“A timely report from the New Zealand Initiative confirms that New Zealand needs policy that improves productivity. Printing money and sharing it around for political reasons won’t work and may lead to catastrophe,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“The report catalogues the history of countries, Japan in particular, that have used soft money to pump up asset prices. As Japan’s ‘lost decades’ show, printing and borrowing money is no substitute for actual economic growth where people produce more valuable good and services.

“Unfortunately, New Zealand policy has encouraged soft money to hide real problems, while the Government has mismanaged COVID-19 and waged war on productive people with its social agenda.

“The dual mandate, asking the Reserve Bank to pursue employment levels as well as price stability, has coincided with record low interest rates that have been very slow to rise despite inflation being back in a big way. Low interest rates, along with the Large Scale Asset Purchase and Funding for Lending programmes have led to record house price growth, endangering the entire economy.

“Meanwhile, the Government has attacked the extractive industries, threatened 1890s style labour law they call 'fair pay' agreements, unleashed an avalanche of regulation on farmers, and made it harder for foreigners to send money to New Zealand by tightening the Overseas Investment Act.

“In the long term, New Zealand’s future is even bleaker due to the actions of this Government. This Government said it would put children at the centre of everything but thought it more important to close charter schools for ideological reasons that adopt a policy that was working. Children will learn more about the Treaty of Waitangi than the global economy under this Government’s social engineering of education.

“New Zealand needs to heed the Initiative’s report. There is no viable path to prosperity other than producing goods and services that people want at a price they’re prepared to pay, and doing it better, year after year.

“The Government needs to stop printing money and start printing better laws, or we’ll all go broke.”

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