Kia ora koutou katoa, and warm Pacific greetings to you
all.
What an amazing welcome we have had to South
Auckland for this conference. As my colleague Aupito William
Sio would say welcome to the home of the Generation 6Bs. Or
is it 8Bs now Aupito?
Whichever it is, and whatever
economic storm clouds there are right now, I know whenever I
am in this place I can be sure that the future here is
bright and bold and beautiful. And speaking of bold and
brave- Go the Black Ferns!
Delegates there is no doubt
when we look at our economy it is tough out there for many
of our people. Coming off the back of a winter with COVID,
we are all aware of the rising prices at the supermarket, or
the costs of rent or petrol. We can all see on the news the
War in Ukraine, the lingering impacts of COVID, the global
inflation pressure and the political conflicts around the
world.
I was in Washington DC a couple of weeks ago
meeting Finance Ministers from around the world. Each and
every one of them is facing these economic challenges. An
energy crisis, recession in many, geo political tensions for
others. In the UK inflation is above 10% and heading higher.
In the US it is over 8%, across the OECD it is hitting 10%.
Here we looked to have peaked at just over 7%.
As
Finance Minister I can understand that the world looks like
a scary place. I wake up every day thinking about the
challenging times in which we are living, and the buffeting
our economy and our people are receiving from these
forces.
But there is something I know to be true. As a
Labour government we are supporting Kiwis through this time,
just as we have during COVID.
Aotearoa New Zealand is
resilient. We have shown that when we stick together we can
take on any foe. We have the innovation, the talent, the
resources to come through this period, and to thrive and to
grow. Amidst the challenges lie great opportunities to build
our nation to be ever more strong, caring and
prosperous.
And I also know this my friends- it is
only with Labour in government that this will
happen.
As we face these challenging economic times,
we know that we have a better starting point than most other
countries. You don’t need to take my word for that. It is
the message given to us by the IMF, the OECD and the major
credit ratings agencies who have either improved or
maintained our ratings through the COVID
pandemic.
That starting point comes from a simple
proposition. While there was no playbook for COVID, we
trusted in our values and in our wellbeing approach. We knew
that the best economic response was a strong health
response. Go hard, go early. Save lives, and save
livelihoods.
There were no costless decisions in
COVID, and while we would never try to claim perfection, I
am proud of our response.
And at this point I want to
acknowledge the person who has led us, who has led our
country through all of that and more. My friend and your
Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern.
I have been fortunate
enough to have travelled overseas a couple of times this
year, and without fail everywhere I have been from
Birmingham to New York and in between people have wanted to
tell me how much they appreciate the leadership, the empathy
and plain old common sense that Jacinda has shown.
We
are in the strong position to deal with all that the world
is throwing at us right now because of you Jacinda, and we
are so very grateful for your extraordinary wisdom,
leadership and kindness.
This week we again saw the
strength of our starting point. A near-record low
unemployment rate in New Zealand of 3.3%. In the past three
months 35,000 more people went into jobs. There are now 2.85
million New Zealanders in work. Rates of unemployment for
Maori and Pacific peoples are near their historic lows. More
women are in the workforce.
And delegates this did not
happen by accident. We have worked hard to equip our people
with the skills they need to get jobs. When I am asked to
pick what I am the most proud of in our response to COVID I
often highlight our move to make apprenticeships and
targeted trade training free. More than 215,000 people, the
equivalent of the population of Hamilton, have benefited
from that policy.
Some economists and politicians seem
to think we should work towards unemployment. You will never
hear me apologise for the low rate of unemployment or for
people getting into work. The other day I read the story of
Riley Crump-Shrouder, who recently got work as a digger
driver. He is loving his job, and here is what his Mum said:
“Starting this job, it’s like he’s got this thrill to
live, there’s a reason to get up in the morning, and
he’s just excited for every day.”
Work is about
more than just getting paid; it is about dignity and feeling
part of something more than yourself. Labour is, and always
will be the party of decent work.
Delegates, I know
that it has been tough going for many businesses finding
staff in recent times. Alongside the skills and training we
are investing in, we have reset our immigration system to
focus on more efficiently supporting businesses to fill the
skills gaps they have.
We have already approved more
than 35,000 working holiday visas to support our tourism and
hospitality industries as they approach a bumper summer
season. More than 70,000 job checks have been completed
ready for work visas to be granted.
So we face these
challenging times with New Zealanders in work. And we also
do it with wages growing. Average ordinary time hourly
earnings are up 7.4% over the past year. According to
Statistics New Zealand this is the largest rise in earnings
since records began more than 30 years ago.
We have
other reasons to feel optimistic.
· Our level of
public debt is among the lowest in the OECD,
· Our
economy is nearly 5% bigger than it was before
COVID.
· Our export performance has held up. The
world still wants to buy what we are selling. New Zealand is
in demand.
· Our economy is strong.
I
appreciate that this strong starting point does not
translate to every business or every family in our country
as they face the rising cost of living. That is the reason
why we have stepped up to support New Zealanders.
That
is why we have lifted benefits in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Hundreds of thousands of families are better off by an
average of $181 per week since we came into office. We have
boosted the family tax credit and the minimum wage, provided
the winter energy payment, the cost of living payment, cut
fuel tax and provided half price public transport and
more.
I recently heard Christopher Luxon say that tax
cuts were not the only way to support low and middle income
people. Well, congratulations for working that one out Mr
Luxon. But here is the rub. Every initiative I have just
mentioned has been opposed by National. Every chance to
support lifting wages and protecting working people, they
have opposed.
And didn’t we see that when National
opposed the Fair Pay Agreements legislation a couple of
weeks back. For me, passing that law was about something
very important. It was about dismantling the system that
National put in place in the early 1990s that was designed
to drive down the wages and conditions of working
people.
Our government, a Labour government, has
turned that on its head to give some of our lowest paid
workers, our essential workers a fair chance at bargaining
for fair pay. That, delegates is something to be proud
of.
And the response from National showed just how out
of touch they are. And at every opportunity they go looking
backwards for their ideas.
Be it Nicola Willis
reheating Bill English’s leftovers on social investment or
Paul Goldsmith invoking the political ghost of Ruth
Richardson in the Fair Pay debate.
The tune has never
changed for National. The band used to be called Ruth
Richardson and The Knights of the Round Table, now it’s
called Chris Luxon and the TrickleDowners.
Or should
that be Liz Luxon? I mean, even the UK Conservatives worked
out that tax cuts for the wealthiest were a mistake. But
here, National are sticking to it. Christopher Luxon is
trying to out-Truss Liz Truss. Economic credibility be
damned, there is an ideology to serve.
As my colleague
Willie Jackson has said, Chris Luxon might be flipping
burgers at McDonalds, but the only people he is serving are
the wealthy few.
Delegates, while we rectify the
injustices of the past, we must also look to the future.
While we support people through the cost of living
increases, we must also lay the ground work for higher wage
jobs. While we ensure a strong fiscal position we must
invest in low-carbon, climate-friendly
policies.
Because in these challenging times there are
opportunities. Taking action on climate change is a moral
and environmental imperative. It also turns out to be an
economic one too. Around the world the people who want to
invest in our country, who want to buy our goods are asking
the same question: how are you reducing your impact on the
planet? Do you know the climate impact of your supply
chain?
Our reputation is good in this space, but we
have to back it with action. That is why I am proud as a
government that we have passed the Zero Carbon Act, agreed
the carbon budgets, developed the Emissions Reductions Plan
and funded action through the Climate Emergency Response
Fund. Now is the time to press on to develop green hydrogen,
renewable energy like offshore wind, to be the first in the
world to price agricultural emissions and to develop the
technology to reduce them.
When it comes to climate
change our National opponents have never moved from their
view – deny, delay, defer. I saw an extraordinary
statement from Christopher Luxon this week. He said National
was “deeply committed” to the Net Zero Carbon 2050 goal.
And in the next sentence he said National would work with
potential investors to return to further gas exploration.
That is like a pyromaniac telling you they are a big fan of
fire safety.
National are stuck in the last century.
Out of touch and out of ideas.
By contrast our
economic plan is a 21st Century one. Our economic plan is
about high wage jobs, reducing emissions and providing
economic security for all. It is a plan for nation
building.
So that is why we will keep investing in
skills and training. In research and development, in
building our trade links and our trade agreements. It’s
why we will support Maori and Pacific businesses and whanau
to grow and flourish.
We will keep investing in
transforming our industries to provide the high wage jobs.
Be it the Centre of Digital Excellence in Dunedin, the
aerospace industry in Canterbury, Manuka honey in
Tairawhiti, advanced manufacturing here in South Auckland or
cutting edge horticultural technology in the Bay of
Plenty.
With our Industry Transformation Plans we are
leading the way.
We are building a nation of
innovation, creativity and inclusion. And we are building
that nation on a record level of investment in
infrastructure. Nearly $60 billion over the next five years.
In rail, in coastal shipping, in digital connectivity.
Building schools and hospitals, building housing at a rate
not seen in this country since the days of Norman
Kirk.
And we are taking the decisions we need to give
ourselves economic security into the future –developing
the income insurance scheme and making sure that Kiwibank
stayed 100% in Kiwi hands.
And yes, it means facing up
to the issues that have been kicked down the road for too
long like reform of the RMA and Three Waters.
The easy
thing to do would have been to have put this in the too hard
basket, but that is not what a responsible government does.
A responsible government needs to take action so that rates
do not need to rise unnecessarily.
Every New Zealander
needs to know that the water that they drink is safe, that
the pipes won’t burst on a weekly basis, that we are safe
in the face of floods and storms. I want to acknowledge my
friend and colleague Nanaia Mahuta for her exceptional
leadership on this issue.
We have got used to taking
tough decisions. There have been plenty of them over the
last few years. And as we weather the economic storm over
the coming months we will need to make some more.
We
will continue our balanced approach. Investing in the public
services we need. Supporting people to meet their cost of
living. And carefully managing our finances. We have
invested a lot on behalf of New Zealanders to get through
COVID. We now have to carefully moderate our rates of
spending to rebuild our finances. It is all about a balance,
and a sense of fairness.
There are tough choices
ahead. But I tell you this delegates, a Labour government
will never put the burden of those choices on those who can
least afford it. We will not cut the services that are their
lifelines. We will not preach austerity, while lining our
pockets with tax cuts as National would do.
The choice
for New Zealanders at the election next year is clear. Our
Labour team who have shepherded New Zealand through tough
times, who have the compassion, the experience and the focus
on the future.
Or the National Party –
inexperienced, out of touch and stuck in the
past.
Christopher Luxon’s number one priority is to
give tax cuts to the wealthiest New Zealanders during a Cost
of Living crisis. It was the first policy he announced when
he took the job.
This is the man who thinks workers on
the minimum wage – perhaps even those at McDonalds – are
“Bottom Feeders”.
It’s disgraceful that a person
who purports to want to lead New Zealand would say such a
thing.
The choice that National has made is for
Christopher Luxon to give himself a tax cut worth more than
$18,000 a year while someone earning the minimum wage would
get $2 a week.
And still at the same time they are
promising to spend more on health and housing and defence
and more, but mysteriously they will not have to increase
debt. Of course they won’t actually cost their policy so
we can judge how it could possibly add up.
National
are a party still firmly lost at sea in their Fiscal Bermuda
Triangle. Their tax policy is unfunded, uncosted and unfair.
It does not add up. You cannot trust National on
tax.
And they are doubling-down on
trickle-down.
National’s rigid adherence to
austerity economics would be dangerous for New
Zealand.
We have seen before what happens under a
National Government that believes in austerity.
We
have seen before what goes on the chopping block at the time
when National decides to cut taxes for the rich or sell our
national assets to the highest bidder.
The cuts that
National makes have real-life consequences for New Zealand
families and Kiwi kids.
That is what is at stake next
year.
And, so delegates this is my promise to you, and
to every New Zealander: Under a Labour Government led by
Jacinda Ardern, as we move on from the emergency COVID
response, and through the global economic challenges we
face, we will be guided by our values as a Labour
Party.
Our values that underpinned our response to
COVID.
Our belief in social justice, dignity, fairness
and equality will guide our decisions to focus on what
matters most for you and your family. We will be careful, we
will be balanced, we will be fair.
Kia maia, kia
atawhai, kia kaha.
Be bold, be kind, be
strong.
We’ve got
this.
