And he might have summed up the Government's issues with one on of his increasingly famous quips.
"The Ruth Richardson bare austerity approach is not delivering the economic growth we need."
He is right, isn't he? Classic liberal politics, trimming and cutting, is not the massive bomb we need under us.
As Chris Bishop yesterday was offering more detail on RUC rates and a move away from petrol taxes, all of which is fine, Shane and his mate Winston were wandering around Marsden Point and talking of making it a special economic zone.
It'd have tax treatment and incentives to get people to invest and do things. Marsden has got land and a port, it's close to shipping lanes, etc.
Ireland has made these things famous. They cut a deal on rates, or tax, bring 'em in, stoke 'em up and watch the growth explode.
Image might be a problem. Shane and Winston both come from, well, Marsden, so it’s a bit nepotistic. But the idea is sound.
Shane has also this week announced a massive upheaval of fishing, the biggest in decades. So it’s the big stuff that we may need because the regular size stuff hasn’t provided the heft we hoped for.
Yes, yes, yes, they inherited a mess, we get that, but the results are what count.
As ACT changed the laws around garden sheds and Nicola talks about supermarkets, it might just be ideas beyond our normal comprehension are what are actually called for.
The irony of the Jones' idea is it's not part of the coalition deal. I could ask, why not?
Is the Ruth Richardson line an acceptance that what they thought would work, hasn’t?
Another irony – I'm not sure how Shane and Winston can wander around Marsden blue-skying their way out of recession, when it's them that’s holding up the foreigners from buying a house after they have invested tens of millions into the country.
But credit where credit is due, Jones seems to have taken on the mantle of the arse kicker. He is where a lot of us are at.
This is not a bad Government, far from it.
It's perhaps just a timid Government. And with October 26 and a ballot box getting closer, maybe we need to shift it up a gear.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings - where this article was sourced.
As Chris Bishop yesterday was offering more detail on RUC rates and a move away from petrol taxes, all of which is fine, Shane and his mate Winston were wandering around Marsden Point and talking of making it a special economic zone.
It'd have tax treatment and incentives to get people to invest and do things. Marsden has got land and a port, it's close to shipping lanes, etc.
Ireland has made these things famous. They cut a deal on rates, or tax, bring 'em in, stoke 'em up and watch the growth explode.
Image might be a problem. Shane and Winston both come from, well, Marsden, so it’s a bit nepotistic. But the idea is sound.
Shane has also this week announced a massive upheaval of fishing, the biggest in decades. So it’s the big stuff that we may need because the regular size stuff hasn’t provided the heft we hoped for.
Yes, yes, yes, they inherited a mess, we get that, but the results are what count.
As ACT changed the laws around garden sheds and Nicola talks about supermarkets, it might just be ideas beyond our normal comprehension are what are actually called for.
The irony of the Jones' idea is it's not part of the coalition deal. I could ask, why not?
Is the Ruth Richardson line an acceptance that what they thought would work, hasn’t?
Another irony – I'm not sure how Shane and Winston can wander around Marsden blue-skying their way out of recession, when it's them that’s holding up the foreigners from buying a house after they have invested tens of millions into the country.
But credit where credit is due, Jones seems to have taken on the mantle of the arse kicker. He is where a lot of us are at.
This is not a bad Government, far from it.
It's perhaps just a timid Government. And with October 26 and a ballot box getting closer, maybe we need to shift it up a gear.
Mike Hosking is a New Zealand television and radio broadcaster. He currently hosts The Mike Hosking Breakfast show on NewstalkZB on weekday mornings - where this article was sourced.
3 comments:
Why can't we have both austerity and encouragement of investment. Austerity can mean cutting away all the deadwood allowing growth. So back to 2017 numbers in the public service with less red tape, and hiring on suitability rather than DEI. Good, bye Human Rights Commission, Race Relations Office, Corporate welfare (especially to the media and Iwi), apartheid arts funding, Maori "science" funding and legal aid for Iwi or prisoners to take the government to court. Welfare should also go back to 2017 levels, subject only to inflation. Then with balanced books we can encourage investment. However, I note that it was the oil companies themselves rather than the government who closed Marsden Point.
Sorry, Mike and Shane, but we haven't had "austerity" and that's part of the problem. As "balanced" said in a comment the other day, praising Mr Luxon's managerial skills, "the government is the biggest business in NZ". Now, that's the problem. As for Shane and Winston, a few skeletons in the cupboard there. Shane would be wonderful mouthing off about a freebie booze up at a brewery but would be hopeless rolling up his sleeves and organizing it. Give us a break, Mike.
WRONG! it was the Super fund and ACC with Z Energy leading the charge , a company part owned by ACC. So YES it was a government Wellington manipulation all the way thru. Seriously if you knew ANYTHING about the energy industry you would have noticed that AMPOL screwed everyone to the wall and got a bargain. Check out their shares and debt level before bothering to comment on the dirt that was at the forefront of removing the refinery. NZ will NEVER recover economically without fuel security.
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