Richard Prebble: Should We Be Forced to Invest in SpaceX?

Christopher Luxon has announced that National will campaign this election to require New Zealanders to invest perhaps $12 billion a year overseas, with around $8 billion ending up on Wall Street.

That is not how he put it.

He announced that employee and employer KiwiSaver contributions will rise to 4 percent each and that KiwiSaver will be compulsory.

Yet that is the practical effect.

Dr Eric Crampton: Guardrails for a Compulsory KiwiSaver

If re-elected, National would make KiwiSaver contributions compulsory from 2028, with employers and employees each contributing 6 percent by 2032.

 
That compulsion requires guardrails, according to a research note published today by The New Zealand Initiative's Chief Economist Dr Eric Crampton.

David Farrar: National proposes compulsory KiwiSaver

Chris Luxon has announced National policy to make KiwiSaver compulsory if re-elected.

The Government has already lifted the minimum contribution rate from 3.0% to 3.5%, which 99.5% of default rate savers went with – only 0.5% went back to 3.0%.

Mike's Minute: Compulsory KiwiSaver could be our answer to saving

Having argued the other week for compulsory KiwiSaver, it was sort of ironic, but probably lucky, that several reports came out post the comments that wanted the same thing.

Then enter Winston who wants it as well, and will pay for it, apparently with tax cuts.

Of course the tax cuts are completely unaffordable, but it doesn’t make the compulsion a bad idea.