Neil Sands
Newly-minted Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Scott Simpson insists it’s exciting, rather than daunting, to be parachuted at short notice into one of the government busiest and most complex portfolios.
Simpson’s predecessor, Andrew Bayly, set a scorching pace before abruptly resigning last month, pushing through insurance and credit reform, as well as kick-starting efforts to revamp competition and companies legislation after decades of inaction.
Speaking to LawNews in his parliamentary office, Simpson pledged to display equal vigour, saying: “The brief I’ve had from the Prime Minister is to continue at the same pace, or faster if I can.
“I’m very conscious that since my appointment, I’ve had many people talking to me in this exact room, having very similar conversations [as they had with Bayly], and the only think that’s different is me,” he says.
“I’ve been at pains to tell them that just because there’s a different face, it doesn’t mean there’s a different work programme. Everything is carrying on right in the same direction. It’s not an opportunity for a David Lange cup of tea or a Chris Hipkins policy bonfire.”
‘Tsunami of opportunity’
Simpson, who has a law degree from the University of Auckland but never practised – “much to the disappointment of my parents” – said he found the business world a more interesting challenge.
He was a senior manager in the hardware supplies industry and CEO of the Make-A-Wish New Zealand charity before entering Parliament in 2011.
“I come from a commercial background, so many of the issues [in this portfolio] are not unusual or unfamiliar to me. For me, this is an exciting opportunity, not a daunting prospect… We’re all consumers, so every New Zealander has an interest in the work we’re doing and the role I have.”
Key priorities for Bayly were increasing competition in the banking and grocery sectors, although Simpson handed responsibility for the grocery sector to Nicola Willis after declaring a conflict of interest.
In the banking sector, he has fast-tracked legislation that paves the way for open banking, which is seen as a way to give consumers more choice and control over their financial services.
The Customer and Product Data Bill, which passed last week, will let consumers allow financial technology companies, or fintechs, to safely access the information that banks hold on them.
The idea is that these small, nimble fintechs will use this data to offer services and comparisons tailored to consumers’ individual needs, disrupting the oligopoly enjoyed by New Zealand’s major banks.
“[Fintechs] can see the potential in this that most New Zealanders, for a whole lot of reasons, just can’t see yet… I want to see a tsunami of opportunity coming from these innovative techniques, these apps that will free it up.” Simpson says.
“It won’t become real in the minds and lives of most New Zealanders until it actually happens, but I’m confident it can happen quickly. It needs to, because it’s a crucial part of gaining more competitiveness in the economy.”
Simpson says he’ll have open banking operation by the end of the year – six months before the original deadline set by the Commerce Commission – and it will be followed by similar reforms in the electricity, insurance and telecommunications sectors.
Bipartisan approach
The major banks have long been accused of stalling the introduction of open banking but Simpson, who described his management style as collegial rather than adversarial, made it clear that delaying tactics will not be tolerated.
“I can assure you that the work being done now in relation to open banking means that the banks will participate. They are being required to participate in a way that some critics would suggest they have not been participating to date,” he said.
Bayly launched a series of reviews examining the Commerce Act, Commerce Commission and Companies Act.
Simpson said they remain on track for completion by their original deadlines, meaning the government maintained its goal of introducing legislative overhauls for both the Commerce Act and Companies Act in this term of Parliament.
He said most of the reforms were “common sense and practical”, so he would be seeking cooperation from the Opposition where possible, citing bipartisan support for the recently passed Customer and Product Data Bill.
“I’ll certainly be reaching out across the aisle because the real benefit to New Zealand is certainty and an enduring legislative environment that people can rely on,” he said.
“That can’t occur if there is a potential political ping-pong from one election to another. But it’s been my experience in this space [that] there is more collegiality than one might expect, so I’m hopeful and confident that we can achieve a good outcome in that regard.”
Regional scam cooperation
Simpson also inherited Bayly’s role as the government’s anti-scam coordinator, charged with bringing together the efforts of various departments and agencies to combat online fraud, which continues to rise in New Zealand, including hacks on law firms.
He said New Zealand was learning from anti-scam efforts in Australia and Singapore, flagging a regional approach to capture the attention of global social media giants.
“The opportunity to have a kind of a regional approach to scams is high on my agenda because… we’re a small market at the bottom of the South Pacific and we have more clout if we work regionally,” he said.
“That’s where our opportunity to influence social media providers comes in. I’m not sure that too many of the big international social media providers are too interested in New Zealand as a standalone market of five million people but collectively, regionally, that’s a different kettle of fish.”
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