New Zealand First’s “woke banking” bill was drawn from the ballot this week and will therefore be debated in Parliament.
The private members’ bill would ban banks from discriminating against businesses because of the sector they were involved in when deciding whether to give them a loan.
The bill is designed to prevent banks from “debanking” the likes of petrol stations, coal miners and farmers for environmental or social reasons.
The bill was drafted after Resources Minister Shane Jones heard about the struggles of a coal mine and a petrol station to get bank funding.
Federated Farmers banking spokesperson Richard McIntyre was pleased Parliament would debate the issue.
“Banks have been under huge pressure recently for some of their more unpalatable lending practices,” he said.
“This bill is only going to add to that scrutiny and will shine a white-hot light on big banks that have been forcing their ideological views down the throats of everyday New Zealanders.”
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*Commentary by Family First staff writers.