By Callum Purves

“To celebrate a $5.1 Billion increase on New Zealand’s deficit because it wasn’t quite as bad as expected, is like being grateful for a slap in the face because it wasn’t a punch,” says Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns Manager Callum Purves.

“The Government’s increased spending is concerning enough given the impact it has on inflation and cost of living, but when you take into account that they taxed New Zealanders an additional $10.5 Billion on top of that the picture gets even worse.”

“Life is tough at the moment for many New Zealanders so for the Government to be raking in more of Kiwis’ cash via taxes and then spending it in an inflationary manner, is a double kick in the guts.”

“Covid-19 presented governments with increased spending pressures and we don’t begrudge the necessary spending that occurred. However, we don’t need to whip out the receipts from the Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund to remind Kiwis that a lot of that extra spending was utterly wasteful.”

“Rather than spending Kiwis’ hard-earned money on wasteful projects such as Three Waters and the new public media entity, New Zealanders deserve tax relief. Tax cuts are less inflationary than government spending so Kiwis benefit not only from having more money in their pockets but also from easing the cost of living crisis that Labour seems determined to fuel.”