grant robertson

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Hoatu he tumanako ki a rātou

Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, March 21st, 2024 - 20 comments

Grant Robertson has given his valedictory speech in Parliament.

What’s Left?

Written By: - Date published: 12:07 pm, February 25th, 2024 - 51 comments

From Election 2023’s result through to February 2024 there has been massive loss and damage to the Parliamentary capacity of Labour and Greens. Who still has the capacity to lead? What’s left?

Go well Grant Robertson

Written By: - Date published: 8:56 am, February 21st, 2024 - 72 comments

Yesterday it was announced that Grant Robertson was leaving politics.

Willis’s budget analysis is either deeply cynical or evidence she does not know what she is talking about

Written By: - Date published: 8:33 am, December 5th, 2023 - 75 comments

Recent claims by Nicola Willis that the Governments Finances are full of fiscal cliffs is evidence either that National will cynically make baseless claims to attack Labour or that Nicola Willis has no idea about what she is talking about and has not been doing her most basic job of reading and comprehending previous budget documents.

Tax or quality public services – which is more important to NZ voters?

Written By: - Date published: 10:31 pm, September 27th, 2023 - 16 comments

Earlier this year Andrew Marr wrote in the New Statesmen, that Britain’s problem was that it wanted Scandinavian levels of Public Services and North American levels of taxation. His view was that Britain was overdue for an honest debate about tax and public spending. In New Zealand, there is a similar challenge.

National’s back of the envelope $715 million tax calculation

Written By: - Date published: 8:58 am, September 25th, 2023 - 39 comments

Nicola Willis has essentially confirmed that the design of National’s foreign purchase of land tax was and remains sufficient to be done on the back of an envelope.

There is no recession in New Zealand

Written By: - Date published: 11:29 am, September 21st, 2023 - 57 comments

The growth figures are up and National operatives will be in despair.  Not only did the economy grow considerably faster than anticipated in the last quarter at 0.9% but the previous quarter’s figure has been resolved from -0.1% to 0%.

National is devastated as PREFU is better than expected

Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, September 13th, 2023 - 26 comments

National has reached new levels of excessive hyperbole in response to the PREFU release which was better than expected.

Labour should not cut spending on climate change

Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, August 30th, 2023 - 22 comments

At a time when the effects of Climate Change are becoming pronounced now is not the time to cut spending on carbon reduction projects.

How come government doesn’t improve our economy?

Written By: - Date published: 8:24 am, May 21st, 2023 - 41 comments

When we continue to spend our money on stupid stuff, we get a dumb country.

National thinks tax cut good, reduction in Government charges bad

Written By: - Date published: 8:13 am, May 19th, 2023 - 77 comments

National has promised to reverse the removal of prescription charges even though it has a strong policy support and is an example of the state taking less of individuals’ private wealth.

Budget day

Written By: - Date published: 9:55 am, May 18th, 2023 - 49 comments

Today is Budget Day with the proceedings kicking off at 2 pm.

Lonely on the right side of history?

Written By: - Date published: 11:07 am, April 17th, 2023 - 18 comments

Musing after the recent IMF/World Bank meetings, Former White house economist and US Treasury secretary Larry Summers said “it’s looking a bit lonely on the right side of history..as others are increasingly banding together in a whole range of structures.”

But How Do You Pay For It?

Written By: - Date published: 8:39 am, March 5th, 2023 - 27 comments

To pay for recent flood damage Grant Robertson has to decide on what proportion of this will be paid by new debt, what proportion by reallocation of expenditure, and what proportion by special tax levies.  Is an Australian style levy under consideration?

The Cabinet Reshuffle

Written By: - Date published: 10:25 am, February 1st, 2023 - 22 comments

Chris Hipkins has announced his cabinet reshuffle and there have been some dramatic changes.

Running on empty

Written By: - Date published: 8:23 am, January 20th, 2023 - 180 comments

Jacinda Ardern has realised that she was not in a position to commit to four more years as Prime Minister and has called it quits.  Recent levels of abuse and misogyny shown to her have clearly played their part.

New Zealand is in a terrible state *

Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, January 6th, 2023 - 116 comments

* or is it?

Are Luxon’s days numbered?

Written By: - Date published: 8:09 am, November 17th, 2022 - 66 comments

Yesterday was a bad day for Chris Luxon. It is increasingly clear that he is not up to the job of being leader of the opposition and National’s senior management must be worried.

Why Is Labour Such a Hard Sell Now?

Written By: - Date published: 7:40 am, November 10th, 2022 - 140 comments

So why is Labour and Ardern struggling when the economy is so strong?

Minister Robertson, UK Pensions, and Risk

Written By: - Date published: 9:44 am, October 15th, 2022 - 19 comments

The political question is whether Kiwis currently losing money on paper can remember this: all investment involves risk and it’s entirely fair for our government to only manage so much of that risk and for the rest to fall on us the investor. Will irrational anxiety beat rational risk in our upcoming politics?

National’s PR support springs into action

Written By: - Date published: 8:19 am, September 2nd, 2022 - 52 comments

Yesterday National’s PR machine also known as Mike Hosking on Newstalk ZB sprang into action to get the message out that National will not negotiate with Destiny Church over support.  Even though eight days previously Chris Luxon pointedly did not rule this out.

The Goldilocks budget

Written By: - Date published: 9:25 am, May 20th, 2022 - 24 comments

How was the 2022 budget?  Was it the worst since Ruth Richardson’s mother of all budgets or the best since the first Labour Government gave everyone a Christmas bonus in 1935?

Budget Day!

Written By: - Date published: 8:15 am, May 19th, 2022 - 50 comments

Today is budget day.  What surprises will Grant Robertson announce to address the country’s many and varied problems.  Will Christopher Luxon and Nicola Willis be able to sound like they actually understand what is in the budget?  Stay tuned for 2 pm …

What Can Be Saved?

Written By: - Date published: 7:12 am, April 29th, 2022 - 157 comments

The tide of this government is running out. There’s 18 months left in the term. What would you save?

Can This Government Be Saved?

Written By: - Date published: 5:43 pm, March 25th, 2022 - 118 comments

Can Labour win a third term? Here are some pathways up, and some pathways down.

Pick a side

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, March 17th, 2022 - 351 comments

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelinsky has made a direct appeal broadcast to the United States Congress. That will sort out the Putin supporters from the rest.  And with climate change beckoning it is time to pick a side.

Light Rail: The State Is Back

Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, January 31st, 2022 - 30 comments

The light rail route and mode decision this week shows something new. It’s in the nature of the state itself.

The country’s books are in remarkably good shape

Written By: - Date published: 8:44 am, December 16th, 2021 - 79 comments

As the country rebounds out of partial lockdown the Treasury’s recently released half yearly Economic and Fiscal update suggests that the Country’s accounts are in remarkably good shape.

National’s plan – open and be damned

Written By: - Date published: 9:43 am, October 21st, 2021 - 71 comments

Yesterday National released what feels like take 16 of its Covid response plan, this one focussing on business interests and setting a hard timeline for reopening.  But getting significant details wrong and rehashing failed policies previously tried in England has dampened its effect.

Judith’s very bad two days

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 am, September 2nd, 2021 - 50 comments

Judith Collins’ insistence that Parliament be reconvened even at a time that the country was in lockdown level 4 has backfired spectacularly.

Minister Robertson’s Economic Development Strategy

Written By: - Date published: 7:32 am, July 15th, 2021 - 20 comments

Minister Roberston’s recent speech to the Trans Tasman Business Circle sets out both how this government is using the pandemic to reset whole sectors of the economy, and also how it is getting its head around economic and social challenges. The points made were unsurprising, but his intended direction was unclear.

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