However I am able to recognise a fiscal hole in a budget when the figures don't add up.
Also, unlike one of our most recent finance ministers, I understand that repeatedly overspending the nation's limited financial reserves must have severe consequences for those who need government help the most.
But from all accounts, things are about to change for the better although, with the good times, the need for fiscal restraint is just as important as ever.
In order to benefit financially from the better trading environment, we must maintain a Micawber-like attitude to the way we spend our hard earned dollars.
It isn’t often that an economy such as ours enters a period of high prices for most of our export commodities at the same time as the other main foreign exchange earner - Tourism is itself operating at peak levels.
Usually one or two of these commodities reach their peak at a time when others are still floundering around at a lower level. But this time export prices for Dairy Products, Sheep and Cattle Red Meat are all at levels we haven’t seen for years. This phenomenon is supported by a bounce back of the Tourism Industry earnings from the disastrous levels during the Pandemic lockdown.
However, history shows that these utopian type prices can be short lived because of fluctuations in world markets that are beyond our control.
Having said that, our current good fortune does present the Government with a number of fiscal opportunities that could have long lasting influence helping us to live within our means.
Rarely is a government in this country faced with opportunities to restructure our economy in a way that will enable us to allocate much needed funds to sectors that have traditionally been starved of the basic amounts required just to keep operating at a sustainable level.
When was the last time a government was able to promise the electorate during the campaign and make good on those promises once in control of the treasury benches?
Usually the major parties are offering policies that are based on future income stats that are shear guess work and an appeal to an electorate willing to be bribed by promises made on a wing and a prayer. More often than not their promises are being described by their own auditors as unaffordable within six months of taking office and that type of negative experience doesn’t go well when voters next turn up to the ballot box.
Although next time things could be different, it will take a lot of strategic non partisan planning in order to sort out he “must haves” from the “like to haves” - political decisions that will determine who gets the greater share of the new found wealth when it arrives.
While it is likely that promises will be made for significant funding increases in the non-productive sectors of the economy like the Social Services including Health and Welfare, other sectors like the Environment will also be vying for their share of any surplus and, no doubt, will be expecting to get it.
Meanwhile, given that governments of the day will be keen to make changes they have long thought necessary but unaffordable at the time, they must be careful to maintain a sense of propriety with the decisions they make as to “who gets what”
We simply can’t afford to “jump from the frying pan into the fire” due to a bout of frivolous spending that had no basis in sustainability.
We must remember that good trading times come and go but our focus must remain on building an economy where growth and expenditure are in sink.
It benefits no one if we over promise and underdeliver. However, future generations will not thank us if we load a mountain of avoidable debt onto them.
Unfortunately, such irresponsible acts have too often been the history of economic management in this country. This time we have a rare opportunity to break the cycle of mismanagement.
Time to grow up.
Clive Bibby is a commentator, consultant, farmer and community leader, who lives in Tolaga Bay.
3 comments:
Alliance Meat Co a farmer co-opertive are wanting to sell farmer assets to the Irish Co DAWN Meats and when the irishborrow onthe euro the purchase price is halved .
The NZ red meat returns are excellent and the Alliance debt is large, but manageable especially when receipts for sales are good .
Why does Alliance management not release the current income quarterly balance sheets from Alliance to allow shareholders to vote on the sale fully informed, instead of blaming time delays from the auditor. Rubbish governance was and is the problem.
Clive, the single most important reallocation of funds required in nz is to move money from housing into productive areas of the economy, which can be exported and earn money for nz.
Housing simply moves money around within nz which makes a select few wealthy, to the detriment of many.
House prices have continued a measured descent since the very clever Luxon became prime minister.
Where Luxon has let us down is sticking with ardernesque Nicola Willis. We need a clever finance minister who doesn't support banks and supermarket owners, at the expense of everyone else.
Fixing the nz cartels will ensure an electoral triumph for national.
It might however curtail any plan Willis may have to join ardern on a 2 year luxury holiday in the US.
It’s already happening, Clive. Infrastructure debt is through the roof and successive governments, both national and local, keep on kicking the can down the road. The bill’s gonna fall due one day and the old farts that got us into this mess will be on their way out by then.
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