National and Labour singing the same old economic song

The Alliance Party says National and Labour are squabbling over meaningless details of economic policy while the gap between wage rates in New Zealand and Australia grows larger.

Alliance Economic Development Spokesperson Quentin Findlay says the problem is that both parties are stuck with the same mindset.

Mr Findlay says it was a painful experience listening to National’s Gerry Brownie and Labour’s David Parker arguing this morning on Radio New Zealand and compared the debate that they had to two cats fighting in a locked laundry – producing a lot of noise but not much sense.

"Both National and Labour's policies have been fixated on short term goals while ignoring long term goals that must be achieved by comprehensive planning."

Mr Findlay says New Zealanders should be asking what we want our economy to deliver and how our economy should be run to deliver those goals.

He says both National and Labour are still stuck with free market ideology, but the problem with this approach was that the free market had a short term focus.

Further, what was in the best interests of the free market was often not in the best interests of the majority of people, Mr Findlay says.

“Over the past decades we have seen ongoing deregulation that is responsible for lowering wages and productivity in New Zealand.”

Mr Findlay says changes such as the rewriting of the Reserve Bank Act in 1989 to remove the goal of full employment, the introduction of employment laws which ended awards and comprehensive Union representation, and free trade agreements which forced jobs offshore to countries where people were forced to work for very low wages and in poor conditions.

"All of these policies have been implemented by either National or Labour."

Mr Findlay says the Alliance promotes a long term comprehensive economic plan for New Zealand and economic reforms that benefited the majority of New Zealanders.

“The Alliance would place goals such as full employment and a high standard of living at the centre of New Zealand’s economic policy. To achieve those goals a comprehensive plan for economic development is required. This could be headed by an organization similar to the former New Zealand Planning Council.”

The Alliance would restore award rates and labour regulations which are common in other developed countries and implement a sensible system of tariffs and licensing designed to stimulate ‘fair trade’.

“Only through a planned and social economy can wage and salary rates be lifted to comparable levels to Australia and other Western nations,” Mr Findlay says.

ENDS

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