27 February 2013

Assets mustn’t be sold before referendum

The Supreme Court’s decision that asset sales wouldn’t materially impair water claims under the Treaty of Waitangi doesn’t change the facts that asset sales are economically reckless and are opposed by the vast majority of New Zealand, Green Party Co-leader Dr Russel Norman said today.

“Even if it has the legal power to sell our assets, National has no moral right to do so before Kiwis have their say in a referendum,” said Dr Norman.

“Over 390,000 New Zealanders have now signed the Keep Our Assets petition to force a referendum on asset sales. In two weeks, the coalition will present the petition to Parliament.

“No asset sales should go ahead before the referendum takes place; Kiwis want to have their say on privatisation, and the Government must listen.

“The New Zealand public doesn’t want National to sell our assets, and the economic case for asset sales keeps crumbling by the day.

“Already, the Government has wasted $26 million on the sales process, and is expecting to spending hundreds of millions more. If the sales happen, the loss of dividends will carve a $100 million a year hole in the Government books, which will have to be filled by cutting spending, more borrowing, or tax hikes. All so that our profitable, strategic assets can pay dividends to foreign buyers.

“With Solid Energy in a tail-spin, National can’t even tell us how much they expect to earn from asset sales, yet they seem determined to push ahead.

“New Zealanders don’t want our assets sold. We want our profitable, strategic assets to remain in public hands. We want the National Government to stop wasting time and money on privatisation, and instead focus on real issues like the jobs and housing crises confronting our families,” said Dr Norman.

ENDS

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Gordon Campbell: On The 2013 Budget

Among Thursday’s main talking points:

We are apparently on track for a margin-of-error $75 million surplus, now in sight for 2014/15. But this sickly creature is hobbling out of the lab on the basis of all kinds of facilitative conjuring: such as trimming by $200 million the amount of new spending next time around.

With this strictly nominal surplus in sight, the 1984-ish justification for eternal austerity will have a news talisman: namely, getting Crown debt down to 20% of GDP by 2020. More>>

Budget Report, Lockup Audio & Images: Budget Day 2013 As always and especially after the managerial mishaps of the past few weeks and months, (e.g. Aaron Gilmore, the Mighty River Power share float, the GCSB mishaps) Budget Day 2013 was always going to be a pageant of reassurance... More>>

Budget 2013 Comment: Plain Sailing, But It's No America's Cup Pattrick Smellie: Compared to the last four budgets, this year's reflects an economy moving out of recession and into calmer waters... Yet if the fastest annual growth rate we can expect over the next two years is 3 percent - with the Christchurch rebuild in full swing - then you'd have to say New Zealand's underlying low-growth problem is far from fixed. More>>

Auckland Discord: Govt’s Power Hungry Housing Approach A Threat - Labour

Last week the Government said this, ‘The Government commits not to use any proposed or existing powers ... to override the council's planning and consenting processes’. But its housing Bill says this; ‘If an accord cannot be reached in an area of severe housing unaffordability, the Government can intervene by establishing special housing areas and issuing consents for developers’. More>>

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Extending Protest Ban, Relaxing Permit Rules: Govt Abuses Urgency To Extend Anadarko Amendment

The Government is trying to pass legislation under urgency which would make the Anadarko Amendment – which limits protest at sea – apply to an additional 1.7 million square kilometres, the Green Party said today. More>>

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