prefer to extend their overdraft. Now
by extending their overdraft adding to it, they get more
interest from it, so they.

Speaker 1 (01:15):
A floating rate.

Speaker 2 (01:16):
But yes, a higher rate, so the banks they don't
see as their friends at all. What the Finance Select
Committee can do is get the banking regulators, that's the
Reserve Bank, the Commerce Commission, who itself is conducting an
inquiry that will come out in August, and the Financial

(01:37):
Markets Authority. They can question them. But you can also
expect to hear submissions around New Zealand chief executives. They
should be made available for questioning from the politicians. But
what can the politicians do well, I guess they'll come
down with the report that will go to Parliament. But

(01:58):
the National Party has the majority on these select committees,
so they could recommend legislation controlling the banks a bit better.
There will be a particular emphasis in this inquiry, like
I said, on the rural sector, where the primes to
get a rousing reception at the Field days in Hamilton today,

(02:20):
particularly for taking farmers yesterday out of the ETS which
was meant to kick in next year. Here's Chris Luxon
saying how farmers should be left alone to get on
with the job.

Speaker 3 (02:31):
We are eending the war on farmers by slashing through
the jungle of rear and green tape, so they can
actually focus on their businesses and growing their farm gate profits.
Last year, just to ground you in some backs, food
and fiber earned fifty seven billion dollars in export revenues,
about eighty two percent of all our goods exported out
of New Zealand. And so clearly the primary sector is

(02:52):
going to have to play an absolutely crucial role to
help us double the value of exports in the next
ten years.

Speaker 2 (02:59):
Just a reminder for your listeners, and I'm sure they
don't need reminding of it, but last year the net
profit after tax for the mainly the four big major
banks in New Zealand was seven point two billion dollars.
It's profit.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
Yeah, they're not suret on a penny, are they?

Speaker 3 (03:16):
No?

Speaker 1 (03:16):
Hey, was Maureen Pew hurt?

Speaker 3 (03:19):
No?

Speaker 2 (03:19):
I don't think she was hurt. She was probably more
upset than hurt. She was Antarctica meeting with members of
the Golden Bay Community Board who were discussing, among other things,
getting around the fast Track to gold, the gold mining
proposal planned by an Australian company called at Sam's Creek.

(03:42):
It's called Siren. I think it's Syreen Gold. Now. There
was a large protest outside the meeting venue and at
least one of them came forward pushed to protest a
placard into Marewen Pugh's chest. She was quite upset about.
But then another came and walked right up to a

(04:03):
face apparently and got stuck into her there, and then
the protests has surrounded her car. It's really interesting to
me just how the momentum is building up around the
country against this fast track legislation. But these are people
that would like to see, in my view, the country
go the way it was going, with nothing being nothing

(04:25):
being consented to, add all on having to wait years
in some cases hopefully, Well, I won't be listened to,
and you know the government will get its way.

Speaker 1 (04:36):
Yeah, and if they behave like this, they're going to
lose favor very fast. Absolutely. But yeah, do you think
I mean, this is the question. Do you think that
there is enough resistance to this idea from the likes
of you know, the environmental lobby groups and everybody else
who cares about it. Is there enough resistance to put
this government in an awkward position?

Speaker 3 (04:51):
Ah?

Speaker 2 (04:52):
No, I wouldn't think so. You know. The champion of it,
of course, is Shane Jones, who wax is very lyrical
about it. But I think look, there's a general understanding,
I would believe among the public and particularly those companies
that have tried to get a consent and having to

(05:16):
wait as long as they have to know just how
wrecked this area of the economy is and it needs
to be spruced up.

Speaker 1 (05:24):
Barry, thank you very much, really appreciate this. Barry Sober,
Senior Political Corresponding.

Speaker 2 (05:28):
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