A socialist group has struck back against the Labour Party by hanging a large "tax the rich" banner over an Auckland motorway.
Organise Aotearoa took to the overbridge in Ellerslie on Tuesday morning, angered by the Wellbeing Budget and Labour's rejection of a Capital Gains Tax.
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"Many people on the left were hopeful about the Wellbeing Budget. However, all we saw was yet another austerity Budget that places the interests of the few over the many," spokesperson Justine Sachs said in a statement.
"A true Wellbeing Budget would have prioritised housing over prisons. It would have been willing to tax the wealthy in order to properly fund our starved education, healthcare, and welfare sectors."
Last month, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the Budget was developed to "tackle our long-term challenges", however it has been criticised for failing to tackle several key areas.
The Dental Association said it was "really disappointed" to hear there won't be extra funding for oral health anytime soon.
Auckland Action Against Poverty said the Government "failed" to deliver for beneficiaries and public housing.
And Post-Primary Teachers' Association (PPTA) president Jack Boyle said he wished the Government "had been braver" in its funding for education.
Sachs says New Zealand could pay for these if the Government prevented resources being "hoarded by the top one percent".
"We are calling for the Labour-led Government to tax profit and the wealthy few for the benefit of the many," she says.
"It's a matter of political will. The Labour-led Government could introduce legislation tomorrow that would fix these problems. They won't introduce the changes working-class people desperately need unless we put pressure on them."
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