Category: Council Of Trade Unions

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

Nicola Willis has today agreed with NZCTU analysis that shows less than 0.2% of New Zealand households will receive the advertised $252 a fortnight rate claimed by National.

NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff also agreed with Willis, in her belief that the NZCTU must stand for working people.

“That is exactly why we won’t back anyone who wants to strip away Fair Pay Agreements from hundreds of thousands of New Zealand’s lowest paid workers.

“We won’t support anyone who wants to reintroduce 90-day trials – something the Treasury has shown doesn’t work and leads to insecurity and exploitation. We won’t support people who don’t support increases in the Minimum Wage”.

“We won’t support a tax plan that is balanced by taking $2 billion from 350,000 low-income New Zealanders on benefits. We won’t back a plan that relies on making thousands of public servants redundant and cutting essential public services. We won’t back a plan that takes $2 billion out of climate change action and puts it in the pockets of landlords.”

Wagstaff said he would love to see the National Party deliver policies and programmes that would genuinely support working people across New Zealand. “But their proposed policies for the government would instead make life harder for working people right across Aotearoa.”

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

National has finally released its fiscal plan after much delay and it reveals a plan to cut the incomes and essential public services the poorest New Zealanders rely on, just so they can pay for tax cuts for landlords and the well-off, says NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff.

“Cutting $2 billion from benefits during a cost-of-living crisis is cruel. These are the New Zealanders who can least afford a cut and who get $2 a week if they’re lucky from National’s tax cuts, and they would lose $40 a week in benefit cuts. On top of that, National would be putting up the price of public transport and prescription drugs.

“This doesn’t just affect workers who are out of a job, it also targets disabled New Zealanders and people with chronic illnesses. Why is National attacking these Kiwis who have the least?

“Additionally, National has confirmed that it plans to strip billions out of public services that are already under huge strain with current resources. The scale of the cuts that will be required to fund National’s fiscal plan will be felt deeply whether it’s at our borders, in our justice system, protecting our environment, or in numerous other areas of public sector activity.

“National’s claims that they can save billions by firing a few comms staff (who do vital working informing and consulting with the public) is pure fiction,” said Wagstaff.

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions says it beggars belief that National Leader Christopher Luxon can retain confidence in his finance spokesperson Nicola Willis after the latest revelations about the size of the hole in its tax plan.

As reported on RNZ today, two respected economists, working with property experts CoreLogic, show National’s Foreign Buyer Tax would raise just $210m a year compared to National’s optimistic estimates of $740 million.

“This amounts to a staggering hole of more than $2 billion over the four-year forecast period,” said CTU President Richard Wagstaff.

“The CTU has said all along that National’s tax plan doesn’t add up and the weight of expert evidence continues to mount daily, confirming a huge headache for National – the credibility of finance spokesperson Nicola Willis is at stake here.

“We call on Christopher Luxon to express confidence in Ms Willis and explain how the Foreign Buyer Tax will work and release the reports which they are relying on instead of resorting to the sweeping and shallow defences he has made to date. He needs to front up and answer the hard questions journalists are asking every day.

“There is too much at stake here. If the numbers don’t add up as many now suspect, and a huge fiscal hole to the tune of billions of dollars opens up, a National-ACT government would have to take an even sharper axe to public services and slash and burn core services should it form the next government.

“Nicola Willis has said she wants to cut $600 million in public sector spending by Christmas. Clearly, the cuts would be more severe to make the tax plan work – they would need to more than double – and that means the public service would be incapacitated and unable to function effectively.

“National needs to come clean on what those cuts will mean for New Zealanders – without a doubt services New Zealanders need across health, education, justice, welfare, conservation, biosecurity, customs and much more are at risk.  

“Mr Luxon makes a lot of his corporate record – but no leader of a listed company would stand for this shambolic accounting.

“This election is all about earning the right to lead New Zealand. Right now, Mr Luxon is not doing enough to prove he’s got what it takes. He needs to front up with evidence and numbers that add up, or own up to the fact that his plan is not fit for purpose.”

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

Treasury data released today shows a resilient economy, but one with long-term challenges that need to be addressed to make sure that New Zealanders benefit from future economic growth, said CTU Economist and Director of Policy Craig Renney. The Treasury forecasts show that government debt will continue to be low by international standards, and unemployment will continue to be lower than the long-run. Wages will continue to grow faster than inflation, with record migration driving house prices higher in the future.

Craig Renney said “While it is pleasing to see growth returning in the economy, we need to make sure that the benefits of that growth are being equally shared. That means making sure that the government is continuing to invest in essential public services. It means making sure that benefits and pensions rise in line with wages, rather than with inflation. Maintaining fiscal control is important, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of leaving the most vulnerable New Zealanders behind.

Renney said “Whoever is in government after the election will be faced with the same set of choices. The test is how they respond to them. Spending cuts and tax giveaways, or maintaining the public services that we all rely upon. Treasury data today shows that we should take heart from the resilience of the economy. What we choose to use that resilience for will determine the outcomes for New Zealanders”.

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

The National Party has identified nearly $2.5bn of cuts to public services to pay for its tax programme, but an analysis by the CTU shows that this includes services many New Zealanders would consider front-line, says CTU Economist and Director of Policy Craig Renney. “National targets what it calls back office government bureaucracies. But the areas in scope of the cuts include courts, biosecurity, and cybersecurity. These aren’t back-office services”.

“Troublingly, the areas identified for cuts also include work on family violence and sexual violence. It includes serious fraud. It includes food safety. These are not areas that should be under the microscope for cuts. These should be areas where there is cross-party consensus that we need to invest more”.

National’s numbers come from Treasury data published at the last Budget. This has given the CTU the ability to identify what is within National’s savings programme. If we concentrate on the truly ‘non-front line’ the size of the cuts necessary to achieve National’s target rises nearly 5-fold – to 31% of spending. The reality is deeper and deeper cuts to public services, or no tax changes.

Craig Renney said “This analysis adds to the existing problems facing National’s tax plan. The cuts to public services will have to get even bigger if their overseas tax measures fail to bring in the $3.6bn necessary. National says that $2.3bn in tax cuts for landlords are necessary, but it hasn’t identified why possible cuts to front line services, such as search and rescue, are necessary”.

Craig Renney said “National should provide voters with clarity about how it will achieve such potentially deep cuts to public services. There are only a few weeks left until early voting opens, which only adds to the urgency. New Zealanders deserve to know how National will make its sums work, without cutting the essential services that are in their sights”.

Example areas within the scope of National’s savings programme:

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions has launched its 2023 election campaign focused on why a National-led government will leave working people worse off.

“Christopher Luxon and National will take New Zealand backwards and working people will be the first to feel the pain,” said NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff.

“The buck stops with Christopher Luxon. He’s the leader, these are his policies. People need to take notice of that.

“We are running a strong, evidence-based campaign which sets out why Christopher Luxon and National are out of touch with what matters to the lives of working people – and out of touch with the challenges New Zealand faces.

“It’s not just us. A Newshub poll in May found nearly half of New Zealanders thought he was out of touch.

“Anyone who thinks the answer is a $10 per week tax cut for someone on the minimum wage, and savage cuts to public services, has to be seriously out of touch.”

The NZCTU said the campaign would focus on the clear evidence of what National is promising:

• Fair Pay Agreements would be abolished – these provide minimum protections for workers and prevent the race to the bottom, by cutting the wages of the most vulnerable workers.
• 90-day trials for workers would be reinstated – there is no evidence these help businesses hire workers. In fact, it is the opposite, it will be easier to lay off workers for no reason.
• Minimum wage rises would be restrained – National promises to raise the minimum wage every year, but we know National’s track record is poor. Under the current government minimum wages rises have increased the fortnightly income of those workers by $556 since 2017.
• Tax breaks for landlords and speculators would make a comeback – these fuel the property market and simply enrich property investors, making it harder to buy a first home and pushing up rents.
• Public transport costs for many low-paid workers would rise, along with prescription charges.
• Welfare payments would be pegged to CPI inflation, meaning that many of the lowest-income New Zealanders will fall further behind.
• The public service would be gutted – National would cut $8.5 billion of spending and savage frontline services up and down the country. Services working people depend on, and jobs that employ union members.
• Climate Emergency Response Fund would be axed – $2.4 billion dollars committed to reducing our climate emissions to fund National’s landlord tax breaks. This will undermine New Zealand’s ability to tackle our climate crisis.

“National’s plan under Christopher Luxon is short-sighted, it is not good economic management,” said Wagstaff.

“October’s election is the most significant election for working people in a generation. It’s essential that going into this election, people understand what is at risk for not just working people, but all New Zealanders.”

Source: Council of Trade Unions – CTU

The tax plan set out by National is propped up with questionable assumptions and untested numbers, say the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions.

NZCTU Economist Craig Renney said the plan has generated many more questions than it answers.

“According to their plan, they will generate $3 billion from foreign buyers, $716 million from foreign casino operators.

“There is no evidence that these numbers are possible, nor how they will be delivered. That is up to $3.6 billion that will need to be found from even deeper cuts to public services.

National also wants to cut spending on items such as free prescriptions, public transport support, and income support for those on the very lowest incomes.

This tax package cuts $2.3 billion of spending on tackling climate change – which protects jobs, incomes, and communities – and then gives $2.3 billion to landlords in tax advantages.

“This shows how out of touch National is on the issues that matter to New Zealanders,” said Renney.

According to IRD, 2.3 million New Zealanders earned less than $44,000 a year, meaning that they will be getting $2.15 a week from this package.

“That’s 56% of all income taxpayers. For them, this is not cost of living support it’s an insult. Meanwhile, those who own multiple homes will be in for billions of dollars of government support.

“There is nothing in this package that supports sustainable economic growth, helps to grow jobs, and there is a real risk that it will simply stoke further inflation and housing speculation.

 “We still haven’t seen Nationals plan for how it will fund schools and hospitals. How it will lift children out of poverty. How it will build additional housing for those in need.

“This tax package simply adds more questions on top. It’s not clear the numbers add up, and it’s not clear that National shares New Zealanders priorities.”