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Opening a bank account for your child will become easier under changes being made to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee said that, under the existing law, parents needed to gather and verify a long list of information and the bank was also required to ask detailed questions and monitor the child’s transactions on an ongoing basis.
Under the change, banks will be able to use simplified processes when the risk is low and parents would only be required to provide a birth certificate and prove the parent-child relationship.
“This is commonsense reform. Parents shouldn’t be asked to jump through bureaucratic hoops just to open a bank account for their kids. We’re streamlining the system so that New Zealanders can spend less time on paperwork and more time teaching their children the value of money,” McKee said.
The coalition Government is increasing the rebate families can claim under the FamilyBoost scheme. Finance Minister Nicola Willis said today that, from the start of this month, families can claim a 40% rebate on their early childhood education costs, up from 25% when the scheme was first launched. Willis said that meant a family with early childhood education fees of $100 a week could get $40 back, not $25, increasing their annual savings from $1300 to $2080.
“Cabinet has also decided to increase the number of families eligible for the scheme, by reducing the abatement rate for families earning more than $140,000. This means the upper limit for households to receive a portion of FamilyBoost increases from $180,000 a year of income to just under $230,000.”
She said the changes would help families deal with the increased costs that came with having children.
Synlait Milk chief operating officer Paul Mallard has resigned and will leave the company in December.
Mallard joined the milk processor from Fonterra in January 2023, initially as director of strategy, innovation and corporate affairs. He was appointed to the new role of COO in June 2023 in a restructuring of the executive leadership team.
Synlait chief executive Richard Wyeth said Mallard had player a significant role in advancing the company’s operational and strategic priorities.
“Under his leadership, the team has made notable progress optimising the North Island network and enhancing the overall value chain performance,” he said.
Synlait said it would begin searching for a new COO.