Post by Kiwi Frontline on Sept 3, 2017 6:33:40 GMT 12
ELECTION 2017: TAXING AND SPENDING
With just under three weeks still to go before voting day, political party election promises have been coming so thick and fast it feels like Christmas.
National kicked off their pledges with the announcement that if re-elected, $10.5 billion over ten years will be invested in roading infrastructure. Ten of the country’s highest volume state highways will be upgraded to provide a safe four-lane network linking the regions to the major cities and unlocking their economic potential.
In health, almost $400 million over four years will be used to increase doctor subsidies, so more people have access to $18 GP visits. The scheme, which is available to everyone with a community services card, is being extended – including to those living in state-funded housing or receiving an accommodation supplement – to deliver free or low cost healthcare to 2.5 million people.
Over $1 billion has been earmarked for rebuilding Dunedin’s hospital.
National’s ‘parents and newborns package’ costing $400 million over four years, includes extending paid parental leave from the current 18 weeks to 22 weeks in 2019, providing pregnant women with free dental care until their child’s first birthday, and for those struggling to conceive a baby, the IVF programme will be extended to allow for a third free cycle.
National has also announced that almost $400 million will be spent over four years on four major education initiatives – introducing digital learning for senior students, improving the teaching of mathematics, providing all primary students with the choice of learning a second language, and expanding National Standards, to make it easier for parents to track how their child is progressing at school, including through their mobile phone.
Another $60 million over 4 years will be spent on a defence-led boot camp based at Waiouru to crack down on the most serious young offenders and hold negligent parents to account.
Altogether, National’s election promises amount to around $6 billion over four years.
When it comes to Labour, in spite of their new leader’s repeated assurances that their spending pledges are moderate and affordable, the promises announced so far amount to a massive $30 billion over the next 4 years – five times more than National – with some manifesto undertakings still to be costed. .......
Continue reading the breakdown of Labour’s spending pledges in Dr Muriel Newman’s latest NZCPR newsletter here > www.nzcpr.com/election-2017-taxing-and-spending/#more-24084
With just under three weeks still to go before voting day, political party election promises have been coming so thick and fast it feels like Christmas.
National kicked off their pledges with the announcement that if re-elected, $10.5 billion over ten years will be invested in roading infrastructure. Ten of the country’s highest volume state highways will be upgraded to provide a safe four-lane network linking the regions to the major cities and unlocking their economic potential.
In health, almost $400 million over four years will be used to increase doctor subsidies, so more people have access to $18 GP visits. The scheme, which is available to everyone with a community services card, is being extended – including to those living in state-funded housing or receiving an accommodation supplement – to deliver free or low cost healthcare to 2.5 million people.
Over $1 billion has been earmarked for rebuilding Dunedin’s hospital.
National’s ‘parents and newborns package’ costing $400 million over four years, includes extending paid parental leave from the current 18 weeks to 22 weeks in 2019, providing pregnant women with free dental care until their child’s first birthday, and for those struggling to conceive a baby, the IVF programme will be extended to allow for a third free cycle.
National has also announced that almost $400 million will be spent over four years on four major education initiatives – introducing digital learning for senior students, improving the teaching of mathematics, providing all primary students with the choice of learning a second language, and expanding National Standards, to make it easier for parents to track how their child is progressing at school, including through their mobile phone.
Another $60 million over 4 years will be spent on a defence-led boot camp based at Waiouru to crack down on the most serious young offenders and hold negligent parents to account.
Altogether, National’s election promises amount to around $6 billion over four years.
When it comes to Labour, in spite of their new leader’s repeated assurances that their spending pledges are moderate and affordable, the promises announced so far amount to a massive $30 billion over the next 4 years – five times more than National – with some manifesto undertakings still to be costed. .......
Continue reading the breakdown of Labour’s spending pledges in Dr Muriel Newman’s latest NZCPR newsletter here > www.nzcpr.com/election-2017-taxing-and-spending/#more-24084