ACT leader Richard Prebble says the best way the government could help stave off recession would be to announce tax cuts for everyone.

"Dr Cullen is suggesting an economic policy of more public work and increased government spending. But government spending packages have been shown not to work in a modern global economy," Mr Prebble said.

"The Japanese government has had a massive spending programme for a decade, only to see Japan fall flat on its back.

"A far better strategy to assist the private sector would be to cut taxes across the board.

"Dr Cullen should be aware that government spending in New Zealand is already 40 percent of GDP and I know of no country in the world that's grown at the government's target of 4 percent per capita where the government takes 40 percent of GDP," Mr Prebble said.

ENDS

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>