Meanwhile the economy…

Written By: - Date published: 10:54 am, March 23rd, 2012 - 15 comments
Categories: economy, jobs, national - Tags: , ,

National is having a pretty horrid time of it just now. Key’s failure to lead on Nick Smith, industrial disputes everywhere, making a mess of MFAT, falling popularity, and so on.

But if there is one silver lining for the Nats, it is that the high-profile headlines take the focus of the boring old economy:

Economy wound back 7yrs says NZIER

The economy is back where it was in 2005, with nothing to show for the past seven years. That is the conclusion from the Institute of Economic Research which has replicated the Economist’s Proust index for New Zealand.

Real gross domestic product per capita, for example, is back where it was in 2005. It got higher than that before the recession, but lower than that subsequently.

Private consumption, again in real per capita terms, is only just back to where it was four years ago. Real returns on equities have nothing to show for the past eight years, while real house prices are back where they were six years ago.

Real wages have slipped back to where they were three years ago. And the unemployment rate over the past couple of years has wobbled around a level previously not seen since the year 2000.

Lot’s of countries are going backwards, but in 2008 National promised us they had a plan. Every budget has predicted growth and new jobs. Instead we get excuses:

English defends slow GDP growth

Finance Minister Bill English is defending a slowdown in the economy, saying New Zealand is better off than many other countries despite a poor gross domestic product (GDP) result.

GDP grew by just 0.3 per cent in the December quarter – down from 0.7 percent growth in the September quarter, Statistics New Zealand said on Thursday. Economists had expected 0.6 percent growth in the fourth quarter. …

Manufacturing fell 2.5 percent, mainly due to a decline in primary food manufacturing.
Mr English says the December quarter was challenging as households saved more and spent less, as well as tough economic conditions around the world. …

“Agriculture is again providing the bulk of the impetus for growth in the New Zealand economy while manufacturing continues to decline and with it the opportunity to export high value-added products,” Greens co-leader Russel Norman says. “One of the key measures of a more resilient and competitive economy is the number of firms exporting. Under the National government, the number of companies exporting has stagnated.” Both Labour and the Greens say the government’s focus on partial asset sales is distracting it from fixing structural problems in the economy.

Brighter future my arse. Here’s an honest slogan for National to run under next election.
“National – because we’re not as bad as some countries”. Please make your own suggestions in comments…

15 comments on “Meanwhile the economy… ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. starlight 1
    23 March 2012 at 11:29 am

    Bill english is lamenting the fact that 1000 people are going off unemployment benefit
    and finding jobs,what! they are going to aussie,perhaps he need to be investigated for
    lies as well.
    These nat clowns are driving the economy into the abiss.

  2. Tombstone 2
    23 March 2012 at 11:30 am

    National: We keep on bullshitting because the people keep on believing it.

  3. bbfloyd 3
    23 March 2012 at 11:34 am

    vote national.. our record is better than libya’s..

  4. mac1 4
    23 March 2012 at 12:03 pm

    “National- only in name, not in nature.”

  5. McFlock 5
    23 March 2012 at 12:40 pm

    “National – ok, so the future’s not actually brighter, but at least it’s almost as bright as it was before we got started”

  6. Reality Bytes 6
    23 March 2012 at 12:40 pm

    National: Look here’s a picture of John Key.

  7. aerobubble 7
    23 March 2012 at 1:39 pm

    The supreme court must be party party right now, the Surveillance Bill will be a huge work load for them. Woe the MP that said the SS law was well balanced, it looks set to be tested in many areas of national life. From the press, to criminality, and mums and dads wonder if getting naked and running out the home is a good idea… ..maybe even finding their video up on utube when a disgruntaled pig industry bureaucrat leaks it.

    Worse. What about all those govt leaks, will leakers need journalists to sign a contract that they will go to jail rather than leak the information!!!

  8. tc 8
    23 March 2012 at 3:54 pm

    Vote National. Ballot papers are traceable, just in case you didn’t know.
    National. Accountability for you, beemers for us.
    National. Mine it, drill it, sell it yeah !

  9. bad12 9
    23 March 2012 at 7:03 pm

    Vote National so you can all learn why thats a really really stupid thing to do…

  10. Dr Terry 10
    23 March 2012 at 7:17 pm

    Bill English is an authority on “excuses”, soon he will write the book! (I guess!) I guess he is still carrying on with his guessing. Recently, he seems to be laying off the Christchurch excuse (people might look at the government’s lamentable behaviour). Even the Europe excuse is wearing thin. Guessing is easier, because whatever happens he can say he was right all the time! Now we are hearing that we are better off than some countries (which exactly? Third world countries?) Why are we not as “well off” as some countries? We ought to be now that we are enjoying “a brighter future”!

  11. Blue 11
    23 March 2012 at 10:06 pm

    Vote National, we have really good excuses!

  12. irascible 12
    23 March 2012 at 10:37 pm

    Vote National – for a greater joyce remember our key policy is that we don’t speak straight english.

  13. Akldnut 13
    25 March 2012 at 12:11 am

    “Vote National, we’ve got figures to prove we’re doing what we promised.”

  14. NZSucks 14
    29 March 2012 at 3:58 pm

    National – we’re closing the gap.. with Kazakhstan