• Full Story

Govt spending cap under ACT-Nat deal

Email
Print

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 3:23p.m.

ACT's John Banks and National's John Key (file pic)

ACT's John Banks and National's John Key (file pic)

By 3 News online staff

National has announced a confidence and supply agreement with the ACT Party which Prime Minister John Key says has a “strong focus on the economy”.

Under the agreement, ACT’s John Banks becomes Minister of Regulatory Reform, Minister of Small Business, Associative Minister of Education, and Associative Minister of Commerce.

He will work outside cabinet.

“I am really proud to have my portfolios that have been assigned to me,” says Mr Banks.

He will also be a member of the Cabinet committees of Expenditure Control, Economic Growth and Infrastructure, as well as Appointments and Honours.

Policy agreements include reform to the Resource Management Act, but not a total overhaul as ACT wanted.

Charters will be brought in for underperforming schools, whereby new schools can be started up by iwi, private or community groups, or these groups can compete to operate a local school.

Government expenditure will also be capped for core operation spending with the exception of unemployment benefits, asset impairment and natural disasters. 

“The agreement has a strong focus on the economy, including a concentration on fiscal discipline, and reducing the costs to business,” says Mr Key.

He says Treasury supports the move to cap spending and it will not affect the Government’s current budgeting plans.

Mr Key says the cap can be breached but the Finance Minister must explain the reason why and how spending will be reigned in. 

He says successive governments can abolish the crown spending cap if they want. 

3 News

Become a fan of 3 News on Facebook and on Twitter.

Post a Comment

Before commenting, please take the time to read our moderation guide


(Won't be published)



Comments

06 Dec 2011 06:27a.m.

Wiseacre wrote:

Reduced regulations for business. Government spending cap. The beginning of the privatisation of public education. Once again, the National Party are using ACT as a patsy to push through their own policies that they are unwilling to take to the public themselves. They will say it was the cost of getting ACT to the table. As if ACT has anywhere else to go or has any real bargaining power. They know ACT is dead in the water & won't survive the next election, so they will use them to push through their own abhorrent agenda and let ACT take the heat for it.

05 Dec 2011 10:55p.m.

Kim wrote:

That private school stuff is out of left feild isn't it? Don't remember anyone campaigning on that? If thats an act policy how the hell is 1% of the vote able to dictate such a fundamental shift in schooling without a mandate even from the 1% that voted for them.

05 Dec 2011 06:06p.m.

Lauren wrote:

What really angers me is why Peter Dunn and John Banks are going to have annual salaries of $217,000- just reported on 3news right now. That's a really good look for the NZ government in the midst of a flop in the economy, whilst others are struggling to make ends meet.

05 Dec 2011 05:55p.m.

James wrote:

Act got like 1% of the vote yet National are bending over backwards for them, what a joke.

05 Dec 2011 05:48p.m.

Bruce wrote:

David, You seem to be confused with the financial system in Europe and America. The problem facing them is a "Credit Crunch", This is also the effect with NZ. New Zealand needs to get away from the credit system that is plaguing Europe and the U.S. The best way to move away from that is to get "real money" moving. The only way to get money moving is to spend real money. Wages and benefits need to rise along with reversing the tax cuts the Looney Nationals introduced. Personally, I don't care if my tax rises, as long as the money goes where it should go. Raising the minimum wage will encourage more spending, more tax will be accumulated through sales. History shows the best method of avoiding financial collapse is to spend more "Real" money. Saving that money blocks its movement and does absolutely nothing to improve an economy.

05 Dec 2011 05:30p.m.

M1 wrote:

So I guess Bruce it would have been better to have the "Five Headed Monster" of Labour/Green/NZ First/Mana/Maori Party? National have 60 seats and ACT and United Future only have 1 each. National are clearly in the drivers seat, as opposed to your five headed alternative where everyone would be clutching at the wheel and trying to steer it in a different direction.

05 Dec 2011 04:53p.m.

David wrote:

You're right Bruce, the alternatice of Goff, Hone, Bradford, Peters, Minto and Norman would have been much better. And hey, why not spend some more money that we don't have? It's doing wonders over in America and across Europe

05 Dec 2011 04:30p.m.

A T Last wrote:

John Banks will be great, he isn't PC, taxpayers will get action, not more hand-wringing studies by the central planners who are there to look after themselves. This three year term will see ever more desperate cries by those who sup at the trough whilst reclining on the velvet hammock of the safety net provided by hard working diligent Kiwi's who just want to get ahead.

05 Dec 2011 03:41p.m.

Bruce wrote:

Announcing the appearance of the "Three Headed Monster", National, ACT and United Future. If only the story would end as any other fairy tale, "and they all lived happily ever after". Somehow I don't think this Three Headed Monster will create such a happy ending for New Zealand. As if the Looney policies of National aren't enough!. Maybe Key needs to check the dictionary definition for the word, "Cap" or "Capped", I remember he was using that terminology during the 2008 election, saying, "they will cap the number of Bureaucrats. He seems to have been confused with the words "Cap" and "slash" as they slashed the number of Bureaucrats, not capped, now he is using the same term for government expenditure.. God help us.