Source: New Zealand Labour Party
Throughout the pandemic, we’ve worked hard to protect lives and livelihoods – and thanks to these efforts, our economy is now recovering faster than almost anywhere else in the world.
The latest figures show that as we take the next steps in our economic plan, our recovery is gaining momentum.
GDP was up 3% in the last quarter – outperforming many of the countries we compare ourselves to. Our robust economy means we’re now in a good position to support New Zealanders with cost of living pressures, through initiatives like our 1 April income boosts and our fuel tax cuts. Read more out how these changes are benefiting more than one million Kiwis.
We’re managing the economy responsibly, keeping debt low while making targeted investments to lift incomes, support vital services like health and education, and get critical infrastructure built. Our careful management of the Government books means our debt levels are much lower than those of many other countries – and our strong fiscal position is also helping to pay down debt faster.
We’ve worked hard to protect jobs and back Kiwi businesses through COVID-19, with support like our wage subsidies, the Resurgence Support Payment and interest-free loans all cushioning the impact of the global pandemic. We’ve also taken action to support more people into work, through programmes like free trades training and apprenticeships, Mana in Mahi and Jobs for Nature. Thanks to these efforts, unemployment is at the lowest level on record. Read more about how we’re supporting people into work.
As we continue our recovery, we’re also making progress on the other big issues facing New Zealand like housing. Thanks to initiatives like our Housing Acceleration Fund and our work to take action on property speculators, supply is ramping up – with a record number of new homes being consented in the past year. See more of our progress on housing.
Our strong health response has prevented the devastation we’ve seen overseas, saving thousands of lives and protecting our economy from widespread disruption. Our world-leading response and our high vaccination rates now make us a really attractive travel destination for overseas visitors – helping to further boost our economic recovery as we begin to welcome back the world. Read more about our reconnecting plan.
We know there is more to do, especially as global challenges like rising inflation, supply chain issues and the war in Ukraine all have an economic impact here in New Zealand. However, these graphs show that as we move forward with our recovery, we’re heading in the right direction – and our plan is working.
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