More lies from English, Key in lala-land

Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, March 17th, 2010 - 15 comments
Categories: bill english, Economy, john key, Parliament - Tags:

Bill’s at it again. He can’t defend his own pathetic record on the economy – 2.2% fall in GDP, still rising unemployment, falling wages, GDP per capita still falling and not expected to return to pre-recession levels until 2012 according to NZIER and Treasury – so he lies about Labour’s record instead.

The latest lie, which was clearly a pre-prepared line as English brought it up in a related question, is:

“In the 3 years to September 2008, before the global crisis began, growth in New Zealand’s real GDP per capita was actually negative”

No. It wasn’t. Plain as day, you can see the truth on the Stats website. In the 2005 September year, before Labour’s third term started, GDP per capita was $31,464. In the 2008 September year, the last year of Labour’s third term, it was $32,251. A healthy 2.5% increase, although down from the high in 2007 because of the global recession. What’s National’s record? GDP per capita has dropped by 1.8% to $31,685 so far. And the two quarters of anemic growth we’ve seen were below population growth.

Labour should challenge Bill English to table his source next time he makes a dishonest attack on Labour’s record.

It’s also incredible that English said “The Reserve Bank expects solid growth through the next few years. It projects over 10 percent cumulative real growth for the 3 years to March 2013”. 10% in three years is not strong growth, especially not coming out of a deep recession. English should know, he was in office when New Zealand came out of its last recession.

Meanwhile, the Do Nothing Prime Minister is still daydreaming about his cycleway. Annette King asked today whatever happened to the 4,000 jobs he promised the cycleway would create given that, a year after it’s announcement, not a single metre of cycleway has been built with the money he borrowed for the project. Key’s response:

“Over time, when those 18 cycle trails are completed, my estimate is there’ll be a lot more than that”

Oh dear. He’s clearly in lala-land. The same goes for his response when asked why the 9-day fortnight had been so ineffective in saving jobs:

“If less people did use the 9-day fortnight that’s to be celebrated because it means less people were losing their jobs … [unemployment] is on the way down and that shows the success of the Jobs Summit”

Um, could it just be that the 9-day fortnight policy sucked so much no-one wanted to use it?

Unemployment is going up, John, despite Paula Bennett’s repeated proclamations over the last half year that the tide has turned. It’s a sign of how the Nats really view things that Key thinks doubling unemployment to 7.3% is a success.

15 comments on “More lies from English, Key in lala-land ”

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  1. lprent 1
    17 March 2010 at 8:40 am

    These incompetents prefer fantasy to reality. Who were the idiots that believed that they had substance?

  2. mickysavage 2
    17 March 2010 at 8:42 am

    Armstrong in this morning’s Herald is especially bad. He brands Key as being teflon coated and talks about his “aw shucks” routine as if it is something to be proud of.

    It is if you are aiming at the imbecile section of the electorate who does not understand the issues but likes a bit of entertainment. This is a role for the more inane part of television.

    It should not be the role of our leaders. They get paid well to improve the quality of life for ordinary kiwis.

    We deserve a refund.

  3. ropata 3
    17 March 2010 at 8:46 am

    Idiot here. Still think overall Nat is doing better than Lab would have in similar circumstances. National is facing some tough choices that Labour should have resolved years ago.

    • mickysavage 3.2
      17 March 2010 at 8:54 am

      I blame Helen and Michael for not solving the US Sub Prime fiasco and for allowing George Bush to run huge deficits after giving ludicrous tax cuts to the rich. They are also responsible for oil prices escalating and peak oil.

      Are you being seriour Ropata?

      • luva 3.2.1
        17 March 2010 at 9:23 am

        Helen and Michael are not responsible for the current economic crisis. Only a partisan hack would suggest so e.g whale etc

        The flip side of that is that Helen and Michael were not responsible for the success of the economy up to 2007/2008. Only a partisn hack would suggest that, no names suggested as I will get banned.

        Record high commodity prices, unsustainable property value increase, and a flood of easy credit that we all used to buy those flat sceens and play stations were the reason the economy boomed.

        • Marty G 3.2.1.1
          17 March 2010 at 9:37 am

          I don’t think any writer has suggested that Clark and Cullen were responsible for the economic boom. It’s what they did with it that counts.

          You can suggest names as long as you provide evidence.

          • luva 3.2.1.1.1
            17 March 2010 at 9:57 am

            Marty

            It was more a tongue in cheek comment. My point is the truth usually lies somewhere in between what those on the right and left claim is gospel.

            Bill English may well be stacking the stats to distort Labours record and fair game pulling him up on it. In my opinion I don’t care about those particular stats. Bill and you can argue over Labours success and failures till you are blue in the face and you will never ever agree. And our current predicament wll not improve.

            The issue is what is happening right here right now. How do we fix this problem. And from where I am sitting there is only one team in town. They may not be playing the game too well but they have no opposition. Where is the alternative plan to bring unemployment down and wages up? Until there are realistic alternatives offered, not just ‘oppose everything’ then get used to this mob staying in power and English getting away with presenting the stats in his favour.

            • Lanthanide 3.2.1.1.1.1
              17 March 2010 at 12:30 pm

              There was The Green New Deal.

              But I agree, Labour needs to take a more realistic approach instead of just opposing everything. Raising GST to 15% is actually a very good idea, as long as the resultant tax-cut is given overwhelmingly to those on the lowest incomes, so that everyone gets an equal gross benefit, and those at the top get a net negative. However National haven’t done this, and Labour haven’t clearly highlighted it as *the* issue with the GST raise, instead they’re just acting like a GST raise is always evil.

              Marty’s graph with the bars showing population and line showing weekly tax benefit skewed strongly to the upper incomes would be a good place for Labour to start. Stick that on the side of their ‘axe the tax’ bus and it’d be a bit more persuasive.

            • Draco T Bastard 3.2.1.1.1.2
              17 March 2010 at 4:22 pm

              The issue is what is happening right here right now. How do we fix this problem.

              You have to look at what caused the problem and that means going back 3 decades and the rise of neo-liberalism. Just looking in the here and now won’t tell you anything and it certainly won’t allow you to fix it.

    • Zaphod Beeblebrox 3.3
      17 March 2010 at 9:34 am

      Or not facing them. Can you point to any achievements of note?

      • ropata 3.3.1
        17 March 2010 at 8:48 pm

        Zaphod, although I have serious problems with some things National does, a few things they are doing OK is
        – Reviewing the Foreshore & Seabed legislation
        – Closing tax loopholes around rental property / speculation
        – Changing the culture of government largesse for all sorts of random crud
        – New Auckland governance structure to resolve intractable problems with the old 7 local fiefdoms

        • Macro 3.3.1.1
          17 March 2010 at 9:27 pm

          “Reviewing the Foreshore & Seabed legislation” – YEAH RIGHT! like that will happen! A review maybe – but way too political for the Joker to progress any further.
          “Closing tax loopholes around rental property / speculation” – Brilliant! Like what in particular?
          “Changing the culture of government largesse for all sorts of random crud” You mean public service cuts? Since when has that ever worked? The last time we had the “sinking lid” the country nearly fell over and its going that way again. Another stupid idea from a “govt” that is patently incapable.
          “New Auckland governance structure to resolve intractable problems with the old 7 local fiefdoms” Now you really do have to be joking! You must be about the only person on the planet who believes this. Sorry – you and Rodders. “governance” do you know the meaning of the word?

  4. freedom 4
    17 March 2010 at 10:09 am

    Is there anything we can legally do to challenge the continued authority of this Government?
    At the rate they are going we will be in a very bad way when the election rolls around.
    Is there any way to save New Zealand?

  5. tc 5
    17 March 2010 at 2:18 pm

    I’m waiting for the front foot assault in the house on such lies and a continued assault on tolley/bennett etc……and lab MP’s need some que cards with nice soundbites like kiwisaver/kiwibank/$Xbill is foreign debt paid off/GDP x/unemployment y etc etc

    play the game their way, sloganfest repeated ad nauseum so even the scribes in the msm would struggle to screw it up.

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