ABOIA 2324 009 Ben response letter.pdf

15 March 2024
Ben

ABOIA 2024-009
Email: [FYI request #25581 email]

Dear Ben,
I refer to your request on 31 January 2024 to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
(MBIE), under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act), requesting information related to my
announcement that I intend to transfer responsibility for consumer credit legislation to the Financial
Markets Authority (FMA). As you are aware, your request was transferred to me on 15 February 2024.
The details of your request were as follows:
“Today the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs has announced that the "conduct
oversight of the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA) currently performed by
the Commerce Commission will transfer to the FMA" ("the decision").
I write to request:
1.Copies of all information or documents in relation to this decision by the minister, including:
1(a) Advice received from MBIE (or any other department) on the decision (Request 1)
1(b) Who was consulted by MBIE or the Minister prior to announcement of the decision, and
on what date (Request 2)
1(c) All estimates of the cost of transferring the function to the FMA (Request 3)
1(d) When MBIE or the Minister advised the FMA of the decision (Request 4)
1(e) When MBIE or the Minister advised the Commerce Commission of the decision (Request
5)
1(f) What steps were taken to manage the impact of the announcement on affected employees
of the Commerce Commission (Request 6)
2 Copies of all previous advice provided to previous Ministers of Commerce & Consumer Affairs
regarding the location of this function within the FMA or Commerce Commission. (Request 7)
In making this request I am not requesting the details of any staff named in these documents
and am happy for their names and contact details to be redacted, provided their position is
included.”

Request 1: Advice received on the decision
I am releasing the documents fal ing within the scope of this request. These are listed in the table
below, including the grounds on which any information has been withheld.
Date
Title
Response
Relevant provisions under the OIA
4 December  Briefing  -  Addressing  Released with  S 9(2)(a)
2023
issues with consumer some
credit legislation: scope  information
and timing of reforms
withheld
23 January Cabinet Paper -  Refuse
Section 18(d)
2024
Proposals to review the
Financial Markets
The document wil  be available on 13
(Conduct of Institutions)
March 2024 on
Amendment Act 2022
Document library | Ministry of
and the Credit Contracts
Business, Innovation & Employment
and Consumer Finance
(mbie.govt.nz)
Act 2003.

24 January Event briefing – Meeting  Released with  S 9(2)(a)
2024
with Financial Markets  some
Authority board on 26  information

January 2024
withheld
Annex 5 is refused under Section 18(d).

The document is already available on
BIM  -  Minister of Commerce and

Consumer Affairs -
FMA.pdf
(beehive.govt.nz)

Some of the information in the documents has been withheld under the Act, as fol ows:
•  section 9(2)(a) – withholding information to protect the privacy of natural persons.
I do not consider that the withholding of this information is outweighed by public interest
considerations in making the information available.
A Cabinet paper that falls within the scope of your request has been refused on the grounds that it is
already publicly available (on MBIE’s online document library, www.mbie.govt.nz/document-library/),
namely:
-  Proposals to review the Financial Markets (Conduct of Institutions) Amendment Act 2022 and
the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003.

Request 2: Consultation prior to the decision
Prior to the decision, on January 19, MBIE conducted a consultation process, on a draft version of the
Cabinet Paper titled “Proposals to review the Financial Markets (Conduct of Institutions) Amendment
Act 2022 and the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003”. Several agencies were consulted
by MBIE during this process: the Treasury, the Commerce Commission, the Financial Markets
Authority, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
The draft document reflected the benefits I see in bringing together responsibility for financial markets
conduct and the CCCFA into a single package, and that reviewing whether responsibility for the CCCFA
should sit with the FMA as conduct regulator will be explored as part of phase two of the review of
the CCCFA.
Request 3: Cost estimates for the transfer
No estimates of the cost of transferring the responsibility for the CCCFA to the FMA was available prior
to the announcement. I am therefore refusing this part of your request under section 18 (e) of the Act,
that the document al eged to contain the information requested does not exist.
Request 4: When the FMA was advised
On January 16 2024, I had a meeting with the Chief Executive of the FMA, fol owed by another meeting
with the Board of the FMA on January 26. During these meetings, I shared my intention to explore
whether responsibility for the CCCFA should sit with the FMA.
Request 5: When the Commerce Commission was advised
Before I made the decision, on 19 January, MBIE shared a draft Cabinet Paper with the Commerce
Commission, which outlined my plans to review the Financial Markets (Conduct of Institutions)
Amendment Act 2022 and the CCCFA. It also mentioned that as part of phase 2 of the CCCFA review,
I will be exploring whether the responsibility for the CCCFA should be with the FMA as the conduct
regulator. After the announcement, I had a chance to meet with Commissioners and the Commission's
staff to discuss the decision further.
Request 6: Steps taken to manage the impact on the Commerce Commission’s staff
The  Commerce Commission's response steps are related to them. Please contact the agency for
further information.
Request 7: Advice to previous Ministers
I am releasing the documents falling within the scope of this request. These are listed in the table
below, including the grounds on which any information has been withheld.
Date
Title
Response
Relevant provisions under the OIA
16 March Briefing  -  Consideration  Released with  S 9(2)(a)
2012
of the appropriate some
regulator for monitoring  information
and enforcement of the  withheld
Credit Contracts and
Consumer Finance Act

8 June 2012  Aide memoire - Released in full  N/A
Regulator for monitoring
and enforcement of the
Credit Contract and
Consumer Finance Act
27 April
Briefing  -  Feedback on  Released with  S 9(2)(a)
2018
CCCFA Review
some
Discussion Paper
information
withheld
15 August Briefing  -  Consumer  Released with  S 9(2)(a)
2018
credit review, final policy  some
recommendations
information
briefing B
withheld

Some of the information in the documents has been withheld under the Act, as fol ows:
•  section 9(2)(a) – withholding information to protect the privacy of natural persons.
I do not consider that the withholding of this information is outweighed by public interest
considerations in making the information available.
Please note you have the right under section 28(3) of the Official Information Act 1982 to seek a review
of this response by the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman has an online complaints form at
http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/make-a-complaint/make-a-complaint-now/make-a-
complaint-online-now. A complaint can also be made by e-mail at [email address] or
by post at:
The Ombudsman
PO Box 10 152
WELLINGTON 6143

Yours sincerely,

Hon Andrew Bayly
Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs