Hope remains for easier access to NZ pensions in Cooks
A New Zealand opposition MP Poto Williams says the Labour Party has not given up on further easing the way for retiring Cook Islanders to collect their New Zealand pensions while living in the Cooks.
Transcript
A New Zealand opposition MP Poto Williams says the Labour Party has not given up on further easing the way for retiring Cook Islanders to collect their New Zealand pensions while living in the Cooks.
A new law allows people in the Realm countries of the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau to return to their islands after the age of 55 and still get their pensions at 65, but Labour wanted the age reduced to fifty.
Ms Williams told Sally Round the rule is an anomaly and unfair.
POTO WILLIAMS: In order to qualify you need to have been resident and present in New Zealand for five years after the age of 50. I was supporting a move by Labour and other opposition parties to have that particular clause removed because all other eligibility requirements having been met, that provided a barrier to certain people who had already moved to run businesses and the like from continuing to stay in the Cooks, you know, having to retun to New Zealand five years after the age of 50 in order to qualify for your super we saw as a real barrier to encouraging people to return to the Cooks, take their expertise and take their business acumen with them. Because the big issue is the Cooks has lost a lot of population. The Free Association with New Zealand has meant that we've been able to travel on New Zealand passports and we've taken the opportunity in great numbers. There is a move to really encourage people to move back to the Cooks, to provide ... to become taxpayers and provide to the infrastructure and become taxpayers of the Cooks themselves.
SALLY ROUND: Do you know how many people may not be, say, taking their energy and their investments back to the Cooks because of the way the pension is set up at the moment?
PW: Well we have always had an issue where, to be eligible for the pension, you had to be resident in New Zealand for part of the year so we've often had some of our older people who've worked you know their lives in New Zealand but have wanted to retire in the Cooks, having to return to New Zealand every six months. That was an older situation. Now the New Zealand government is saying, you can collect your pension but you have to wait until at least the age of 55 or older to go back to the Cooks. We've got no firm numbers on this. It's all really anecdotal within the community, but many of our New Zealand Cook Islanders are telling us that they would take the opportunity to go back to the Cooks, not only for lifestyle but for weather and for supporting their health, and for being with family who can care for them as well. There was a cost analysis that wasn't done by this government to demonstrate that there could potentially be a financial positive for New Zealand in this. That wasn't done. We know that the cost to the New Zealand public is in the region of nine million dollars (NZ$). But just in terms of alleviating some of the stress on our health system here in New Zealand for example. We think that we could argue a very clear case that there is a positive financial benefit for New Zealand if we were to allow that to happen.
SR: Would you be doing studies yourself on this, when you say you are going to argue this further?
PW: Unfortunately the bill has passed into law so we weren't able to have that clause removed. But it is certainly something that I'm still very keen to explore. There are opportunities for private members bills and the like.
To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following:
See terms of use.