National Confused About Overseas Investment Position

National is still confused over whether it wants to encourage or discourage overseas investment in New Zealand farmland, says Labour Associate Finance spokesperson David Parker.

“Prime Minister John Key continues to run hot and cold on farm sales,” David Parker said. “Today he is saying that a review of the overseas investment regime is likely to stop the sell-off large tracts of land to foreign buyers, and yet the review, initiated by Finance Minister Bill English in March last year, had the express aim of ensuring applications to the Overseas Investment Office could be approved more easily.

“And now John Key is also saying that a second review may have to be done after the first review is completed, because issues around the definitions of sensitive land are still being worked through.

“The issue is further complicated because John Key is on record as saying he is concerned about the implications of selling the Crafar farms to a large Chinese consortium, but he is not so concerned about the sale of individual farms,” David Parker said.

“Where’s the consistency in that? There is none. If he’s so worried about one corporation buying up a block of farms, why isn’t he worried about overseas buyers buying up lots of individual farms, which adds up to the same thing.

“Our precious farming land, the source of most of our export earnings, should be priced to New Zealand market levels, not to an overseas market New Zealanders might not be able to compete with. The bank’s interest is not necessarily the New Zealand interest,” David Parker said.

“National is also confused about strategic asset sales. Bill English says he does not know what our strategic assets are. In Labour, we do know. Infrastructure assets which have monopoly characteristics are strategic assets should not be sold overseas. Such assets always make profits which should not be exported overseas.

“Infrastructure assets are especially important to the functioning of our wider economy, and ought to be run in the New Zealand interest,” David Parker said. “This is best achieved by New Zealand owners whose broader interests are more likely to be aligned to New Zealand’s.

“Labour is opposed to loosening rules on overseas investment, and is not convinced the sale of dairy farms to foreign owners is in New Zealand’s interests.

“National continues to be at sixes and sevens, and is sending mixed messages to both New Zealanders and overseas investors.”

ENDS

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