Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Parmjeet Parmar: Act Party Immigration Spokesperson on new Parent Boost Visas

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Parmjeet Parmar: Act Party Immigration Spokesperson on new Parent Boost Visas · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Parents of immigrants will from September be allowed to visit
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: the country on a special visa. The Parent Boost visa
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: will allow parents will allow the parents of citizens and
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: residents to be granted with multi entry access for up
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: to five years if they meet health, income and insurance criteria,
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: plus you can extend for another five so it's basically
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: ten It's a copy paste of the Australia Canada model.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Dr Palmju Palmer is the act immigration spokesperson with me
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: this morning, good morning.
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: Good morning game now by having me on, great.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: To have you here.
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  Speaker 2: Now.
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  Speaker 1: The estimates for how many we might see you apply
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  Speaker 1: for this very wildly, from two thousand to I think
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: ten thousand a year. What do you think is going
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: to happen with it?
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: I think we'll have to wait and watch how many
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: people actually take up this opportunity, because as it was
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: said in yesterday's media conference that it could be between
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: two to ten thousand, but will have to beatency.
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: Are you happy with I mean, you guys wanted a
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: public system with a payment from the parents rather than
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: them having to have health insurance. Why did you want
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: that and do you think this will make a difference?
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: So where we have lended. We are quite actually satisfied
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: with that. I am quite confident it will work and
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: it will help families those who really want to bring
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: their parents here on long term visitors visa. So when
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: we were doing work on our policy that was done
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: while we were in a position, I spoke to various
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: health insurance industry people and the feedback that I received
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: from them was that some health insurance companies are reluctant
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: to take new clients those who are over a certain age.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: And also the second point they made was that they're
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: reluctant to take people those who are on a visitor's visa.
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: And they also said that health insurance can be given
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: for one year with the travel insurance. And that's why
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: we thought that it's best to have a fund associated
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: with the application that goes towards public health fund, so
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: that we are not creating a situation for the sponsor
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: where the sponsor is aniga in our death. Do you
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: help their parents ending up in hospital and then the
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: hospital choosing for fairmus. So that's why we thought we
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: want to actually balance it for sponsor and for taxpayers.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: And that was the idea there, right, But does that
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: not mean that if that is the case, that some
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: of these parents won't actually be able to get insurance.
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: So what I would say is that industries evolved and
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: if there is a need then industries might look into it.
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: Some really positive about it and confidental work, but we
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: will watch closely how it goes and if it needs improvement,
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: we will be definitely talking about that.
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: Pandreid, appreciate your time sponding. Punjik Palmer, spokesperson for Immigration
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: for the EC Party. It is eight minutes away from
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  Speaker 1: six on News talk to. Because I guess the thing
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: is you don't want you don't want a whole bunch
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: of parents of immigrants coming to New Zealand and draining
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: the super our superannuation and the health system, which is
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: what this is aiming to address. You can't do that,
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: But then the question is really how effective is it
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: if they can't get insurance. I suppose can't get insurance.
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: For more from early edition with Ryan Bridge.
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: Listen live to News Talks It be from five am weekdays,
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.