Govt needs to heed warning of slower growth

The Government needs to heed the warning of one of New Zealand’s leading economic forecasters that its policy settings are set to slow down New Zealand’s growth, National Party Finance Spokesperson Steven Joyce says.

“Infometrics’ assessment is that Government policy changes will slow growth this year and next, at the very time growth should be accelerating,” Mr Joyce says.

“The world is doing better, so there is absolutely no reason for New Zealand to be doing worse.

“Infometrics identifies changes in immigration policy, infrastructure policy, environmental policy, international education, and lower business and consumer confidence as drags on growth in the next couple of years.

“And I suspect that’s just the beginning.”

“While Infometrics expects some growth to continue, slower growth would mean less investment, fewer job opportunities, and lower wages generally than would otherwise be the case.”

Mr Joyce says that the Government and Finance Minister Grant Robertson need to heed the warnings.

“Mr Robertson is steadfastly ignoring business confidence warnings. Perhaps he’ll take notice of this report.

“He needs to click on to the fact that policy decisions have economic consequences.

“If this prediction come to pass then New Zealand will go from faster than the world as a whole to slower than the world as a whole in just one twelve month period of this Government. That would be a big lost opportunity.

“This Government has talked a very big game about lifting growth. You don’t lift growth if you start by lowering it.”

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