Govt KiwiSaver move stays secret

Part of minister’s brief withheld under Official Information Act

Akey decision concerning the $40 billion KiwiSaver retirement scheme has been withheld from a government document released as part of briefings to incoming ministers.

A briefing document for new Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Kris Faafoi contains key appointments and decisions based on the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment’s recommended focus for the first 100 days of the new Government.

But a description of the decision relating to KiwiSaver has been withheld under a clause of the Official Information Act.

According to the State Services Commission the rule in question is applied where there is concern that the release of the draft advice would interfere with the ability of a decisionmaker to consider the advice tendered.

“Premature disclosure of advice to ministers might impact on the timeframes within which ministers can or must act, may impact on the availability of options, or on ministers’ ability to seek further advice or to consult on proposals.”

The report notes that Cabinet approval would be required and also blacks out of the timing of the decision using the same clause in the OIA.

Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson told the Herald before the election that the party wanted to gradually increase the minimum contribution rate for KiwiSaver from 3 per cent to 4.5 per cent.

More than 2.7 million people are signed up to the KiwiSaver scheme.

About 500,000 adults still remain outside it.

Robertson said Labour wanted to make KiwiSaver universal but it recognised that those who were not in the scheme were largely on low incomes.

“We are still committed to a universal KiwiSaver,” he said.

“The reality is that with 2.8 million people in the scheme now, the majority who are not are low-income New Zealanders.”

Robertson said the Government wanted to work with unions and business to bring low-income workers into the scheme.

“We want to develop a scheme, on a tripartite basis with business and unions, that brings them into the scheme in a sustainable way and as wages rise,” Robertson said.

Exactly how and when this would happen had not been worked out before the party came into power.

Students, beneficiaries and selfemployed people would be exempt from needing to join.