16 August 2005

Hon Matt Robson MP, Progressive Deputy Leader

National's ‘borrow and hope’ would destroy NZ Super viability

National's agenda in 2005, promising a return to the Muldoonist policies of borrow and hope, would destroy the viability of National Super, Progressive MP Matt Robson warned today.

"There is far too much at stake in the election for any superannuitant to risk voting for National and its sidekick, NZ First," Matt Robson told a Waitakere Grey Power meeting in Henderson.

"National is threatening to significantly increase government borrowings in order to deliver indiscriminate, across-the-board income tax cuts that would mainly benefit those already on high incomes. We had this type of borrow and hope programme between 1975 and 1984 under the Muldoon-led National government and it delivered higher mortgage interest rates, higher unemployment, brought the economy to its knees and eventually led to a series of broken promises on National Super.

"If New Zealand had had in contrast pro-industry and regional development policies in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s instead of Muldoonism and its twin sister Rogernomics, then we could instead have experienced 1% higher growth a year than what we had to endure.

"Just 1% higher growth a year since the 1970s would have today delivered $175 a week extra in the pocket for the average worker, a 50% increase in spending on health services for Kiwis and $4.2 billion more investment a year in education services for our people, and far more generous provision for our retired folk.

"In other words, if we as a nation had avoided Muldoonism and Rogernomics we would today have had a living standard equivalent to Australia's. It is only since 1999 that New Zealand has started to out-perform Australia and it is only over the past six years that we have started to turn the tide in Kiwis' favour," Matt Robson said.

"My message to superannuitants is that if you support increasing the floor of National Super and believe our retired people deserve additional financial support to pay for winter power bills, then give your party vote to Progressive so we can continue to deliver policies promoting a strong economy that can sustainably pay for increasing investment in social dividends to the benefit of the young and not-so-young of our country.

ENDS

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