Today’s PREFU has some alarming statistics showing an economy deteriorating and the cost of unaffordable government expenditure, mainly in the 2022 and 2023 budgets. 

Despite this alarming economic and fiscal picture, political parties are making unaffordable promises, talking about a surplus by 2027, or four years time, all of which depends on growth, ‘lala land’ expenditure assumptions, and an immigration blow out of 100,000 immigrants this year.

There is so little left after health pre-commitments, that is $1.3b in 2024, $1.9b in 2025, and $1.6b in the 2026 budget.  None of which covers inflation, or the new policies other parties are tossing around – like an eight-armed octopus. 

Both National and Labour’s promises already portend massive cuts elsewhere.

Of similar alarm is the multi-year capital allowance of less than $3b to cope with new expenditure.

Looking ahead, New Zealand faces a decade of deficits even if the budgets only increaser by $1b per year, with government revenue increasing over the next four years by almost $4b - that being the result of fiscal drag and bleeding taxpayers with higher taxes from bracket creep, a present fact that has continued for years. 

This PREFU exposes the other political party’s failure to concentrate on affordable basics and expecting the public to trust them.