Waitaki MP Jacqui Dean is taking aim at the government’s pre-budget announcements and says more action needs to be taken to arrest problems facing New Zealand. 

The government said last week financial accounts continued to reflect the “resilience of the economy and confidence in the Government’s economic recovery plan”.

“It’s positive the New Zealand and global economy continues to perform better than feared at the height of the crisis, this is testament to the flexibility, ingenuity and adaptability of Kiwi workers and businesses,” Jacqui says. 

The Crown accounts for the nine months to the end of March 2021 show both OBEGAL and the operating balance remain better than forecast in the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) released in December last year.

The operating balance before gains and losses (OBEGAL) was $5.2 billion better than forecast in the HYEFU.

Tax revenue was $69.9 billion, $4 billion above forecast due to higher than expected corporate and income tax, and GST revenue.

Net core Crown debt was 33.3% of GDP, $6.6 billion less than forecast.

“Our concern is that the Government seems to have convinced itself this means everything is fine, when it’s not,” Jacqui says. 

“There are still almost 200,000 New Zealanders on the Jobseeker Benefit, which is 75,000 more than when Labour took office.

“The many thousands of jobs Jacinda Ardern’s Government promised New Zealanders its initiatives would create looks more like a pipe dream.

“Labour has offered no plan for growth, and is putting our fragile recovery at risk by continuing to pile costs onto business, while becoming increasingly interventionist by the day.”

Jacqui also took aim at the government’s pre-budget announcements, which she says need more work aimed at fixing problems. 

“The Government’s pre-budget announcements are just that – announcements,” Jacqui says. 

“What we really need to see is the Government getting on with fixing the RMA, delivering on infrastructure projects, and getting some houses built. 

“When the full budget details are released next week I’ll be looking to see what implications there are for the towns and communities in this region.”

At a pre-budget speech in Auckland on Monday, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said “securing the recovery and investing in the wellbeing of New Zealanders is the focus of Budget 2021”.

"The economy has proven resilient in response to COVID-19, due to people having confidence in the Government’s health response to keep them safe.  

“Unemployment has continued to trend down, an extra 32,000 jobs have been created in the six months to March and business and consumer confidence is increasing as our vaccine rollout is ramping up and we are carefully opening up our borders.

“We can’t take the recovery for granted. Further waves of COVID-19 around the world underline that we are still in a highly volatile and uncertain global environment.  

“There are still sectors and regions in New Zealand struggling to deal with the impacts of the pandemic. 

“We have also taken on considerable debt to support New Zealanders lives and livelihoods through COVID-19.

“In this environment a balanced approached is required. 

“We need to continue to be careful with our management of the economy, while also providing stimulus to accelerate the recovery and to make investments where they are needed the most to tackle our long term challenges in priority areas such as climate change, child wellbeing and housing.

“Our better than expected economic recovery does provide us with more options. 

“There is a bit more space in our operating and capital allowances to support the economy in line with our wellbeing approach while also providing further scope to keep a lid on our higher debt levels and then lower it once the recovery is secure.

“An investment-focused recovery that supports all New Zealanders is the way to ensure that our finances remain sustainable. It is also the way in which the Government will continue to tackle the long-standing issues that we were elected to address.

“It is important to recognise that it can’t all be done in one budget. I view this budget as one of a package of three this term to advance our priorities and return our books to a sustainable fiscal position,” Grant Robertson said.