Finance Minister Bill English is unlikely to be swayed by a
last-minute plea from the Council of Trade Unions yesterday
to change the Government's fiscal objectives.
John Key and Phil Goff clashed in Parliament yesterday over
whether the changes in tomorrow's Budget to KiwiSaver,
Working for Families and student loans amounted to broken
promises by National.
The University of Otago is anticipating a "satisfactory"
operating surplus next year, even though it is in the midst
of what it describes as challenging financial times.
Households can more than offset the cost of the Government's
emissions trading scheme (ETS) and still get benefits from
tax cuts, but Minister for Climate Change Nick Smith admits
the Government now needs to get that message out.
Much was made in the Government's pre-Budget
announcements of a bolstering of science and research and
development spending. Shaun Coffey looks at how agricultural
science can help give New Zealand competitive advantage in
world markets.
The Government's increase in health spending in next month's
Budget is predicted to be as little as half the rise of a
year ago, leading to further cuts in services.
Is the plan to be meaningful or is it just a political
gesture? Not since the days of Sir Robert Muldoon's state
department cost-cutting threats in the late 1970s has the
public service faced the challenge proposed by the Key
Government.
