Source: New Zealand Parliament – Hansard
ORAL QUESTIONS
QUESTIONS TO MINISTERS
Question No. 1—Finance
1. BARBARA EDMONDS (Labour—Mana) to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he seen on the New Zealand economy?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): The latest Xero Small Business Index has shown that businesses have remained resilient despite Omicron affecting staffing. Sales grew 3.7 percent year on year while jobs grew 2.7 percent. Wage growth was above 4 percent in all regions. Overall, the index jumped 20 points, to 134, the highest level since the series began in 2017. This was largely driven by a significant fall in the time small businesses waited to be paid, to 21.3 days, which is the lowest result since the series started.
Barbara Edmonds: What announcements has he seen on alleviating skills shortages for the economy?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Today, the Prime Minister announced changes to immigration settings to accelerate growth and help address long-term challenges. The rebalance will simplify our immigration systems, reduce the number of categories, make it more accessible online, and streamline application processes for businesses. The cornerstone of the rebalance is the new green list, which will provide a streamlined and prioritised pathway to residence, incentivising high-skilled healthcare, engineers, trade, and ICT workers to relocate to New Zealand long term. The list features 85 hard-to-fill roles including construction, engineering, trades, health workers, and tech. Through the accredited employer work visa, employers won’t need to provide as much information and can use their own recruitment processes to prove that no New Zealanders are available for work, and Immigration New Zealand will endeavour to have these visas processed within 40 days. This overall reset will help businesses access the skills they need while ensuring wages and working conditions are improved for everyone.
Barbara Edmonds: What other reports has he seen on the economy?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Statistics New Zealand yesterday reported that retail spending using debit and credit cards rose a higher than expected 7 percent in April compared with the previous month. Core retail sales saw a strong increase of 7.4 percent in April, with gains in spending, consumables, durables, hospitality, and apparel. Westpac’s economists said they expected further increases in spending over the next few months given the continued easing in health restrictions, including the opening of the international border, helping to support a recovery in the hospitality sector. However, we know that New Zealanders are doing it tough as global factors push up the cost of living, and we’re continuing to support low and middle income earners through reductions in their fuel bills and income increases.
