In my previous article, I outlined how the Prime Minister got us into the COVID crisis by largely manufacturing it. Having successfully got us into it she now has to get us successfully out of it. Like wrapping the fish and chips this will be beyond her capabilities. In fact, her aim will be to keep the country in as big a mess financially as she possibly can to keep control. Like creating the mess in the first place this will not be hard.
On Friday, we were told by the incumbent but incompetent financial whizz kid Robertson that with only one live case remaining the Government is prepared to be flexible on moving to level one. By flexible, he means that there will be an initial review on June 8 and a final review on June 22. If that’s being flexible then I’m a Dutch uncle. It’s akin to the persistent lie that they went hard and early.
There is no plan on how to get us out of their self created chaos. The wage subsidy is necessary but apart from that money is being sprayed around like confetti at a wedding. The spending is poorly targeted and poorly thought out. Jacinda though is making sure that the people she is responsible for in her portfolio are being well recompensed. There is a complete lack of business experience on the Government benches and boy is it showing.
Compare that to Todd Muller’s well thought out initial plan announced on Friday to help small businesses. Money spent but well-targeted to boost jobs and the economy. Robertson’s weak response to the plan was that his was better because it started immediately. In truth, he has no answer because he lacks the nous to know the real needs of small businesses.
After spending days focussing on the silly cap and colour nonsense the media woke up to what the real issue is and the economy finally became the lead item. TV1 on Thursday reported jobs had fallen by 37,500 in April. Some of the hardest hit sectors were in agriculture, forestry and fishing which were down 8,488 jobs, accomodation and food serviced down 6,251 jobs and manufacturing down 3,797 jobs. Primary industries lost 4,480 jobs while in the goods producing industries jobs fell by 4,153. The service industries lost the equivalent of 29,317 jobs.
The Government response so far has been solely about retaining jobs with seemingly no idea on creating any for those who have ended up on welfare. Mind you, they like people on welfare, don’t they? It equates to Government dependency i.e. control. Our welfare payments due to COVID amount to 20% of GDP whereas in Australia, the UK, Singapore, USA and Canada, it is 10% or less. This in itself speaks volumes as to the strategy being put in place. The only realistic way of getting out of the mess this crop of clueless clowns has got us into is a change of Government come September.
Look at their record to date. It’s basically a failure on all major fronts. Houses not built, trees not planted, very few necessary infrastructure projects started and no light rail (thankfully). Just a lumbering old diesel choo choo on a non-electrified line pretending to be a commuter train from Hamilton to Papakura where you board a proper one. The entire journey takes two and a half hours one way. What a joke! When it comes to any sort of acumen, business or otherwise, this bunch of hapless humanity would have trouble finding a sheep in a paddock.
The figures quoted above on One News are but the first furlong in a 3,500-metre long steeplechase. The race starter, in terms of the race to the bottom economically, has barely dropped the flag. Currently, the nags hold the reins but we need the thoroughbreds, those who through astute economic stewardship got us through the GFC and the earthquakes.
Forget the Jacinda fan clubs in gossip land. They can be dismissed as birds of a feather material. Between now and September this lady will be increasingly skating on thin ice. As Bob Jones so rightly pointed out, Churchill stood on the balcony with the royal family and massed crowds praising him as their saviour. Shortly afterwards he was voted out.
I can’t remember a more important election than the upcoming one. As Max headlined in his article on Thursday – This election is up to National to lose. Very true. Every vote must be cast with the express purpose of ensuring a change of government.
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