Data released today by Stats NZ shows that, over the past year, the cost of living has risen twice as fast as wages, says National’s Finance spokesperson Michael Woodhouse.

“The latest quarterly Labour Market Statistics show that on average wages went up by 2.4 per cent over the past 12 months. Unfortunately, inflation over that same period was more than double that figure, running at 4.9 percent, the highest rate in 25 years.

“The cost of living is rising twice as fast as wages. That means Kiwis are getting poorer under Labour”.

“Labour has engineered a massive increase in Government spending, which is up an eye-watering 40 per cent after just four years in office. With so much of this increase being poured into wasteful and ideological projects that don’t increase the size of the economy, it’s no wonder prices are soaring much faster than wages.

“On top of this, Kiwis are paying more tax under Labour. In just the past year the Government took in 12 per cent more income tax than it did the year before, as more and more taxpayers are caught by tax brackets that have not been adjusted for inflation.

“The Government is showing no signs of halting its wasteful spending, with $35 billion announced in just the last week in the form of a fanciful underground tram in Auckland, light rail in Wellington and a $15 billion spend up to buy carbon credits from overseas. All of this will further increase debt, inflation and ultimately taxes.

“With the cost of living rising fast Labour needs to halt its wasteful spending or risk runaway inflation.”