There is a road to victory for National but it’s not on the road they’re on. They need to get out of Labour-lite Crescent and turn onto the Alternative Freedom Expressway. Some of the party’s policies are the right ones but there are others that need to be ditched or changed. National has the chance to appeal to their more centre-right base while at the same time introducing policies that are attractive to the more traditional left-wing voter. A recent YouGov poll in the UK has the Conservatives holding a large 13 point lead over Labour. While only having a small lead with middle-class voters the Conservatives have a mind-boggling 25 point lead amongst working-class voters. They won the working-class support for their stance on Brexit and have managed to solidify it.
Here are some ideas for the various policy areas, some of which are already on their books:
FINANCE
- Tax cuts aimed specifically at low-income workers
- Reduce the tax burden on businesses
- No capital gains tax
- Reduce human waste in the public service by removing paper shufflers
- Ensure entities such as Ngai Tahu and Sanitarium pay tax.
EDUCATION
- Bring back charter schools
- Appoint Alwyn Poole to a role overseeing NZ education independent of the Ministry of Education with the power to make recommendations directly to the Minister
- Give more support to children with special needs
- Redeploy some of the paper shufflers as truancy officers
- Ignore the teacher unions
- Split secondary education into high schools and technical colleges to give students choice.
HEALTH
- Introduce an alternative to Covid lockdowns
- Improve the financial viability of DHBs
- Improve surgery waiting times
- Overhaul the Ministry of Health
- Appoint Shane Reti as Health Minister
- Plunket home visits for the first two years of a child’s life.
WELFARE
- Undo all of Labour’s policies
- Focus assistance on those in most genuine need
- Ensure those required to pay maintenance are held accountable
- Redeploy paper shufflers to WINZ offices specifically to give budgetary advice to those on welfare
- Structure welfare payments so that getting employment is the more attractive option.
HOUSING
- Government to build only state houses
- Repeal laws that make it less attractive for landlords to enter the rental market
- Invoke laws so Councils free up land for housing
- Introduce policies making home ownership easier for first home buyers
- If motels are required for temporary housing, buy them.
AGRICULTURE and BUSINESS
- Show the party is farmer- and business-friendly
- Reduce red tape for farmers and business and as much as possible get out of their lives
- Introduce policies that show National understands and supports the rural and business sectors
- Hold regular meetings in rural areas where farmers can voice concerns
- Have the party in attendance at A and P shows and other rural events
- Meat and dairy production to continue as at present
- Support business with policies to increase investment and hire personnel.
ENVIRONMENT
- Recognise global warming is a cyclical event, the peak of which has long passed, and is an ideology of the left which a few are using as a vehicle to increase their personal wealth
- Withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord, recognising we produce about 0.2% of the world’s global emissions so anything we do is basically pissing in the wind
- No idiotic timeframes for achieving things we never will
- Oil and gas exploration to resume
- Stop importing low-grade Indonesian coal and become self-sufficient
- Explore means of better harnessing electricity
TOURISM
- Open up the borders
- Target assistance where it is most needed
- Introduce a marketing campaign in Australia
- Assist Air NZ by a period of subsidising airfares.
JUSTICE and LAW and ORDER
- Tougher laws on gangs and violent crime
- Tougher penalties for the above
- Basically reinvent the Police so they become what they once were. NOT WOKE.
- Ensure judges apply the law and penalties appropriately.
- Protect free speech.
MAORI
- Repeal the Maori Wards Bill
- Put a finite end to Treaty claims
- No payouts such as Ihumatao.
These are the sorts of policies National should be putting in place, and when the time is right, getting out on the road and selling them.
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