Hon Judith Collins
Minister of Justice

25 June 2014 Media Statement
New bill will help to combat organised crime

A new bill to combat organised crime and corruption will ensure New Zealand maintains its world class reputation for perceived levels of corruption, Justice Minister Judith Collins says.

The Organised Crime and Anti-corruption Legislation Bill was introduced to Parliament today and implements a number of new measures to respond to the threat posed by international and domestic organised crime.

“New Zealand is consistently regarded as one of the least corrupt countries in the world. However we cannot afford to be complacent – we must remain vigilant,” Ms Collins says.

“This Bill will give law enforcement agencies the power to deal with instances of organised crime and corruption. It also ensures New Zealand complies with international obligations and supports global efforts to tackle serious crime.”

Key measures in the Bill include:

• requiring banks to report all international wire transfers over $1,000 and all physical cash transactions of $10,000 or more to the Financial Intelligence Unit within Police
• redrafting the money laundering offence to specify that intent to conceal is not required
• introducing new offences to address identity crime, including selling or passing on unlawfully obtained identity information
• amending the people trafficking offence so that it applies to such activity in New Zealand, not just when victims are moved in or out of this country
• amending the Policing Act 2008 to expressly provide Police with a power to share information with its international counterparts
• revising the foreign bribery offence, including clarifying the circumstances in which a corporation is liable for foreign bribery
• increasing penalties for bribery and corruption in the private sector to bring them into line with public sector bribery offences

Ms Collins says the passage of the Bill supports the Government’s unrelenting commitment to preventing organised crime and will ensure New Zealand remains a responsible member of the international community.

FAQs__Organised_Crime_and_Anticorruption_Bill.pdf

© Scoop Media