Mana News editor Joe Trinder

Many political commentators are going to praise the finance minister Bill English Budget this year as being sensible, I can categorically guarantee the budget will be in deficit. The New Zealand economy is servicing the $80 billion government debt the finance minister has ticked up. This is Mr English’s seventh  Budget and he is still to deliver a surplus Budget. Some parts of the budget to be slashed are Maori  Party initiatives for example the Kaitoko Social workers.

The Kaitoko social workers save the tax payer immensely as being part of the solution and not an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. Struggling whanau that fall below the poverty line or find it difficult to get housing can end up in the criminal justice system. Poverty is closely linked crime and the Kaitoko social workers help Whanau before they end up in the court system. This saves millions of tax payer dollars in the justice and corrections.

The budget will also fail to address the housing crisis with House prices since the start of 2000 – the biggest increase in the OECD.

The National governments fiscal policy is far from being sensible the minister of finance Bill English has done little for the working class poor. The economy is being run like a rockstar that is heavily in debt and addicted to supporting property speculators.