22 November 2010 Media Statement

Desperate people can’t think about the future

The National Government’s policies are forcing low-income Kiwis to focus on where the next meal is coming from for their kids rather than thinking about a better future, says Labour’s Pacific Island Affairs spokesperson Su’a Williams Sio.

Su’a William Sio said that the findings of a nationwide HorizonPoll survey of 1558 people --- showing 53.5 percent of people feeling they were worse off after National’s tax changes --- mirrored what he had found while door-knocking during the Mana by election campaign.

“The policies of this Government are designed to keep those who they see as the rats running round in circles for a morsel of cheese,” Su’a William Sio said.

“It really sticks in my throat that National is claiming some sort of victory in the by-election.

“The truth is that it is always difficult for most low income families to get involved in a by-election like this and to think about improving the future when they are more concerned about the everyday reality of with putting food on the table and worrying about their kids doing well at school,” Su’a William Sio said.

“It doesn’t surprise me at all that the survey shows only 8.2 percent of people feel better off after National’s tax changes, that 53.5 percent feel worse off and 35.6 percent feel their situation is unchanged.

“While wealthy Kiwis are definitely better off under National’s tax switch, low-income Kiwis are being ground further and further into misery,” Su’a William Sio said. “They can’t find jobs and they can see no way of getting ahead.

“Low-income people can’t think about the future, let alone about voting in a by-election, when they are being forced to focus on just surviving.

“If National had any sense of what is happening to low-income Kiwis, including Pacific people and Maori, under their watch, or any sense of compassion, they wouldn’t be patting themselves on the back about anything.”

ENDS

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