US, European & Australian economies still growing with solid jobs markets due to ongoing Govt investment, while NZ GDP & jobs are slumping due to self-defeating & historically-harsh Budget cuts
Is there any chance that msm will point out that austerity is not working? I remember in the 1980s County Hall had a huge sign over the Thames from Westminster saying “Unemployment isn’t working”
Yes, please open this up Bernard. Such an essential economic analysis that needs to be out there asap. Hopefully journalists will pick up on it and expect some accountability. The harm already caused in one short year will have repercussions for decades.
To pursue Nicola Willis's desperate household budget analogy, this government seems hell-bent on starving the family just so it can boast about how little it spent at the supermarket this week.
Has any reporter asked this Govt how it would respond to the US govt putting blanket tariffs on all imports? This Trump policy has the potential to plunge our already weakened economy into a deep recession given their importance as a trading partner.
Our conversations about our economy seem so childish and rooted in short-term, parochial assumptions. Both China and the US (both key trading partners) are flirting both with more isolationist approaches to managing their economies, as well as bellicose rhetoric which makes it harder to skirt with aligning to both (Luxon has made it clear he wants a more explicit transactional relationship with the US).
Not too mention our failure to even pretend to be trying to meet our climate obligations under various treaties and trade agreements which could see us being shafted in the future or locked out of certain trading blocs (leaving us to deal with less scrupulous regions).
It worries me deeply that we make such little investment in creating a resilient economy for ourselves, and under this CoC are actively self-sabotaging in the name of tax cuts and "meeting coalition agreements". The LNG decision is particularly heinous.
Bernard, thank you for the clear information. Next year is going to be tough, as people hope for relief only to find so many necessary public services pulled or thin on the ground.
The undoing of so many protections and regulations invites disasters and could cost us for years.
Myth 3 (Marianna Mazzucato) Government needs to run like a business! We have a supposed "Businessman" running the country together with an elderly climate change denier and a neoliberal capitalist apologist that wants the rich pricks to get richer so some will trickle down to the imported slaves "Fuelling" the supposed economy. Let us get a ship fuel of Solar Panels not "Natural Gas" an oxymoron if anything.
I agree with Neil the stupid Finance minister thinks NZ is a "Household" and Practices 19th Century Economics and is incapable of joining the 21st Century. Can she Read? It is all out there!
This government has created the problems as they cannot think, only destroy and take kickbacks from their rich "Gentailer" and other mates. This is an awful and corrupt society. Wait until "Mr. T" gets in and see us crawl to the US.
And this government shows a lack of understanding of the balance of payments consequences of all this foreign investment and ownership that it is drooling over.
This analysis is so important, thank you Bernard. Open it up please. We are being fed so much misleading information from other sources about the economy so your analysis needs to be spread far and wide to counter it.
It's rough opening these each day and seeing charts pointing out blindingly-obvious things, like: A government dollar is guaranteed to get spent, while a private dollar can just as easily be put in a savings account or housing and be never seen again.
Why does our government want to crash our economy? What's in it for them? I've seen the adage that you should not ascribe to malice that which can be explained by ignorance, but there have been enough economists poking holes in their plans that it's hard to maintain they're still making such bad choices out of ignorance.
I've seen the argument, with respect to the US election, that Trump's billionaire supporters intend to deliberately crash the US economy. They expect that they will be unscathed, and come out the other side with an even bigger piece of the pie. Everyone else will be further enslaved in their businesses—the peons will be so grateful to have a job they will put up with any abuse the billionaires hand out. Is that what Willis etc. want for Aotearoa?
Years ago I would have thought this idea was ridiculous but I'm becoming much more cynical in my old age.
You don't have to be overly cynical, but it helps...they could just be idiots blinded by ideology and a Victorian myopia around blaming the poor. This government is, after all, proving allergic to evidence-based anything. They are also allergic to history. After all, austerity responses have a long and dismal record of repeated, dust-grindingly miserable failure since the 1870's onwards. Even the Treasury's language that Bernard quoted is as close to an "Oi dickhead! Whaddaya thinking?" as those most senior mandarins ever get. But if the economy were to be [deliberately] tanked, and the country forced into a prolonged recession - when everywhere else is looking rosy, then that would be a great excuse for a lot of rapid "emergency" restructuring of civic and economic institutions "to get things started again" wouldn't it? Say, privatising large chunks of the health, sector to "give Kiwis the services they deserve"
Kia ora Bernard, great article and please open up this one.
Side note to the main story, I have long Covid since getting Covid for the first time in April of 2023. I’m very lucky that physically I’m well but have really bad fatigue issues and can only work 50% of what I was previously able to, impacting my ability to earn a living.
As I said, I’m very lucky to earn enough along with the support of my partner to enjoy life, and I have a great GP. However, I know people who struggle to leave the house because of the various impacts. Some people I have met have been bounced between gps and hospitals that don’t believe they have an issue.
Lots of whanau ask or enquire with me about the pathway of treatment to see what they can do and I have to explain that there is nothing. There is no approach within our health system.
Anyway this isn’t to moan about my situation, I’m very lucky and grateful.
The government have cut so many services, funding to good causes that support our society without any honest assessment of our finances or care for consequences on so many important matters.
Its a real shame because from my view, the “screw them, I got mine” brigade are running the show, running the headlines and running as a general mindset for this country.
I don’t comment often enough but always grateful for your work + shining a light on good quality journalism from other sources.
On top of infrastructure projects grinding to a halt - unless it's a pet project of Simeon Brown and his mates - the funding tap has been turned off by Orangi Tamariki and MSD to organisations that support the needy - foodbanks, budgeting agencies, etc. This country is in a real mess.
Add to that list community-based Dementia Support and Services organisations like Dementia NZ and Alzheimers NZ. Both have said they, and other community-based dementia organisations need an additional $127 million over 3 years in Budget 2025 to help get support and services to an additional 30,000 people living with dementia who currently are not being supported as per this document:
As the economy tightens into the next year or two of the current government term at what stage will their standard excuse for the state of affairs being caused by "the mess that the previous government left us with" fail to convince even the most devout RWers?
The strangling of public service spending together with blatant environmentally negative policies is verging on the criminally negligent and will result in far more longer term pain than any perceived economic advantages the CoC think they will achieve. The almost certain failure of NZ in meeting its Paris Agreement targets will see us denied access to international markets and increase the perception of us being a remote 'banana republic' with decrepit public services. We can and must do better than this!
And yes, please open this up for distribution to those who are all too happy to swallow the whitewashed BS that the MSM feed them.
Open it up please. I want to share the economic analysis immediately, thanks Sharon
That’s done now. Many thanks.
Is there any chance that msm will point out that austerity is not working? I remember in the 1980s County Hall had a huge sign over the Thames from Westminster saying “Unemployment isn’t working”
Yes, please open this up Bernard. Such an essential economic analysis that needs to be out there asap. Hopefully journalists will pick up on it and expect some accountability. The harm already caused in one short year will have repercussions for decades.
To pursue Nicola Willis's desperate household budget analogy, this government seems hell-bent on starving the family just so it can boast about how little it spent at the supermarket this week.
Yes I think so too!
Agree agree agree. Please open this up.
Has any reporter asked this Govt how it would respond to the US govt putting blanket tariffs on all imports? This Trump policy has the potential to plunge our already weakened economy into a deep recession given their importance as a trading partner.
Our conversations about our economy seem so childish and rooted in short-term, parochial assumptions. Both China and the US (both key trading partners) are flirting both with more isolationist approaches to managing their economies, as well as bellicose rhetoric which makes it harder to skirt with aligning to both (Luxon has made it clear he wants a more explicit transactional relationship with the US).
Not too mention our failure to even pretend to be trying to meet our climate obligations under various treaties and trade agreements which could see us being shafted in the future or locked out of certain trading blocs (leaving us to deal with less scrupulous regions).
It worries me deeply that we make such little investment in creating a resilient economy for ourselves, and under this CoC are actively self-sabotaging in the name of tax cuts and "meeting coalition agreements". The LNG decision is particularly heinous.
Bernard, thank you for the clear information. Next year is going to be tough, as people hope for relief only to find so many necessary public services pulled or thin on the ground.
The undoing of so many protections and regulations invites disasters and could cost us for years.
Release Bernard please,
Myth 3 (Marianna Mazzucato) Government needs to run like a business! We have a supposed "Businessman" running the country together with an elderly climate change denier and a neoliberal capitalist apologist that wants the rich pricks to get richer so some will trickle down to the imported slaves "Fuelling" the supposed economy. Let us get a ship fuel of Solar Panels not "Natural Gas" an oxymoron if anything.
I agree with Neil the stupid Finance minister thinks NZ is a "Household" and Practices 19th Century Economics and is incapable of joining the 21st Century. Can she Read? It is all out there!
This government has created the problems as they cannot think, only destroy and take kickbacks from their rich "Gentailer" and other mates. This is an awful and corrupt society. Wait until "Mr. T" gets in and see us crawl to the US.
Patrick Medlicott
And this government shows a lack of understanding of the balance of payments consequences of all this foreign investment and ownership that it is drooling over.
This analysis is so important, thank you Bernard. Open it up please. We are being fed so much misleading information from other sources about the economy so your analysis needs to be spread far and wide to counter it.
It's rough opening these each day and seeing charts pointing out blindingly-obvious things, like: A government dollar is guaranteed to get spent, while a private dollar can just as easily be put in a savings account or housing and be never seen again.
Bernard please open this comment up, the lack of informed economic commentary in the media is dire in NZ
Why does our government want to crash our economy? What's in it for them? I've seen the adage that you should not ascribe to malice that which can be explained by ignorance, but there have been enough economists poking holes in their plans that it's hard to maintain they're still making such bad choices out of ignorance.
I've seen the argument, with respect to the US election, that Trump's billionaire supporters intend to deliberately crash the US economy. They expect that they will be unscathed, and come out the other side with an even bigger piece of the pie. Everyone else will be further enslaved in their businesses—the peons will be so grateful to have a job they will put up with any abuse the billionaires hand out. Is that what Willis etc. want for Aotearoa?
Years ago I would have thought this idea was ridiculous but I'm becoming much more cynical in my old age.
You don't have to be overly cynical, but it helps...they could just be idiots blinded by ideology and a Victorian myopia around blaming the poor. This government is, after all, proving allergic to evidence-based anything. They are also allergic to history. After all, austerity responses have a long and dismal record of repeated, dust-grindingly miserable failure since the 1870's onwards. Even the Treasury's language that Bernard quoted is as close to an "Oi dickhead! Whaddaya thinking?" as those most senior mandarins ever get. But if the economy were to be [deliberately] tanked, and the country forced into a prolonged recession - when everywhere else is looking rosy, then that would be a great excuse for a lot of rapid "emergency" restructuring of civic and economic institutions "to get things started again" wouldn't it? Say, privatising large chunks of the health, sector to "give Kiwis the services they deserve"
Yeah, you're probably right, but the idea of privatising our health sector makes me want to scream.
I too am horrified at the seeming drive to crash the economy.
Kia ora Bernard, great article and please open up this one.
Side note to the main story, I have long Covid since getting Covid for the first time in April of 2023. I’m very lucky that physically I’m well but have really bad fatigue issues and can only work 50% of what I was previously able to, impacting my ability to earn a living.
As I said, I’m very lucky to earn enough along with the support of my partner to enjoy life, and I have a great GP. However, I know people who struggle to leave the house because of the various impacts. Some people I have met have been bounced between gps and hospitals that don’t believe they have an issue.
Lots of whanau ask or enquire with me about the pathway of treatment to see what they can do and I have to explain that there is nothing. There is no approach within our health system.
Anyway this isn’t to moan about my situation, I’m very lucky and grateful.
The government have cut so many services, funding to good causes that support our society without any honest assessment of our finances or care for consequences on so many important matters.
Its a real shame because from my view, the “screw them, I got mine” brigade are running the show, running the headlines and running as a general mindset for this country.
I don’t comment often enough but always grateful for your work + shining a light on good quality journalism from other sources.
Thankyou Nikau. Wishing you all the best for a speedy recovery.
On top of infrastructure projects grinding to a halt - unless it's a pet project of Simeon Brown and his mates - the funding tap has been turned off by Orangi Tamariki and MSD to organisations that support the needy - foodbanks, budgeting agencies, etc. This country is in a real mess.
Add to that list community-based Dementia Support and Services organisations like Dementia NZ and Alzheimers NZ. Both have said they, and other community-based dementia organisations need an additional $127 million over 3 years in Budget 2025 to help get support and services to an additional 30,000 people living with dementia who currently are not being supported as per this document:
https://cdn.alzheimers.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Alzheimers-NZ-Dementia-NZ-Briefing-for-Budget-2025.pdf
Someone needs to explain this to Nikki No-Boats...
As the economy tightens into the next year or two of the current government term at what stage will their standard excuse for the state of affairs being caused by "the mess that the previous government left us with" fail to convince even the most devout RWers?
The strangling of public service spending together with blatant environmentally negative policies is verging on the criminally negligent and will result in far more longer term pain than any perceived economic advantages the CoC think they will achieve. The almost certain failure of NZ in meeting its Paris Agreement targets will see us denied access to international markets and increase the perception of us being a remote 'banana republic' with decrepit public services. We can and must do better than this!
And yes, please open this up for distribution to those who are all too happy to swallow the whitewashed BS that the MSM feed them.