Treasury’s $8.4b Budget Hole Isn’t Going Anywhere And Growth Alone Won’t Save Us

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is calling out the Government over its release of internal documents revealing an $8.4b “unfunded” hole in funding future public services over the years to 2028/29.

Taxpayers’ Union Economist Ray Deacon said:

"The Minister of Finance’s current strategy is to tinker around the edges and shuffle spending, but if we want to balance the books and close the deficit, hard choices must be made."

"This Government has no serious fiscal plan. It’s simply hoping that growth alone will cover the gap - but hope is not a strategy, especially when the country faces a debt burden equivalent to $138,900 per household."

"The refusal to scrap costly legacy programmes like the $1.09 billion film subsidies and $3.54 billion in KiwiSaver top-ups shows this Government isn’t yet willing to make the calls that matter."

"The Taxpayers’ Union is urging Finance Minister Nicola Willis to adopt the common-sense reforms in our policy roadmap, A Pathway to Surplus."

"Our plan gives the Minister the tools to smash the deficit, stop the borrowing, and restore New Zealand’s financial resilience."

"If the Government is serious about avoiding higher taxes, a credit downgrade, and mounting debt, it needs a real plan, not just blaming Labour's sins of the past."