Federated Farmers have welcomed the 2011 Budget which they say is ‘boring but in a positive way’.
However, at the same time Labour is warning that funding for biosecurity has been reduced, placing New Zealand agriculture in harm’s way.
Yesterday’s Budget outlined the Government’s plans to get New Zealand’s economy back on track and in surplus by 2014/15 – earlier than anticipated.
Finance Minister Bill English announced a range of initiatives that he said would boost economic growth and reduce government borrowing, from nearly $400 million a week presently, to $100 million within a year.
Among the key initiatives were the partial privatization of the Crown’s four State Owned Energy companies, reducing the size of the public service, a new tax on employer’s contributions to Kiwisaver and a 5.5 billion dollar rebuild package for Christchurch.
Federated Farmers economics and commerce spokesperson Philip York says the New Zealand is heading in the right direction with this year’s budget, by addressing the size of government.
“It looks like they are going to be reasonably serious and trying to reduce the size of government and they’re saying the right things in relation to the export sector. If this country is going to prosper then it needs to have a vibrant export sector.”
However, Federated Farmers did say they thought the Government could have gone further, as the Feds had suggested to them, when it came to reducing spending on social policies, such as Working For Families, and also student loans and Kiwisaver.
Mr York also said he was pleased there were no’ lollies’, or surprises in the Budget.
But there are Budget ‘lollies’ – such as the 35 million dollar rural irrigation planning package, which the government announced last week – with a further $400 million dollars for regional irrigation schemes just around the corner.
Labour agriculture spokesman Damien O’Connor said that the irrigation package was the only benefit for farmers in an otherwise unimpressive budget, and that alarmingly biosecurity funding is being cut.
“Well overall I’d have to say the Budget is not inspiring at all. There’s no indication of a plan to take the country forward.
“The only glimmer of light for agriculture is some funding for planning around irrigation and the government’s indicated that in the future, the never-never. There might be some available for substantial investment but we have yet to see that.
“There are some major holes in the budget – and assumptions around revenue – disputes between Treasury and IRD.”
Mr O’Connor says these disputes could make a $4 billion dollar difference in the Government’s calculations, and this could further affect biosecurity which has already had its funding slashed by $5 million in this budget.
