Under Labour’s watch, one in four New Zealanders are struggling to make ends meet at least once a month and still this Government does not have a plan to tackle the cost of living crisis, National’s Finance Spokesperson Nicola Willis says.

“The YouGov study released today makes for sobering reading. 27 per cent of Kiwis are struggling to pay their bills or buy food for their families at least once a month, and 23 per cent of people fear losing their homes.

“Findings from another survey by the Boston Consulting Group looking at global consumer sentiment found that Kiwis have some of the world’s highest levels of concern about rising inflation.

“Times are tough and Labour is only making things worse with its economic mismanagement and policy failures.

“Labour’s addiction to spending and unwillingness to fix immigration settings are just adding fuel to the cost of living fire, putting more pressure on inflation and interest rates.

“The soaring cost of living is exactly why National is calling for a public inquiry to examine the extent to which a tidal wave of cash poured on the New Zealand economy worsened the cost of living crisis.

“The Government needs to present a real plan to tackle inflation, instead of continually sheeting the blame to international events and relying on temporary band-aid payments.

“Labour should adopt National’s five-point plan to fight inflation and strengthen our economy – return the Reserve Bank to a single focus on price stability, reduce costs on business, remove bottlenecks in the economy, restore fiscal discipline, and prioritise tax relief for workers.”