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;
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from: Frank Macskasy
to: NZ Herald <letters@herald.co.nz>
date: 29 April 2018
subject: Letter to the editor.
Letters to the editor
NZ Herald.
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
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
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= fs =
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
Never smile at a crocodile Frank. They have but one thing on their minds…
Re-election no matter what!
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.
Tired tropes? Capitalism certainly lifted the 1% out of poverty more than anyone else, fist.
Employment on zero hour contracts and zero wage growth for others in this country.
Poverty is relative to cost of living, would it shock you to learn how marginal many western countries are becoming?
https://www.quora.com/Has-capitalism-really-lifted-people-out-of-poverty-Or-is-that-a-lie
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”
Is that you Davey?
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.
Lol!
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!!
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.
I hate hypocrisy but it is amazing how effective it can be as has been shown in the United States.
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.
This site should have a logo for those of us who read the comments, so we could agree or disagree with the comments.
I call National out on their bullshit, here is just another example that could be perceived as a corrupt government…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/103616239/we-couldnt-believe-he-could-do-that-former-cdhb-chairs-funding-letter-revealed
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
Haven’t seen this letter published in the Herald. No surprises there I guess.
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.
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
They used to say that Victorian middle class liberals would do anything for workers except get off their backs.
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.
Indeed, Z. When I saw it on the ‘net, it was a perfect icon-intro for my piece…