Blaming Individual Policies for Labour's Defeat Not Plausible

Pinning Labour's poor election result on a couple of policies risks missing the the much bigger issues facing the party as it rebuilds, Grant Robertson
Labour leadership contender said.

"The roots of Labour's loss are much deeper than any individual policy that we took to the last election. For many New Zealanders they did not even get to the stage of thinking about our policy. They made their minds up that Labour was not presenting as a credible alternative government well before controversy arose about Capital Gains Tax."

"Our biggest task is to rebuild confidence that we are a unified Party that stands clearly and authentically for our values. That will be my first priority if I am elected Leader. We cannot expect New Zealanders to back us to run the country if we give the impression that we are not organised, and confident and proud of who we are."

"All Labour's policies will be reviewed as part of our democratic policy making process. My personal view remains that the tax system in New Zealand today is not fair. Why should every dollar earned by a check out operator at a supermarket be taxed, but the profits from a sale of a second or rental property are not? Our tax system should also discourage speculation and support more people to be able to buy their own home. The question is if not a Capital Gains Tax, then what is the alternative to make our tax system fairer."

"We must present a set of policies to New Zealand that show our commitment to the financial security of New Zealanders. The package needs to show that a fair tax system will help that and give opportunity for investment and savings to give that security."

"There is no doubt that the communication of the capital gains tax policy caused problems. That too is a symptom of a wider issue. Labour needs to be consistent and clear and stick to our messages over the whole election cycle. We need to talk far more about how our policies will improve people's lives more than the technical details. That is what will build confidence in New Zealanders to support us. " Grant Robertson said.

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