PRESS RELEASE “SEDATIVE” BUDGET BEFORE MAJOR SURGERY – PETERS

Rt Hon Winston Peters

May 19th 2011

 

PRESS RELEASE

“SEDATIVE” BUDGET BEFORE MAJOR SURGERY – PETERS

Rt. Hon Winston Peters says the Budget is like giving a seriously ill patient a sedative before undergoing major surgery.

Mr Peters says the major surgery will come in the Budget next year when the Government privatises most state-owned assets and sells them overseas.

“The fact that the government is going to start selling the power companies should send a shiver up the spines of all New Zealanders.

“When people turn on a heater tonight they should think about next year when the Chinese or Australians get to own the power stations and if they try to leave on a jet plane, their plane will also be owned by someone else.”

Mr Peters says that describing it as a “savings” Budget is a gimmick devised by National’s Australian public relations advisors

“The Budget actually does nothing to really boost the levels of savings. It is an election year document that fails to get to grips with the real problems facing New Zealand.

We need to lift exports, create wealth and help industry create jobs for our people. This will not happen by using the same mechanisms that failed with Roger Douglas and Ruth Richardson.

Somebody is going to make a lot of money when the government carries out its surgery on our state companies next year. Unfortunately it will be the Chinese and the Australians.

The workers will be lucky if they get another 25 cents an hour!” said Mr Peters.