More Corporate Welfare in Budget 2016

26 MAY 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Taxpayers’ Union is slamming the Government’s “Innovate New Zealand” initiative, as announced in Budget 2016, as growing the Government’s regime of corporate welfare.

Executive Director of the Taxpayers’ Union, Jordan Williams, says “While we all applaud the extra money for core science research and education, ‘Innovate New Zealand’ includes more than one hundred million dollars of new corporate welfare grants schemes covering regional, IT and digital start-ups. It’s the definition of governments trying to pick winners.”

The Union is particularly scathing about the announced $4 million “Maori Innovation Fund”. Mr Williams says, “It is bad enough that the Government is using taxpayer money for corporate welfare but it’s now spending that money based on the skin colour of shareholders.”

It is also raising concerns with a new focus on small business and regional economic corporate welfare, "Taxpayers will be alarmed that National are now expanding corporate welfare from big business into the small businesses backbone of the economy."

“There is nothing innovative about corporate welfare, no matter what the politicians label it.”

ENDS

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