Source: New Zealand Labour Party
We know it’s tough right now with the rising cost of living. Buying food is an essential cost, but with high global inflation, many families are facing tighter budgets – and food can be expensive.
Chris Hipkins and Labour are focussed on supporting New Zealanders by reducing the everyday cost pressures households face, without adding to inflation.
Here are the details:
Labour has just announced the next steps in our Cost of Living Plan – we will take GST off fruit and vegetables from 1 April next year, saving families around $20 a month.
One of the biggest issues for New Zealanders right now is stubbornly high food prices, due to factors like high global inflation and the extreme weather events New Zealand experienced this year. Fruit and vegetable prices have increased a lot, up 22% over the past year, as growers and supply chains felt the impacts.
We can’t control the weather, but we can do something about prices. By removing GST from fresh and frozen fruit and vege, we’re easing the pressure on Kiwis at the checkout, and making it easier to put healthy food on the table.
The Grocery Commissioner will monitor supermarkets, and report publicly to make sure that the actual cost benefits are passed on by supermarkets to New Zealanders. We will be tasking the newly established Grocery Commissioner with ensuring that supermarkets and other grocery outlets are not profiting from this policy change.
Fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables will have GST removed, but this won’t apply to canned and dried items, or to juices. There are boundaries everywhere in the tax system and we’re confident tax officials can make it work.
While this change won’t fix everything, it will make weekly shop cheaper for New Zealand families.
Chris Hipkins and Labour have a plan to take practical steps to reduce cost of living pressures and help families get ahead. Our cost of living plan includes free doctor’s prescriptions, 20 hours free ECE for two year olds, free or half price public transport for children and young people and now GST off fruit and vegetables – and there’s more to come. You can find out more about Labour’s Cost of Living Plan here.
New Zealanders have a clear choice this election. Christopher Luxon and National will push reckless policies that will cut taxes for the wealthiest New Zealanders and cut support for everyone else. National will increase the cost of medicine, ECE and childcare, public transport and fruit and veges. Now is not the time to put Labour’s support for families at risk.
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