Politics Blog
Forget 100 day plans, Barbara Edmonds just released a 'first week' plan
Labour's finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds has just finished a press conference at Parliament where she outlined her plan for her first week in the finance minister job should Labour win the election.
It included:
It included:
- Start work on public transport fare caps, free GP visits and a law to ban price gouging and break up the supermarkets
- Start work on capital gains tax
- Direct the Public Service Commissioner to stop further public service cuts
- Meet the Treasury on day one, get the full picture and set out expectations to get to surplus and bring debt down
- Write to the Reserve Bank to make sure they support maximum sustainable employment as well as focusing on low inflation when setting monetary policy
- Direct Treasury to start work on the NZ Future Fund
- Instruct officials to deliver a $4 an hour pay rise for care and support workers from 1 January 2027.
- Start work on wiping 10% off student loan balances on 1 April 2027.
- Instruct officials to draft a law so big businesses pay small suppliers within 15 days, and start work on a $10,000 asset write-off from 1 July 2027.
- Increase taxes on tobacco companies from 1 January 2027.
Asked if the list was achievable in the first week in government, Edmonds conceded that a lot of the list was simply directing officials to start work on Labour's priorities.
"The key thing for us is to be really crystal clear with officials. This work needs to get done, and the legislation that supports it also needs to be started on as well."
Asked whether restoring the dual mandate to the Reserve Bank would risk New Zealanders facing higher inflation, Edmonds said she wanted to ensure the bank took the impact of unemployment into its decision making.
"Price stability will always be the primary factor, but by ensuring that there's a dual mandate, it also means they need to take into account the impact of that on jobs. This is not radical. Other countries in the world also have a dual mandate, including Australia," she said.
Edmonds said if Labour won, she was confident Hipkins could form a government by Christmas.