Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

National set to drive us deeper into recession

National set to drive us deeper into recession

Labour’s Finance spokesperson David Cunliffe says the government accounts released today make it even clearer that National will use the economic impact of the Christchurch earthquakes to justify savage cuts to public spending in this year’s budget.

“With the Earthquake Commission estimating the net cost of the quake at $1.5 billion, National believes it has found its excuse to further its own ideological priorities, and produce a zero budget that dramatically slashes services for low to middle-income Kiwis,” David Cunliffe said.

“All that will do is to drive New Zealand even deeper into recession.

“Labour recognises the financial impact of the quake, but we need a balanced package in response,” David Cunliffe said.

“We need to borrow to smooth the cost over the time it takes to complete the recovery, we need to reprioritise projects such as the holiday highway north of Puhoi, we need to back off some of the tax cuts to wealthy Kiwis who didn’t need them in the first place, and we need a real plan for growing the economy and jobs.

“The Government has had no such plan for the past two-and-a-half years and is no closer to developing one now,” David Cunliffe said.

“Sadly, the New Zealand economy is going nowhere other than backward under this Government. The economy was significantly weaker than expected just two months ago --- before the earthquake. Two-thirds of the expected $15 billion loss of production over the next four years is due to the Government's mismanagement of the economy:

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

“John Key promised us most Kiwis would be better off under National. What he should have said is that wealthy Kiwis will be better off, because low and middle-income Kiwis are struggling.

“The real irony about National’s mismanagement of the New Zealand economy is that we would be in even worse shape if it wasn’t for the strong financial gains from the Super Fund and ACC, the very institutions that National still apparently believes it is smart to cripple,” David Cunliffe said.

ends

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines



Gordon Campbell: On Dune 2, And Images Of Islam


Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn.
Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik...
More


 
 


Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track

The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More

ALSO:


Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More

ALSO:

Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.