David Cunliffe

The multi-party parliamentary banking inquiry has appointed three experts to act either as advisers or peer reviewers, Labour Finance spokesperson David Cunliffe says.

David Cunliffe said the inquiry will be assisted by dedicated staff and leading experts, funded from within the existing parliamentary resources of Labour, the Greens and the Progressives.

"We have appointed the expert advisers and peer reviewers to help the Inquiry work through the arguments and evidence presented in submissions, to undertake any related research and to prepare and review a high-quality draft report," David Cunliffe said.

The experts (more details in attachment) are: o David Preston, Advisor, an independent consultant with a background in finance and economics who has previously served in the Treasury and at the International Monetary Fund.

He has consulted widely in New Zealand and around the Pacific on economic and social policy issues. o Professor John Quiggin, Peer Reviewer, Director of the Risk and Sustainable Management Group, University of Queensland. He is one of Australia's leading research and policy economists, and is the only Australian economist to have twice been appointed as a Federation Fellow, the nation's most prestigious research position.

He is an international research leader in the economics of risk and uncertainty, with applications to public and private investment and financial regulation. His work on this topic has been published in leading international journals including the American Economic Review, Journal of Economic Theory and Journal of Risk and Uncertainty o Professor Tim Hazledine, Peer Reviewer, head of the Economics Department, Auckland University.

His fields of expertise include macro and micro economics, international trade and finance and completion economics. He has taught at Auckland, Warwick and Oxford, and at Queens and UBC in Canada. He is a widely published author and multiple award winner in economics.

David Cunliffe said the primary focus of the Inquiry was on the pass-through of recent cuts to the Reserve Bank's Official Cash rate to short-term variable interest rates, but a number of other issues have been identified as relevant to the context of the Inquiry. They include: o Lending margins, including the cost of wholesale funding from various sources; o Banking profitability, and how that has changed over time; o Bad debt and risk provisioning by banks; o Lending terms and practices; o Other matters considered relevant by submitters.

David Cunliffe will chair the Inquiry. Other MPs participating will be Greens Co-Leader Dr Russel Norman, Progressives Leader Jim Anderton, Labour Associate Finance spokespersons David Parker and Clayton Cosgrove, and Labour Economic Development spokesperson Shane Jones. All other parties in Parliament have also been invited to attend. Public submissions close on 31 August, with public hearings scheduled for the following week (details of how to make submissions and other details of the Inquiry are in the attached document, and can also be seen at: http://www.bankinquiry.org.nz