Hi John,

The big news for many New Zealanders today was moving to Alert Level 2 and getting back to something a little closer to normal. I’m glad to see more of New Zealand opening up for business, as we begin to kickstart our economy and get New Zealand moving again.

However, there was some other big news that I wanted to make sure you didn’t miss, because it’s an important part of our economic recovery in the aftermath of COVID-19. Today, I set out the next phase in our plan to respond, recover and rebuild from this pandemic, with Budget 2020. 

It’s fair to say that this year’s Budget is not the one I was expecting to announce six months ago, and that’s because it’s definitely not business as usual. 

There’s no escaping the fact that New Zealand, along with many other countries, is feeling the impact of COVID-19. While the global economic shock of the virus presents challenges not seen since the Great Depression, there is a clear path through.

From the outset, our Government has taken decisive action to protect Kiwi jobs, incomes and businesses. From the Wage Subsidy Scheme to interest-free loans for small businesses, we moved quickly to get money out the door to support workers and businesses. 

Now, we’re taking the next steps in our plan to help our economy recover and get things moving. We’ll bring the same discipline and focus to the economic rebuild as we did to the health response - and today’s Budget is a key part of this.

At its core, Budget 2020 is all about jobs. It’s about creating new jobs, training people to have the skills they need for the jobs we have, and supporting people to keep their jobs or get into work, while strengthening our local communities and regions, and getting the books back in the black.

It includes a $50b COVID Response and Recovery Fund to support New Zealanders and the economy through the effects of COVID-19 and the global recession, and will cover:

• An extension of the wage subsidy to protect jobs, incomes and businesses
• Free apprenticeships and trade training, and the state house building programme to get people trained and construction underway
• Pragmatic solutions to help businesses grow, such as support for small businesses to grow digitally via e-commerce and practical assistance for our exporters
• Investment in our communities, such as our extension of the Lunches in Schools programme to a further 200,000 kids
• Programmes to create environmental jobs and support tourism operators to locally redeploy underused staff.

With this Budget, projections show it’s possible for unemployment to be back at current levels in just two years - and our economy will be growing again as early as next year.

But, of course, Budget 2020 is just one part of our plan. We are doing everything it takes to cushion the blow, support businesses and workers, and position the economy for recovery. You can read more about our plan and Budget 2020 here.

Finally, above all, this Budget is about rebuilding together. The coming months and years will be some of the most challenging our country has faced in a very, very long time. But with our plan, and with the help of innovative and resilient businesses around the country, I am confident we can get New Zealand moving and rebuild our economy together.

Thanks,

Grant Robertson