Source: New Zealand Parliament – Hansard
Question No. 3—Finance
3. NICOLA WILLIS (Deputy Leader—National) to the Minister of Finance: Does he agree with the statement by the Reserve Bank in its August Monetary Policy Statement that “domestic inflationary pressures had increased since May”, and what role, if any, does he think Government policy has played in that?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): In response to the first part of the question, yes. New Zealand’s inflation rate has increased to an annual rate of 7.3 percent in the June quarter 2022. The domestic labour market is clearly the tightest it has been in a generation. However, the fact that both the Reserve Bank and a wide range of observers are suggesting that the annual inflation rate has peaked is an encouraging sign and indicates that the steps that the Reserve Bank has taken so far to contain inflation are working. With regard to the second part of the question, over the period the member is referring to, the Government has enacted temporary reductions in fuel excise duty and road-user charges to soften the impact of high petrol prices and introduced half-price public transport, which have in fact put downwards pressure on the Consumers Price Index (CPI).
Nicola Willis: Does he agree with the Reserve Bank that the very tight labour market is adding to high CPI inflation, and does he concede that the Government’s restrictive immigration settings have contributed to that?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: As I said in my answer to the primary question, indeed we do have one of the tightest labour markets we’ve seen for a generation. In the period that the member is referring to in her primary question, the Government began enacting its immigration reset and the borders reopened in order to help address those issues.
Nicola Willis: Does he think that’s been very successful?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I think actually that the opening of the borders has been extremely successful. We’re seeing tourists come in. We’re more people apply. We’re seeing the accredited work visa system come into being. On this side of the House we’re extremely proud of the fact that during the period of COVID, we have seen unemployment fall to the lowest level on record. The member might want to see unemployment increase; on this side of the House we don’t.
Nicola Willis: Does he stand by his statement that the cost of living payment is targeted, and, if so, why did the Government target the payment to overseas nationals who declared taxable income for their investment properties?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I reject that part of the member’s question. The cost of living payment was far more targeted than the policy the member advocates of giving tax cuts to the highest income earners. I’m surprised we haven’t heard the U-turn on that after the polling about it, but the member’s sticking with it. New Zealanders don’t want it and it’s the wrong thing to do.
Nicola Willis: Does the Minister reject the fact that clients in China who don’t live in New Zealand but have investment properties in New Zealand have declared taxable income here and received the cost of living payment, and if he does deny that, will he join my call for the Auditor-General to look into these serious claims?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: What I am saying is that the criteria that the Government set for the payment is extremely clear.
Nicola Willis: Point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek leave to table a document.
SPEAKER: What is the document?
Nicola Willis: The document is a message I have received on Facebook from someone about clients in China receiving the cost of living payment while not living in New Zealand.
SPEAKER: Just a question—is it a Facebook Messenger message?
Nicola Willis: Yes.
SPEAKER: Is there any objection to that document being tabled? There appears to be none.
Document, by leave, laid on the Table of the House.
