The full scale of the tsunami of privatisation and crony capitalism about to hit NZ has been spelt out in Dr Bryce Edward’s latest must read post on who is advising National…
Who will the new National Government listen to when it decides how to govern? An early indication may be seen in who Prime Minister-elect Christopher Luxon has brought in to train his new MPs and ministers.
It was reported on Monday by Newstalk ZB that, because Luxon acknowledges his team’s lack of governing experience, the party has brought in some senior figures from the past. Luxon told Mike Hosking that Steven Joyce, Bill English and Wayne Eagleson have been coaching his caucus on how to be MPs and ministers, and how to lead the public service.
…the sheer scale of how much damage National and ACT are about to cause New Zealand as they form a Government with NZFirst is barely recognised by the electorate…
Under National’s tax plan, outlined by shadow finance minister Nicola Willis, it has identified 24 Government agencies from which it initially wants, on average, 6.5 per cent cuts amounting to $594m on so-called back-office functions to fund tax cuts and to have it done before Christmas.
There would be unders and overs but at 6.5 per cent, the cuts would amount to
-
- $106m from the Ministry of Social Development;
- $81m from MBIE, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment;
- $60m from the Ministry of Justice;
- $58m from the Ministry of Primary Industries;
- $47m from Inland Revenue;
- $46m from the Department of Conservation;
- $36m from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade;
- $21m from Land Information New Zealand;
- $17m from the New Zealand Customs Service;
- $16m from the Ministry for the Environment;
- $16m from Statistics New Zealand;
- $9m from the Treasury;
- $8m from the Crown Law Office.
…this on top of ACTs desire to slash 5 Ministries and the Human Rights Commission, we are seeing the largest amputation of the State since Roger Douglas because the political project of the Right is to strangle off taxation so there is none to redistribute in the first place…
Remember, these cuts are based on a Tax plan by National using revenue from removing the Foreign Buyers Ban that every independent economist has totally torn to shreds so the ACTUAL public service cost will be far greater than what they are currently promising!
The likelihood of Winston giving Luxon this is close to zero meaning the cuts will be far deeper requiring the ‘Social Investment’ approach.
The conga line of privatisation and crony capitalism is upon us…
…the billionaire class, Real Estate Pimps and property speculators have poured $12 million into the Right since 2021 and they aren’t doing that because they love the people, they are doing because they love their wealth!
It’s not just donors who will gain, the ‘social investment’ model used by right wing NGOs astroturfed into ‘community’ organisations aimed at destroying universal Welfare will gain as well because Winston won’t give National their Foreign Buyers ban lift.
So what is the ‘social investment’ model?
Let’s look at Oranga Tamariki.
Oranga Tamariki is a Frankenstein monster, a neoliberal welfare experiment conjured up by Bill English and big data.
The argument is that children from backgrounds with specific features were the worst in terms of cost to the state, so if the State stepped in and removed the children quickly enough, that cost will fall.To do this they passed law reducing the legal rights of parents, streamlined their 0800 numbers and weaponised uplifts.
They also ensured that people with children taken from them are ineligible for legal aid so they couldn’t fight back legally.
Oranga Tamariki has always been about saving the State money and the welfare of the child is secondary to that!
Since the Royal Inquiry into Historic Abuse, the Public Services Commission has done all it can to remove OT oversight and roll it into the ERO so that it saves the State money if children are abused in our care.
That Labour acquiesced to this and removed the Children’s Commissioner from providing OT oversight is disgraceful.
MSD in the 2000s oversaw obscene tactics that included hiring private detectives to dig dirt on victims who were complaining about being abused in state care in a Test case that if MSD had lost would have cost the State untold in damages.
The elite Wellington Bureaucratic class wanted to remove the threat of costs and damages from poorly funded social services and the ‘social investment model’ is a means to spend money on the most costliest of those social problems without actually universally funding services.
For the State, amputating social responsibilities and the legal threat of damages frees them up from having to spend any money in the first place.
Rather than creating more taxes like a Capital Gains Tax or Financial Transaction Tax to properly funded the welfare of children in State care, it’s easier to amputate the responsibility altogether.
Social Investment is a bullshit term for ending universal provision of welfare under the guise of providing more resource for the most at risk target demographic.
And what did the Left have in response to this right wing blitzkrieg?
Cycle lanes in Te Reo, GST off vegetables and militant policing of pronouns.
Here are the true winners of woke identity politics.
White men in blue suits.
I fear the half a million Kiwis needing food charities each month will despise the Left for our incremental solutions and meaningless virtue signals.
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Labour had every opportunity to be transformational without the woke identity politics but they blew it on both counts. We are in this position as a result. Thanks Labour.
Spot on Jack!!
But Jack’s on the wrong track.
It’s simply not correct to say that Labour being useless forced National to sell out to their big real estate donors. If debt levels are so bad ( which the aren’t at all) National should not be reinstating interest deductibility and giving tax cuts that do f all. They should be repaying debt as fast possible given their campaign messaging. But they are not because it’s complete bs.
In other words, all normal for NZ/Aotearoa.
Welcome to 1953…
Wait for all the Trevor’s, and Bobs leap to the defence of the real dividers of the country. They all get caught up in sign posts and transgender issues like that has anything to do with the real economy. The shiny god botherer and David Seymour ( who frankly looked out of his depth in the last few weeks of the campaign) are about to look after their mates at the expense of the majority. They are about to make shit Labour look almost bearable in comparison. They also dump and enormous amount on rate payers in the centres that actually contribute massively to the economy ( and no it’s not diary farmers). Let’s see if they need the champion of dealing with non issues like public toilets to help.
If Winston is in the govt, I hope he brings back bonus bonds.
Will I get them free if I has a gold card?
No, man. You gotta EARN the right to get them free!
I don’t always agree with your statements but admire the obvious passion in your delivery of them. On this occasion I have to take issue with one of the more outlandish comments you make….”Oranga Tamariki has always been about saving the State money and the welfare of the child is always secondary to that!”.
Have you ever spent time alongside an OT social worker? They would be appalled at your lack of knowledge of their mahi and of their motivation for doing it.
Philip Royal Dumping the Commissioner for Children was about the state protecting itself, not the children. Senior Oranga Tamariki staffers wanted that Commissioner kept, but Labour said, “ No. “
Pip your suggestion the State is only looking to protect itself is naive. I think you will find that the new, well resourced Children and Young Persons Commission will be at least as equally effective as the CFC in holding OT to account. The courts also ensure decisions made are in the best interests of children.
The purpose of the new ‘labour’ movement is to make the right look good.
They are two sides of the same coin.
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