Dunne: serious defaulters’ student loans can be recalled
Revenue Minister Peter Dunne today welcomed new legislation allowing the student loans of serious defaulters to be recalled in full.
Speaking as the Student Loan Scheme Bill was passed in Parliament this evening, Mr Dunne said the vast majority of domestic based student loan borrowers met their loan requirements and had no reason to be concerned.
“There are, however, some individuals who clearly do not comply with their obligation to repay their loans. This bill allows Inland Revenue to recall those loans in full, with outstanding interest and penalties,” Mr Dunne said.
“This is not a harsh move. It is about fair and appropriate real world consequences of the same sort you would face if you continued to remain in serious default on your mortgage.
“It is a last option for dealing with those who consistently renege on their repayment responsibilities. It would only be used when all reasonable efforts to have the individual concerned meet their obligations have failed,” he said.
The first cases for recall will involve a number of borrowers under the overseas borrowers pilot scheme currently underway in Australia.
Mr Dunne said, however, that the Student Loan Scheme Bill was “more carrot than stick”... Read the full text of this article.
