The Taxpayers’ Union is calling on Labour to clarify whether it will rule out lifting foreign aid towards 0.7 percent of GNI within the next four years, after the party left the commitment out of its fiscal plan and lashed out publicly when questioned about the policy yesterday.
Assuming the increase was progressively phased in over the forecast period, the Taxpayers’ Union cost this pledge at $5.52 billion.
Taxpayers’ Union Head of Policy James Ross said:
“Labour has explicitly promised to increase foreign aid towards 0.7 percent of GNI. It’s not unreasonable for taxpayers to expect at least a rough timeline and some idea of what it will cost.”
“Labour cannot have it both ways. Either Hipkins should be able to rule out a foreign aid splurge that we’ve costed at $2,662-per-household over the next four years, or Labour is deliberately hiding billions of dollars of spending from its fiscal plan.”
“Mealy-mouthed fudging that ‘yes, we’ll do it, but we won’t tell you when’ won’t cut it. Labour’s back-of-the-beermat fiscal plan is full of holes, but a straight yes or no could at least plug one of them.”
The Taxpayers’ Union’s latest Bribe-O-Meter update can be found at www.taxpayers.org.nz/bribe_o_meter
Will Labour stop mincing their words on foreign aid splurge?
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