Anderson to chair Govt's financial summit

Consumer Affairs Minister Simon Power Photo / Sarah Ivey

A Government financial summit, designed to tackle the problem of irresponsible lending, will be chaired by Sir John Anderson, Consumer Affairs Minister Simon Power announced today.

The summit will bring together community groups, budgeting services, banks, and credit companies, in a bid to address gaps in the system that allowed companies to take advantage of people in tough economic times.

Attendees would split into groups to discuss areas including responsible lending, credit advertising, social and community lending, responsible debt management, financial literacy, and dispute resolution.

"The key question that needs to be asked is whether the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act needs to be amended to provide more protection for consumers - including from irresponsible lending - or whether the same outcomes can be obtained from voluntary industry initiatives," Power said.

Power said Anderson's experience and expertise across financial and community sectors would "add greatly to what we are trying to achieve".

The summit will be held in Auckland on August 11.

- NZ HERALD ONLINE