Dear John,



The Reserve Bank’s decision to increase the Official Cash Rate by 50 basis points today means yet more pain for anyone with a mortgage.



Not since the dawn of the OCR have New Zealanders experienced such a relentlessly steep climb in interest rates. A 50 basis points rise is unusual, while five in a row is unprecedented.



Homeowners are in for a pummelling as a result. Many Kiwi families will now be forced to prepare themselves for a more-than-doubling in the cost of their mortgage interest.



This is a direct result of Jacinda Ardern’s Labour Government and its cavalier approach to spending, which has put fuel on the inflation fire – stoking the cost-of-living crisis and forcing the Reserve Bank to pull ever harder on the interest rate hand brake to try and control it.



While Kiwi families are bearing the cost of Labour’s addiction to spending through ballooning interest rates, today’s release of Crown financial statements show the Government is raking in more cash than ever before.



A careful Finance Minister would find room for prudent tax relief while investing in public services.



Grant Robertson’s ill-disciplined approach is making life harder for New Zealanders. His recipe of more spending, more debt and higher taxes has delivered New Zealanders nothing but higher inflation, higher interest rates, more debt and a cost-of-living crisis.



The time for political band-aids is over. The Government must step-up and present a plan to address the underlying drivers of New Zealand’s cost-of-living crisis, bring discipline to spending and roll back the tidal wave of costs it has unleashed on New Zealanders.



Kiwis deserve a real economic plan, not just more spending. National is absolutely committed to driving better results from Government spending, unleashing enterprise, and letting Kiwis keep more of what they earn.



Regards,



Nicola Willis

National Party Spokesperson for Finance



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