6. Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Labour—New Lynn) Link to this
to the Minister of Finance
What reports, if any, has he received on the state of the New Zealand economy?
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance) Link to this
I have received a number of reports from a number of people.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
Does he agree with rating agencies such as Standard and Poor’s and Moody’s who make clear that closing our external deficit and building a more diversified and innovative economy is a greater challenge than reducing New Zealand’s relatively low Government debt; if so, why has he gutted KiwiSaver, research and development tax cuts, and the Fast Forward programme, which were critical to reducing the savings gap and getting our economy moving?
The first task of the Government has been to get expenditure and debt under control, because they were out of control when the previous Government left office and the global recession made that worse.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
Does he agree with commentator Rod Oram, who said: “Two very big dangers arise from the government’s focus on its debt … First, it will deliver an excessively conservative budget in order to make its books look good.”—and make the recession worse—“Second, it will seriously under-invest in economic transformation,”?
Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga Link to this
What reports has he seen on alternative plans for managing the economy?
I have seen very few reports—in fact, I do not think I have seen any reports—on alternative plans for managing the economy. Mr Oram just says we should transform it, and the Labour Party just says we should spend more and run up more debt.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek clarification from the Minister—
Mr SPEAKER