Dear John,
Parliament has now lifted for the election and on the weekend both parties officially launch their election campaigns - so it's all systems go for the next six weeks! I'll be fighting hard to win Hutt South - if you want to help me out, then please drop me a line. There's lots of ways to be involved, ranging from easy to hard, and from a minimal to an extensive a time commitment. I really appreciate all of the many people helping me on the campaign and I'm working hard every day.
Back Pocket Boost: The big news of the week was the release of National's Tax Plan, called "Back Pocket Boost." It's a policy squarely focused on the "squeezed middle". Our view is that New Zealand should be a country where if you work hard, you can get ahead. But after years of economic mismanagement by Labour, topped off by two years of rampant inflation, huge increases in interest rates, and a shrinking economy, most Kiwis are going backwards.
There are so many New Zealanders out there who work hard, sometimes juggling multiple jobs and family responsibilities, but inflation and high tax rates are eating away their incomes.
So our Back Pocket Boost increases after-tax pay for the squeezed middle from 1 July 2024 by:
- Shifting income tax brackets to compensate for inflation
- Expanding tax credits to reach more modest income earners
- Introducing the FamilyBoost childcare tax credit
- Increasing Working for Families tax credits for working families (from 1 April 2024).
Under National’s Back Pocket Boost, New Zealanders will be better off by:
- Up to $250 more per fortnight for an average-income family with children
- Up to $100 more per fortnight for an average-income household with no children
- Up to $20 more per fortnight for a full-time minimum-wage earner, and lowering the tax they pay for additional hours worked
- Up to $26 more per fortnight for a superannuitant couple.
Our plan is carefully targeted to ensure that those who will benefit the most are working New Zealanders. It is prudent, fully-funded and balanced. It does not require borrowing and will reduce pressure on inflation. It has been designed to be self-funding so that National can guarantee tax relief for working people, even if Labour leaves the government books in a mess, as we all expect.
The plan includes reducing spending on back-office bureaucracy and consultants, returning taxes raised on climate polluters to Kiwi families through a Climate Dividend, introducing a 15 per cent foreign buyer tax on the purchase of houses worth over $2 million, removing commercial building depreciation, closing the offshore gambling tax loophole and moving to user-pays immigration levies.
Labour's Negativity: It's pretty clear now that Labour is going to be extremely negative, often very personally, during the election campaign. On the weekend Chris Hipkins did an entire speech demonising the National Party, they are inventing nick-names for National MPs, Labour MPs are on social media outright lying about a whole series of National policies, and the unions are running expensive attack ads. It's all a bit sad really. We'll stay focused on laying out our positive plan to get the country back on track!
In the House: The final week of Parliament before the election had a real "end of term" feel to it. I asked questions to Willie Jackson in the House about the performance of Kainga Ora (I say woeful, he says wonderful), and I tore into Labour's record in the General Debate (will be on Facebook soon). One real highlight was the first reading of "Ashley's Law", a Bill to shorten the period victims of domestic violence have to wait before they can get divorced. I call it Ashley's Law because it started life as a petition from then Hutt resident Ashley Jones, who presented a petition to me two years ago. I didn't know at the time but Labour MP Angie Warren-Clarke was working on a similar Bill - and hers got pulled from the ballot a few months ago. It passed its first reading on Wednesday.
Housing: You may have seen the front page of the Dom on Wednesday, on the outrageous amounts of money paid to Hutt emergency housing providers. Emergency housing is a national disgrace and the Hutt numbers are some of the worse in the country - families in motels now stay for an average of 33 weeks, a record high. This isn't surprising when Hutt rents are so high as well. Sorting out social housing, and housing generally, is going to be a major focus of the next National government. Speaking of housing, yesterday morning Andrew Bayly and I launched National's Building and Construction policy. in Auckland - some sensible measures to lower building materials costs and reduce the time and cost of building consents.
Wellington Gold Awards: A great showing for the Hutt in the Wellington Gold Awards last week! Check out the winners and finalists here. Particular congrats to Arlo Training Software (Technology Gold), Kaynemaile (Global Gold) and Robinson Research Institute for the Innovation Gold awards.
Have a great weekend. I'm at the Riverbank Markets tomorrow with Emma Chatterton - come and say hello if you're around.
Chris
P.S Did you see the Newshub "Backstory" piece on Saturday? Thanks for the kind comments. Check it out here if you haven't seen it.
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