Christopher Luxon, New Zealand Prime Minister 2023

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Forums › Politics › Christopher Luxon, New Zealand Prime Minister 2023

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#3266711 31-Jul-2024 21:29

freitasm:

Hey, I got paid today and received my $20/week tax cut (on a monthly basis).

Unfortunately, it will all go to "updated" Wellington City rates.

Seriously, our rates went up exactly the same amount as the tax cut. Add paying for medicines, car registration and other things and our family is no better off than before.

Thanks, Luxon.

/sarcasm

I got my increase too, but sadly it will be absorbed into other costs-of-living, which - as you rightly point out above - is likely the case for a lot of other people, too.

I don't think anybody's tax cut will be going where Luxon probably hoped it would:

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/523558/what-will-tax-cuts-mean-for-households

"They're small tax cuts," said Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr.

"They're not life-changing. They'll definitely help some households a little bit. I just don't feel they're going to be spent the way you might think - people running down to the retail store and buying some clothes. I think this will just be absorbed into people's budgets."

sir1963

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#3266746 1-Aug-2024 07:34

Let blame Mr "I used to run an airline"...😁

https://www.theguardian.com/business/article/2024/jul/30/air-new-zealand-is-first-major-airline-to-scrap-2030-emissions-target

sen8or

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#3266765 1-Aug-2024 08:30

Why does the increases in costs not associated with tax invalidate the benefit of additional money received by a tax cut? This seems like a very weak argument to me. Those costs have already gone up over a sustained period of time, not just under this Government, but the previous one as well.

Unfortunately when you get places / entities that can just increase prices on a never ending basis (heres looking at you local Governments / Councils and the Insurance Cartel), no single measure is going to keep pace with their cost increases that the mighty overlords decide they need on an ever increasing basis.

Our $40 a week incr (2x $20) won't even make a dent in the recent cost increases (Mortgage up $100/wk, rates up $25+, insurance up $25+ etc), but I would have had those increases regardless, so the tax cuts make the increases a little less painful. Now its down to negotiation with employers at salary review time. Granted, that can be very difficult, especially in a weak economy where businesses are doing it tough.

freitasm

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#3266768 1-Aug-2024 08:38

sen8or:

Why does the increases in costs not associated with tax invalidate the benefit of additional money received by a tax cut? This seems like a very weak argument to me. Those costs have already gone up over a sustained period of time, not just under this Government, but the previous one as well.

I agree it's a weak argument, hence the /sarcasm at the end.

But the point remains that the tax adjustment did not benefit anyone on average because, as you said, it was gone before it even landed in our wallets.

So the government borrows for "tax cuts" that bring no benefits while cutting essential services and creating a mess in health and transport.

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#3266790 1-Aug-2024 09:01

freitasm:

So the government borrows for "tax cuts" that bring no benefits while cutting essential services and creating a mess in health and transport.

That's the bottom line for me. I would rather that the money went into funding healthcare than into a barely noticeable tax cut. I would rather that $216M went into funding education than as a slush fund for Phillip Morris after cutting the excise on heated tobacco products. And although I appreciate how hard the struggle is for the grossly oppressed landlord class, I would rather that $2.9B went into funding food, clothes and shelter for kids in poverty than in hand-outs for people who already own more houses than they can feasibly live in.

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#3266810 1-Aug-2024 09:30

But surely money wasn't borrowed for tax cuts, money was borrowed and the tax cuts are entirely unrelated and purely coincidental...

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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sen8or

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#3266957 1-Aug-2024 12:09

freitasm:

sen8or:

Why does the increases in costs not associated with tax invalidate the benefit of additional money received by a tax cut? This seems like a very weak argument to me. Those costs have already gone up over a sustained period of time, not just under this Government, but the previous one as well.

I agree it's a weak argument, hence the /sarcasm at the end.

But the point remains that the tax adjustment did not benefit anyone on average because, as you said, it was gone before it even landed in our wallets.

So the government borrows for "tax cuts" that bring no benefits while cutting essential services and creating a mess in health and transport.

It was a much broader comment, it was in the news last night and in the Herald today about how the tax cuts aren't enough to actually make a difference because of all the other increased costs.

I would have far preferred the money went to healthcare and education, whilst an extra $40 a week in the hand for us is all well and good, we are in the fortunate position where it doesn't make a difference between baked beans on toast, or not even being able to afford even the bread for the toast, but I get that for many it might.

They should have sorted out the finances before tax cuts. If they had made a commitment to bring them in within the first term, that still would have been enough of a carrot to dangle, but like when each Govt takes over from another, they really don't know what the books look like before they get in the swively chairs and it could then turn into something they just can't afford to do. At least this way, they've got 1-2 years to get the books back in order again before the next round of job interviews happens.

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#3267892 3-Aug-2024 20:31

A sort-of midterm report card on how the Government and a number of high-profile ministers are doing, as per Audrey Young: https://archive.ph/Ny0of

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#3268387 5-Aug-2024 17:30

Health NZ blocks free early access to cancer drug Keytruda | Stuff

Pharmac has agreed to fund the medicine Keytruda from 1 October to treat five cancers: head and neck, triple negative breast, colorectal, bladder and Hodgkin lymphoma.

Patient Voice Aotearoa chair Malcolm Mulholland said the drug company Merck Sharp and Dohme had offered to give 20 to 30 patients free access in the meantime, but Health New Zealand had blocked it.

"This has to be the cruellest and dumbest decision made by Health New Zealand to date," he said.

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#3268455 5-Aug-2024 22:29

When Luxon says cuts won't hit the front line.
Front line then finds out what the staff expenditure that was cut was doing.

Of course we don't train enough Doctors and importing Doctors you are competing with Australia who has lots of needs as well.
So maybe you can't afford to compete.

To add to Northland.

Hutt Hospital doctors told to make beds, clean sinks
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/523906/hutt-hospital-doctors-told-to-make-beds-clean-sinks

""
One doctor, who RNZ has agreed not to name, said: "One shift I made seven beds, answered a million phone calls, and fixed the printer. Is this a really good use of my time? I suspect I'm the most expensive person there."

Meanwhile, they said the workload was increasing, and staff were slow to be replaced when they resigned.
""
The doctor said there were a number of vacancies that had not yet been approved for replacement, which meant other clinical staff were picking up the workload, and it meant some patients were not even getting in the door due to long wait times.
"

gzt

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#3268461 5-Aug-2024 22:57

I visited an elderly-ish friend in hospital recently. He was in a room with three or four others. There was a high needs or high attention or similar text on the door frame with names of the other people there. There was a nurse or healthcare assitant usually in the room doing the paperwork and things I usually see being done at the nurses station. That looked very sensible. I cannot recall seeing anything like that in a long time.

The desk position wasn't the greatest and there was no perfect position within the room design. The nurse did kind of miss for a short period seeing some people trying to get out of bed or get attention but not for long. Our small visiting group was probably noisy at times which would not have helped.

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gzt

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#3268464 5-Aug-2024 23:09

ezbee: When Luxon says cuts won't hit the front line.

I don't know much about this. It's my impression the 'regions' tend to get hit harder in these reorg type things. There's just less resource to shuffle in those locations in the first place and change has higher risks attached because of that. Also the politics means there are usually fewer electorates involved I suspect as some kind of factor.

SaltyNZ

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#3268499 6-Aug-2024 08:06

gzt:
ezbee: When Luxon says cuts won't hit the front line.

I don't know much about this. It's my impression the 'regions' tend to get hit harder in these reorg type things. There's just less resource to shuffle in those locations in the first place and change has higher risks attached because of that. Also the politics means there are usually fewer electorates involved I suspect as some kind of factor.

Mr. I Used To Run An Airline is unlikely to find himself requiring a doctor in Dargaville at 1am.

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elpenguino

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#3268525 6-Aug-2024 09:30

SaltyNZ:

Mr. I Used To Run An Airline is unlikely to find himself requiring a doctor in Dargaville at 1am.

I doubt he and his ilk catch the bus or use public health care. Out of touch in the extreme.

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sir1963

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#3269330 7-Aug-2024 19:02

So, we have a holiday to celebrate Matariki, excellent idea.

Then along comes old white an racist...

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