There Is An Extra Day, Dr Cullen

Wednesday 21st Feb 2001 Ken Shirley Media Release -- Education

Minister of Finance Michael Cullen today proved his lack of ability with numbers, said ACT Deputy Leader and ACC Spokesman Hon Ken Shirley.

“Dr Cullen has been caught out in an embarrassing fashion. ACC admits that it has made an error, while Dr Cullen continues to deny it.

“Dr Cullen slated ACT Deputy Leader Ken Shirley as ‘totally wrong’ in claiming employers were being charged for 275 days.

“It is Dr Cullen who is wrong. Invoices from ACC clearly prove this. They state that the invoice period is 275 days, not three-quarters of a year as outlined by Dr Cullen. When the error was pointed out to them, ACC admitted it was at fault and fixed the problem.

“The calculations are not difficult.

“Dr Cullen is absolutely wrong to assert that the period is 75 per cent of a year. ACC’s invoices show that. ACC issued an amended invoice once the error was spotted.

“Dr Cullen is also wrong in stating that the person had gone into business on June 30, 2000. In fact, they have been in business for several years.

“It is of deep concern that the Minister of Finance can be so wrong on such a basic calculation, yet be entrusted with stewardship of 40 per cent of the country’s GDP.

“Dr Cullen’s glib response ignores the fact that thousands of self-employed New Zealanders are yet again being overcharged by ACC.

“A question for Dr Cullen: How many self-employed people have been overcharged?

“I call on the Minister to purchase a calculator if necessary. Then, he must explain to all self-employed people the basis of ACC’s miscalculation. He must assure affected New Zealanders that they will be refunded.

“This is an issue that will not go away,” concluded Hon Ken Shirley.

For more information visit ACT online at http://www.act.org.nz or contact the ACT Parliamentary Office at act@parliament.govt.nz.

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