Monday, August 22, 2005



Creating the strategic deficit

Just Left has a pair of good posts up in response to National's tax cuts. The first costs those cuts at $11.5 billion - about $2 billion more than they said on Friday. The second points out that that $11.5 billion would eat the projected surplus entirely, meaning that there would either have to be a massive increase in borrowing (and I mean massive; currently we're scheduled to borrow a mere $1 billion over the next three years), or savage cuts in spending on core public services. Given that Brash is a dedicated Revolutionary in the same spirit as Douglas and Richardson, I'm picking the latter. The massive tax-cuts will be used to create a "strategic deficit", which will then be used to justify a further attack on the public services needed by the poor. And meanwhile, Brash and his rich friends will laugh all the way to the bank...

4 comments:

just as well they cremated him then isn't it ;-)

(actually i have no idea how the Piggy's corpse was dealt to, but it seemed like a good chance for a chuckle)

Posted by Span : 8/22/2005 05:53:00 PM

Relax guys, I doubt that this would be enough to get National into power -- if people voted for tax cuts, ACT wouldnt be floundering at 2% in the polls...

However I still think we are going to pay for these cuts the hard way - less schools, hospitals, cops, firemen, etc..

Those farmers wont be whining about high taxes when an underfunded MAF is impotent in the fact of a major foot and mouth epidemic...

Posted by Anonymous : 8/22/2005 06:07:00 PM

Relax guys, I doubt that this would be enough to get National into power -- if people voted for tax cuts, ACT wouldnt be floundering at 2% in the polls...

However I still think we are going to pay for these cuts the hard way - less schools, hospitals, cops, firemen, etc..

Those farmers wont be whining about high taxes when an underfunded MAF is impotent in the face of a major foot and mouth epidemic...

Posted by Anonymous : 8/22/2005 06:07:00 PM

I read an interview today with Michael Cullen (the link to which I have totally forgotten) - he was not of the opinion that it was Brash's goal to create a strategic deficit, but that his failing was that Brash thinks that 'trimming the fat' from government is as simple as waving a pen.

It was a good article - I'll have to find the link...

Posted by Anonymous : 8/22/2005 11:27:00 PM