National’s new-found concern for the poor

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There are times when National’s opposition to the Coalition government’s new policies leaves one shaking their head in utter dismay.  Jami-Lee Ross – a notorious union-basher and unrepentant enemy of workers – shedding crocodile tears for the poor of this country, is not a pretty sight…

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A response was called for, pointing out the crass hypocrisy of National to invoke the welfare of the poor to score a cheap political point;

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

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from: Frank Macskasy
to: NZ Herald <letters@herald.co.nz>
date: 29 April 2018
subject: Letter to the editor

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Letters to the editor
NZ Herald

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National’s transport spokesperson, Jami-Lee Ross, recently criticised the new Coalition government’s plans to promote the use of electric vehicles. On 27 April, Ross said;

“It would effectively be a tax on the poor, you’d see the poorest New Zealanders who are purchasing second-hand Japanese imports having to pay the levy which would go towards subsidising electric vehicles for those who are more likely to be wealthier – and more likely to be able to purchase an electric vehicle.”

The sheer hypocrisy for Ross to cry a river of crocodile tears for the poor when, for nine years, National caused great harm to the poorest families and individuals of our once egalitarian nation.

Specifically, National;

  • raised ACC levies for workers by a staggering 21%
  • increased GST from 12.5% to 15% – raising food prices 4% that year
  • announced increases for petrol excise duty of 3 cents per litre for 2013, 2014, and 2015*, with Road user charges increasing similarly
  • raised Family Court fees to $900
  • increased prescription charges from $3 to $5
  • implemented the infamous “paperboy tax” in 2012 by cutting children’s tax refunds
  • and other increases to government charges, fees, surtaxes, et al

Ross would do well to examine National’s own abysmal record. They hardly helped the poorest families struggling to make ends meet.

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-Frank Macskasy

[address and phone number supplied]

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* 9 cents/litre, spread over three years.

Ross also demanded that the Coalition government do more to purchase electric vehicles;

“I’d encourage this government to continue with what National did by exempting road-user charges, I’d encourage them to continue to purchase more electric vehicles as a government, so the government fleet is full of more electric vehicles.”

The new Labour-Green-NZ First government certainly could not do worse than their National predecessors. In 2016, National’s then Minister for Energy, Simon Bridges, dumped proposals to assist in the purchase EVs for  State agencies;

Cabinet has pulled the handbrake on its Electric Vehicles plan, pulling proposals to help agencies cover the extra cost, documents show.

Bridges’ excuse was about as pathetic as a Crown minister could possibly get;

But Transport Minister Simon Bridges says he canned the two proposals, in order to be “more ambitious” later.

This is the National Party lecturing the rest of us how to curtail greenhouse gas emissions.

They have nothing to offer except more of the same failed policies from the 20th Century that have led humanity to the abyss of cataclysmic climate change.

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References

Scoop Media:  Union biting the hand that feeds

Youtube: Ports behind bill

Radio NZ:  National – petrol car levy will hurt the poor

Fairfax media: Workers to pay large increase in ACC levies

Radio NZ: PM defends proposed GST increase

NBR: GST increase pushes food prices up

Fairfax media: Plans for Family Court attacked

Fairfax media: Prescription price rise hits vulnerable

Ministry of Transport:  Increases to petrol excise duty and road user charges

NZ Herald: Budget 2012 -‘Paper boy tax’ on small earnings stuns Labour

Fairfax media:  Cabinet handbrake proves ‘government lack of leadership’ on electric vehicles – Greens

Radio NZ:  NZ’s summer the hottest on record – Niwa

Other Blogs

The Standard: National’s 18 new taxes

Previous related blogposts

National MP admits collusion with bosses to set up strike-breaking law!!

The many mendacities of Mr Bridges – a few volts short of an EV

2017: Parting shots from the Right: tantrums, bloated entitlements, and low, low expectations for our Youth – toru

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31 COMMENTS

  1. Agree with you Frank not only did they raise ACC levies they denied many NZers their ACC entitlements using the word degenerative in their reports

    • I was refused/swindled out of ACC cover after I prolapsed a disc in my upper back while in paid employment which caused irreversible neurological damage, albeit minor compared to what some people must endure. ACC then sent me a demand for a levies payment of $500.00. I told them to go fuck themselves so they credit listed me. I’m not paying levies until they compensate me for loss of earnings of around $90,000.00 dollars. I was at serious risk of permanent and serious nerve damage if the disc had distended further into my spinal cord or God forbid had ruptured. The only thing I could do was sit on my arse and take 30mg codeine’s. My rehabilitation time would have been reduced by 75% if ACC had paid for physiotherapy to open the gap where the disc fitted once the inflammation had gone down. ( Failing that, it would have been an operation through my throat! ) ACC argued that my ‘condition’ was as a result of ageing and degeneration of the spine. Their quack-bitch little Dr in Dunedin showed me MRI scans which showed, in his words ‘ a disease of the spine.’ Therefore, no ACC cover.
      A very familiar story to some I’m sure.
      So, how about we gather together, say a thousand of us and rip ACC a new arsehole? We can call it a pre existing condition so we can all walk away scot free?

      National are scum of the most common kind. They’re nothing special. They have no Class. They’re just little flies on turds of their own making and sooner of later, preferably sooner, people will wake up to their deceitful little-fly ways. ( No disrespect to actual flies.)
      They will be gone sooner or later. ‘Good’ will prevail.
      In the meantime, we must listen to them, and see them, and hear them, and debate them until the collective penny drops.
      Perhaps off-topic so bear with … Xx

      Natzo-Bankster Bro ploppies.
      http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/business/356515/nz-bank-tactics-they-made-it-as-difficult-as-they-could

      Poor widdle Kiwi business billionaire has bright light shone on it. Thus … “ Squeak !”
      http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/356512/nz-businessman-hits-back-at-uk-mp-s-russian-claims

      • … ” So, how about we gather together, say a thousand of us and rip ACC a new arsehole? We can call it a pre existing condition so we can all walk away scot free? ” …

        Once again , brilliance !

        🙂

  2. Never smile at a crocodile Frank. They have but one thing on their minds…

    Re-election no matter what!

  3. Don’t you leftists get tired of trotting out the same old tropes about National hates the poor? What nonsense. Labour thinks they can help the poor by throwing money down a welfare rathole – that does not work, it just entrenches poverty. To get out of poverty people need jobs and opportunity, and you won’t get that from socialism – which by the way has failed everywhere and always, and also created the most tyrannical and murderous regimes in history. Capitalism and free trade have lifted more people out of poverty than socialism, this is just a fact and if you don’t agree then something other than the facts is influencing your thinking. The left is just filled with hate and envy and y’all know it too.

      • Well i am pleased to see my comment was allowed through, most lefty sites I go to don’t allow a contrary comment to penetrate their echo chamber, so kudos to the daily blog for that. But anyway, you comment that only the 1% are out of poverty because of capitalism – come on you don’t really believe that do you? I will assume that you are having a laugh because if not you are being silly. Capitalism may have its faults, but it is way, way better than any alternative, especially the completely discredited ideas of socialism. Anyway, good luck to you

    • clenchfist for truth who is displaying hate and spitefulness at the moment and who is throwing their toys out of the cot because they lost the last MMP election. You need to ask why they lost, what did they do and what have they been doing (privacy) And who has been using dirty downright personal nasty tactics. Capitalism has many faults and it doesn’t and hasn’t worked either just look at the mess America is in. It was capitalism that caused the GFC too much greed and it hurt the very people you claim it is suppose to help. You talk about jobs which ones? the part time ones, the casual ones the low paid and insecure ones that cant even put a roof over peoples heads, . And what about the interference with the markets so much for the market providing through competitiveness. We are still waiting for our lower power prices the ones Bradford promised when they sold of our power companies. And who brought in thousand of cheap labour immigrants and what has this done apart from make those already rich richer. When all many kiwis want is a decent wage for a decent days work and a reasonable standard of living. Little wonder so many kiwis scampered over to Aussie. Welfare has it faults but I see some of the last government and their families got a leg up from socialism yet they don’t want others to get the same help they did. Yes welfare has it faults especially if it isn’t reviewed and monitored. Our last PM and his family got a state house his deputy got the TIA we need this safety net more so now than ever especially when you have a government that has sold many assets, cuts social services and privatises everything possible all so they don’t have to be responsible for the citizens they are suppose to govern for all not the few that is why they are gone and in my view they should never ever get back in. They have destroyed the social fabric of our country and whether you like it or not our country was founded on socialism. Not everyman for himself.

    • LOL – another 20 words and “stenched fistula” above would surely have mentioned Venezuela.
      i.e. we can’t do anything about ending poverty “because Venezuela”

    • Why oh why do so many Righties use “truth” somewhere in their pseudonum? Ah well…

      Well reasoned, Frank. I notice Clenched doesn’t address a single point you raised. But he certainly felt the need to vent a tirade at you. I think you’ve hit a nerve, me ole mate.

    • you contradict yourself, to entrench poverty it has to exist first. by the way jonkeys a big ahole go fist him.

    • Labour thinks they can help the poor by throwing money down a welfare rathole – that does not work, it just entrenches poverty

      So… “throwing money down a welfare rathole” doesn’t work?

      But… “throwing money down a tax-cut rathole” does?

      Funny how “throwing money” at the poor doesn’t work – but “throwing money” at the rich (via tax cuts) helps stimulate the economy?

      If you think money entrenches poverty, Clenchedfist, can I supply you with my bank account number so you can “throw your money” to me?

      That should make you the most well off person in the country!!

  4. Excellent post. Similarly galling was their utterly pathetic bill debated last night on raising the litter fine from $400 to $1000. Suddenly they care about litter – well, when citizens do it with their “fast food packages” (said Sarah Dowie).

    Dairying pollution? Fine!
    Cow fart? Lovin’ it!
    Aluminium waste? Pay ’em to do it!
    Fuel emissions? Can’t get enough!
    Plastic overload? Let’s not hurt the poor manufacturers!

    But they gotta look like they give a shit and they can target/blame poor people! Win win.

  5. National govts are really good at rolling out corporate welfare under the guise of free market enterprise. What is going to get interesting is how National challenges a growing perception that they are not masters of economic management. The smoke and mirror charade act that perpetuates the myth of National govt fiscal propriety for the betterment of all is slowly fading from center stage.

  6. I hate hypocrisy but it is amazing how effective it can be as has been shown in the United States.

  7. It’s interesting Frank, because it is not so long ago that these same National puppeteers in Parliament were proclaiming (a) that poverty was a lifestyle choice, and (b) that it doesn’t exist in NZ anyway. Could quote Key at a Peat Warwick Christmas luncheon, but I don’t want to get sued.

    Ross isn’t the brightest and was likely just scoring cheap points – he tends to be a bit of a tiresome twit – but genuine concern for the poor would alienate National from its traditional support base.

    If, however, they’ve suddenly realised that government represents all of the people, and that tax cuts for the rich can be counterproductive for the country, and that selling income-earning assets to their off-shore cronies deprived us of the revenue streams our crumbling infrastructure very much needs, then it would be an apocalypse rivaling St Paul’s on the road to Damascus and welcomed by all.

    They never ever had any vision for the future, at any level.

  8. This site should have a logo for those of us who read the comments, so we could agree or disagree with the comments.

  9. You know that when the National party are invoking the welfare of the poor they see money and advantage in pretending to be human and hide behind the mask they created to make the wealthy feel better and ease their conscience that the National party really does care about the widespread destitution affecting so many families.

    Frank once again you highlight the hypocrisy of sub humans like Ross

  10. While I wholeheartedly agree with you that National are disingenuous hypocrites in this regard, the fact we on the left mustn’t shy away from is placing a levy on all fossil fuel vehicles to subsidise the purchase of new electric vehicles will benefit the well to do at the expense of the less well off. Which, of course, is not something we on the left should be accepting of.

    So good on you for pointing out the Nats hypocrisy, but I sincerely hope you are not going to be silent and accepting of this policy proposal.

    Something to ponder
    https://www.newsroom.co.nz/@politics/2018/04/30/106833/help-the-old-bomb-owners-this-time

    • I haven’t see it either, Macninz. I’m not surprised either. I guess “freedom of speech” applies only to so-called “columnists” who decide to slag of the spouses of our elected representatives because, um, well, they can.

  11. Don’t forget they seriously undermined working for families and now say Labour is not ambitious enough in its child poverty targets. I don’t get it

  12. They used to say that Victorian middle class liberals would do anything for workers except get off their backs.

  13. National are responsible for an unprecedented attack on disabled via deliberate restrictions in both heal and welfare sectors.

    Never has the image of a crying croc been so apt.

Comments are closed.