Labour’s inability to control their spending means they will either drown New Zealand in a sea of debt or burden hardworking New Zealanders with higher taxes, National’s Finance spokesperson Paul Goldsmith says.

“Labour have a track record of failing to control their spending. When they came to office they said they would spend an additional $1.9 billion in Budget 2019. In actual fact, they blew their Budget and ended up spending an extra $3.8 billion.

“That one failure alone means Government debt will be more than $20 billion higher by 2030. That is irresponsible and reckless.

“A Government that can’t control its spending will inevitably come after New Zealanders for more tax.

“The choice under Labour is clear: higher taxes to pay for all of the uncontrolled spending, or an economy that drowns in a sea of debt.

“There is a better alternative.

“National will take a more disciplined approach to Government spending. We will eliminate waste such as Fees Free and KiwiBuild, we will be more careful with new spending each year, and we will put a halt to nice-to-have spending such as contributions to the NZ Super Fund.

“Our plan will restore debt to 36 per cent of GDP by 2034, compared to 48 per cent under Labour. And we will balance the budget and return to surplus by 2028 compared to never ending deficits under Labour.

“Future generations do not deserve to inherit an economy crippled with higher debt and higher taxes because Labour can’t control its spending.

“We need to stop the waste, stimulate the economy with short term tax relief, and trust Kiwis to grow their businesses and create jobs.”