- By Christopher Luxon, Opposition Leader and MP for Botany
Kiwis already struggling to make ends meet were dealt another blow at the weekend, as the price of petrol was hiked by around 29 cents per litre.
The reaction was immediate, and it is easy to understand.
By suddenly ripping off the band aid, Labour pushed up the price of filling up the tank on an average car by about $15.
On the news on Friday, I saw footage of motorists in long queues, with some filling jerry cans of petrol in a bid to stockpile while they could.
It won’t stop there. A sharp increase in the price of fuel will lead to increases in everything else that is transported in the country, including already record high grocery prices.
Households, already hit by high inflation and soaring interest rates, will be hit hard, and the loss of spending power will likely hit the wider economy.
National would address the underlying drivers of inflation by restoring discipline to Government spending and help Kiwis cope with living costs by delivering income tax reductions of at least $960 per year for an average income earner.
To drive the economy out of recession we need to back businesses to grow. National will do that.
For New Zealanders struggling to feed their families, pay their mortgage or rent, or are worried about stories of large redundancies, things may look bleak.
But we have reason to be optimistic because New Zealand has immense potential.
To take advantage of our potential, New Zealand needs sound economic management.
New Zealand needs a government that will halt wasteful spending on bureaucracy, centralisation and endless reports, and focus on restoring law and order and improving health and education.
National knows you can spend your money better than the Government can.
That’s why we want to deliver tax cuts to help address the cost-of-living crisis.
There is a clear choice for voters at the 2023 election.
More of the same from Labour and their coalition of chaos, or a National Government that will put the country and its people first.
