4 April 2018

Floundering PM repeatedly misleads over fuel taxes

The Prime Minister has repeatedly misled New Zealanders by claiming the previous Government was planning a 20 cent per litre fuel tax hike, as she has tried and failed to sell her Government’s transport plans, National’s Transport spokesperson Jami-Lee Ross says.

“New Zealanders are about to be whacked by an increase of up to 25 cents a litre – or $15 every time they fill their cars. At the same time the Government is planning to gut regional roading funding so it can pump more cash into trams in Auckland.

“Motorists and communities right around New Zealand are about to be hammered at the petrol pump – yet get fewer new roads – and the Prime Minister’s justification amounts to ‘Well the previous Government was going to charge 20 cents a litre more too’.

“Well that’s bogus.

“The previous Government had committed to new roads right around New Zealand because the National Party understands how important they are to our regions. But while officials had recommended an increase to pay for some of them, we rejected that advice and committed to the projects under existing funding allocations.

“We were very clear on that during the election – the same one where the Prime Minister also promised no new taxes.

“The Prime Minister has also pointed to a 17 cent per litre rise in fuel prices under the previous National Government as justification for her raid on the back pockets of hardworking New Zealanders. That was over nine years.

“Well just six months in she’s announced a hike of up to 25 cents. That includes the proposed new nationwide fuel tax increase and the upcoming Auckland regional fuel tax which could be rolled out to the rest of New Zealand in three years.

“This is just the start and it’s a bad one. The Government needs to stop treating motorists like an ATM and it needs to deliver for our regions.”

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