“It’s only Tuesday, but already Labour has shown multiple times that it is a government of waste, and Kiwis need to chuck them on the landfill come October,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“So far this week we’ve seen:

• $158m worth of Rapid Antigen Tests going to waste.
• The Prime Minister needing to bring a spare plane with him overseas because he’s worried about a breakdown. The fuel bill for the bonus Boeing would have been in the vicinity of $150,000 when he could just book a seat on AirNZ like anyone else if he needed to.
• Four Oranga Tamariki staff being paid two years of full salary while under investigation for potentially abusive behaviour.
• $5 million to a skifield, to keep them going for another season after Labour destroyed tourism with illogical COVID restrictions.
• $128 million to universities who had one of their most profitable income streams taken away by COVID rules locking people out of the country. After already spending $350m per year on Fees Free.

“All of that waste in less than 48 hours. The way things are going they’ll have to mortgage Stewart Island before the week is over just to keep the lights on.

“Some of these examples are a reminder of how the Government lost all sight of responsible spending during the COVID-19 pandemic, some are flat out incompetence, and some are just extravagance. The one thing they all have in common is that New Zealanders can’t afford it.

“Life is becoming less affordable due to their poor economic management. Grant Robertson’s buy now, pay later approach of flooding New Zealand with borrowed money is condemning future generations of New Zealanders.

“The next Government needs to raise productivity and wages, make the government’s books sustainable, and create a culture where work, savings, investment, and innovation are rewarded. A fiscally-responsible Government can take the pressure of inflation and let Kiwis keep more of their money through tax cuts. All that is needed is a bit of political fortitude.

“ACT has a fully costed tax cut package that is built on aspiration for New Zealand. We would cut wasteful spending by $38 billion without touching frontline services, and cut taxes by $34 billion over four years. These savings will put the Government’s books back in the black straight away, taking pressure off inflation.

“New Zealanders need not just an economically literate Government, but a Government that offers a vision of real change. Right now, ACT is offering that.”

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