Budget 2022 is here and the Government has revealed how it will divvy up funding.
Relief for cost of living has been announced, as well as funding for New Zealand's health reforms.
What you need to know:
- Cost of living relief is on the way for low and middle-income New Zealanders.
- New Health NZ and Māori Health Authority bodies given $11 billion over four years.
- Here is a wrap of Budget 2022, information on the health spend, the cost of living payments for Kiwis, and the increase to first-home buyer grant caps.
- Funding for mental health and the digital technologies industry has already been announced.
- The Government also announced a mega Emissions Reduction Plan, which reveals how it intends to cut NZ's emissions over the coming decades.
These live updates have finished. See the latest Budget 2022 news here.
5:45pm - Grant Robertson is walking a tightrope above three crises and this Budget is his balancing act, writes Newshub political reporter Amelia Wade.
As the Finance Minister wobbles on, at one end of his spending pole hangs the cost of living. An acute, immediate crisis forcing families to do without thanks to record inflation driving up the price of everything, just as winter starts to bite.
It was putting intense pressure on the Government to help Kiwis through it. And Robertson knows it. The problem? He'd already promised his $6b in new spending to the other two crises - health and climate change.
But he found an extra $1b down the back of the COVID couch - namely the COVID-19 Response fund. The urgency of one crisis subsiding, freeing up cash to throw at another.
5:20pm - Here is a statement from The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners:
Today's Budget put the bulk of health funding announced today on infrastructure and standing up Health New Zealand and the Māori Health Authority. The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners welcomes the investment for general practitioners in high need areas, and the investment for community health care, but is disappointed that the funding does not specifically address the workforce shortage.
College President Dr Samantha Murton says, "Setting up these new entities is important but so is addressing the significant specialist general practitioner workforce issues.
"Today is World Family Doctor Day, which has the tagline of "always there to care", and we are in danger of not being there in the not-too-distant future if there continues to be so little focus on developing the general practitioner workforce."
The College welcomes the investment in developing the allied workforce in the community, but those jobs can't replace vocationally trained general practitioners who deliver specialist diagnostician skills that others can't.
"As more GPs are nearing retirement age or thinking of leaving the profession early due to burnout, there will be no ability to provide more consultations and longer opening hours, let alone train the new generation of general practitioners who are coming through our training programme," says Dr Murton.
"There needs to be a solid investment in training more general practitioners and rural hospital doctors so we can continue to provide complex medical care in the community, or it is the patients who will miss out.
In our GP Future Workforce Requirements report, the College highlighted how
10 extra general practitioners per 100,000 people means about 30 people a year wouldn't die from cancer, respiratory, and cardiovascular issues, and
having more GPs would save the economy $139.6 million in health savings ($150m per year in savings minus $10.4 million to train more GPs)
"GPs undertook 20,5000,000 contacts in 2020 and that is projected to grow to 23,000,000 in 2030.
"We need more specialist GPs to ensure all New Zealanders can get timely appointments at their local practice when they need it, no matter where they live," says Dr Murton.
"We welcome the fast-track to residency announcement for international GPs wanting to make Aotearoa their home, but there needs to also be a commitment to growing our own workforce."
Ensuring young doctors are getting exposure to general practice and rural hospital medicine and receiving a salary and benefits comparable with other specialities when they choose general practice is critical, as is supporting the specialist GPs who are supervising and teaching them," says Dr Murton.
The College is pleased to see a solid investment into mental health. GPs are seeing increased numbers of patients presenting with mental health concerns so having more accessible services is incredibly important, as is the additional funding for PHARMAC to fund more medicines for New Zealanders.
The College also welcomes the funding for a diabetes prevention and treatment programme for targeted Pasifika communities in South Auckland.
"Next year's Budget needs to show a real commitment to the health of New Zealanders and address the issues of retaining specialist general practitioners in the workforce that we have been speaking out about for too many years," says Dr Murton.
5pm - Here's a quick rundown of the Budget from Newshub political reporters Isobel Ewing, Amelia Wade, and Imogen Wells.
4:40pm - The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) says it is "profoundly disappointed" with the Budget, in which nurses "barely get a mention".
Chief executive Paul Goulter said NZNO has been clear and expressed to the Government on many occasions that the health front line made up of nurses, health care assistants, and kaimahi hauora across all sectors is in crisis, and that significant funds were needed in this Budget to address staffing and pay issues.
"The Government seems oblivious to the fact that it cannot have a robust and workable health system when there are chronic staffing issues that are worsening every day, but it seems the best it can do is $76 million for workforce development over four years," he said.
"We're not even sure what that means, but $19m a year is really just loose change.
"There is nothing mentioned about nursing wages or conditions, or about how the Government intends to address the widening pay gap between nurses who work for DHBs and those in other sectors - and that is just going to perpetuate health inequities and staffing problems for non DHB providers."
NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku said the Budget was disheartening.
"There is nothing here that invests to build a sustained public health response. The allocated funding seems just pennies in the scheme of things, so we're just seeing a perpetuation of underfunding for some of the people and services in communities that we desperately need to be there for us," she said.
"Without yet understanding the details, we can see there is funding for workforce development across the Māori health workforce, but the amounts are too small to address the wage parity issue, and Māori and iwi health will continue as the poorest cousin in the health system. That's a tragedy, really."
Goulter said NZNO would do more analysis of the Budget over the next few days.
"We're looking forward to getting some of the detail from the Government that we hope will show concrete support for the health workers, but it's pretty clear at this point that the urgent need at the frontline has gone unacknowledged," he said.
"This is a real opportunity that has been missed, and that will be a sad outcome for many needing quality health care for themselves and their loved ones.
"I don't think we can call it a Wellbeing Budget at all."
4:30pm - New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has chimed with his Budget 2022 reaction, saying it's "a 'cost of living crisis' not a 'spending on living crisis'".
"Throwing more and more money at a black hole for Kiwis to spend is akin to the famous saying: 'It's like standing in a bucket and trying to pull yourself up by the handle'," he said.
4:20pm - Budget 2022 is raining cash, but it's a cold, hard shoulder for cancer and cystic fibrosis, writes Newshub national correspondent Patrick Gower.
While there's millions and millions of dollars going to Kiwis to help with the cost of living, there is a giant fail-to-deliver on Pharmac and the wonder drugs that people need to live.
4:15pm - Here is a statement from the Malagan Institute on investment in RNA technology:
The Malaghan Institute is welcoming today's budget announcement of $40.7m over four years to support an RNA platform and R&D pipeline in New Zealand.
"We already have the skills and expertise across New Zealand to start applying this breakthrough science, this investment will help ensure we have the capability to make it happen and improve our nation's health and economic productivity," says Dr Kjesten Wiig, Malaghan Institute Director of Strategic Partnerships.
"RNA technology presents a significant opportunity for New Zealand to supercharge its thriving biotech sector and become a leader in the development of novel RNA therapeutics. This RNA platform will build on established capability to prepare New Zealand for future pandemics and ensure vaccine security."
As part of its involvement in Vaccine Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand - Ohu Kaupare Huaketo (VAANZ) the Malaghan Institute has been working with Government and local and international collaborators to start to build the key components and capability for an RNA platform in New Zealand. This has included the purchase of cutting-edge nanoparticle technology, the first of its kind in New Zealand, to produce lipid nanoparticles to encapsulate mRNA to safely deliver it to cells.
Dr Wiig says COVID-19 vaccines are just the start of what RNA technology offers.
"The RNA technology used in the COVID vaccines is as disruptive and revolutionary as penicillin and computers. It can be applied to many other diseases, including cancer and influenza, and will transform therapeutics and treatments for patients across the world.
"RNA technology offers the potential to develop real-world solutions for New Zealand specific problems, including diseases that disproportionately affect our Māori and Pasifika populations."
She says it also offers huge potential for the agriculture and aquaculture sectors, in which the development of effective vaccines and therapies can help ensure animal health and biosecurity.
"Our vision is that this investment is used to build a highly collaborative research platform and pipeline across New Zealand to develop, manufacture and commercialise breakthrough RNA therapeutics," says Dr Wiig.
"We are looking forward to hearing more detail about the Government's vision for this investment, and to collaborating with other local and international organisations to help realise it."
4:08pm - Davidson said she wanted to see some policy over getting Māori land back.
4:06pm - Davidson said that while the $350 payment will make a difference it doesn't go far enough.
She also wanted to see more increases with benefits.
4:03pm - Davidson said they want to see more people own their own homes, but also wanted to see more support for people who rent.
This included wanting rent controls, since landlords "hike up" prices.
4:01pm - On the Māori Health Authority getting $40 million a year, Davidson said the she would've liked to see more.
"We know that this can only be a start," Davidson said.
3:59pm - Davidson said that the Greens are clear in lifting incomes for those in the lowest income households as well as incomes for essential workers, such as health care workers.
That's something they've campaigned on for a while, she said, and want other things like the Māori Health Authority are given the attention they need.
More public and affordable housing is still needed.
3:58pm - Shaw said that half-price transport is close to a Green transport card, and while they didn't quite get that they are going to keep pushing for it.
3:56pm - Green Party leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson are speaking now.
Shaw said they support the Budget, given there are gains in terms of the cooperation agreement in it.
He said they would've taken a more "transformational view" that would've helped people on incomes right at the bottom.
3:55pm - Waititi said there are some good things in the Budget, but it needs to be more "bold and courageous".
3:53pm - "Everybody has a right to eat," Waititi said, and taking GST off food would've been welcomed by many.
He said it isn't good enough that 0.7 percent of health funding is going towards the Māori Health Authority.
He said there's been better funding from district health boards for Māori than the Māori Health Authority.
3:50pm - Waititi said the $350 is a help, but it's not enough.
It would've been better if GST was taken off food, because it will make life "a lot easier", he said.
"There's a whole lot more we could've done and we haven't seen it in this Budget."
3:45pm - Rawiri Waititi from Te Paati Māori is speaking to media.
He said the $1b for Māori, and the $40m a year for the Māori Health Authority, isn't enough.
"There are some questions around what the $1 billion looks like," he said.
"We're always left with the crumbs of the Budget."
Waititi said he would've like to see "a fighting chance for whanau" in this Budget, with GST removed on food and an empty house tax introduced.
He also wanted to see more money in preventative schemes, not in police since that is the "ambulance at the bottom of the hill".
3:35pm - Here is a statement from National's finance spokesperson Nicola Willis:
Budget 2022 confirms Finance Minister Grant Robertson's spending is out of control, National's Finance Spokesperson Nicola Willis says.
"Not content with a record $6 billion per year spending spree that he planned, Labour has raided future budgets - spending $2 billion from Budget 2023 and $0.4 billion from Budget 2024.
"That's before you count climate spending and the cost of living payment - which are on top, taking the total spend-up to more than $9 billion per year of government spending.
"At a time when unemployment is very low, Grant Robertson is running a deficit of $19 billion.
"Having announced by far the biggest increase in spending in any Budget, ever, Grant Robertson expects New Zealanders to believe that he will keep his increases to $2.5 billion for the next two years. That is hard to believe.
"Inflation is at a 30-year high of 6.9 per cent, will remain above 5 per cent next year and is expected to stay high for years, not getting back down to below 3 per cent until 2025.
"While Labour might want to blame inflation all on offshore factors, Treasury has confirmed that inflation is being driven by domestic factors.
"Today's forecast confirm that Labour's economic mismanagement means Kiwis, the economy and outcomes are all going backwards."
3:30pm - Luxon said that if National was in government, they would increase spending on health and education every year.
On public transport, he said that extending half-price fares is another band-aid solution.
"We need strong economic management," he said.
3:28pm - On health, he said that area is always a challenge to make sure there are good outcomes.
He added that the Budget needs a line-by-line check to look at programmes that aren't working and don't need funding, adding they want outcomes.
3:24pm - Luxon said inflation-adjusted tax thresholds is a better solution than cost of living payments.
He said this would help the "squeezed middle" and it is the "cleanest, easiest" way to get people money.
National's finance spokesperson Nicola Willis said $350 is enough for a plane ticket to Australia, and many New Zealanders may well be looking at that.
3:20pm - Luxon said the $350 cost of living payment is a "band-aid solution" to inflation.
He said - as he did earlier - that Robertson is "addicted to spending".
3:18pm - National leader Christopher Luxon is speaking to media now.
He has doubled down on calling it the "backwards Budget" and said there has been no economic management and leadership to deal with the economic crisis.
3:10pm - ACT's David Seymour is speaking to media.
He hit out at Māori spending and questioned "why everything is being racialised".
He added that there are people with different challenges when it come to health care, such as Pasifika, Asian, and more.
2:59pm - Te Paati Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi is joining Newshub Nation.
He said 0.6 percent of the total Budget is going to Māori and 0.7 percent of the health funding to the Māori Health Authority - which isn't enough.
He added the Budget doesn't go far enough for putting food on the table.
2:58pm - Luxon said Robertson is "so desperate to spend up" that he's already spent $2.5 billion from the next two Budgets.
"When you're addicted to spending, you can't let it go," Luxon said.
2:55pm - National leader Christopher Luxon is speaking in Parliament.
He said the "books are going backwards" and there's been "economic mismanagement" from the Government.
"Anyone earning over $50,000 would be better off under National's proposed inflation adjusted tax brackets compared to Labour's cost of living package," he said.
Luxon said Robertson is "addicted to spending" and he is damaging New Zealand's economy.
2:54pm - On infrastructure, he said the $60 billion over next five years will go towards building more hospitals, bulding transport networks, and education facilities.
Asked if tax cuts could be on the cards for Budget 2023, he said he isn't thinking about that Budget just yet.
2:50pm - Grant Robertson is now joining Newshub Nation.
He said that he wanted to strike a balance between helping Kiwis now and important developments for future.
He said the cost of living package is a "significant contribution" that many New Zealanders will receive over the coming months.
While the $350 won't cover a lot, he said he wanted to get New Zealanders through this "tough period".
2:46pm - Newshub Nation reporter Conor Whitten said that while Māori may look like one of the winners in this Budget, it turns out they might not be.
The $1 billion for Māori may sound like a lot, but only $160 million over the next four years is for Māori services. This means something like the Māori Health Authority is only going to have a budget of $40 million a year - which is a "drop in the bucket", Whitten said.
2:41pm - Academic Ella Henry said the over $1 billion a year for Māori will help whanau - it won't be on an individual level.
On business, de Boni said she wanted to see more for small businesses since they deserve as much attention as larger organisations.
2:39pm - Business journalist Dita de Boni said the Government has been pressured on the supermarket front.
She said they're spending $6 million to increase supermarket competition, but that might not come as much relief for people who are on personally tight budgets.
2:36pm - Economist Shamubeel Eaqub disagreed with ACT's David Seymour.
He said that people can disagree with what the Government does in their Budget, but you can't "lie" about it.
2:33pm - National's finance spokesperson Nicola Willis is now on Newshub Nation.
She called this "Labour's backwards budget".
She said Robertson has had a "complete Budget blowout" since he's "raided" 2023 and 2024's Budgets already.
"He's addicted to spending. It's time for him to give New Zealanders some of their own money back," Willis said.
She said National wouldn't spend as much as Robertson would, and isn't "showing the discipline" that a National government would.
National would remove money from growing the public service and not fund KiwiBuild.
2:28pm - ACT leader David Seymour is now speaking with Newshub Nation.
He said he is still calling this the "brain drain budget".
"[They had] one shot to stop this being the brain drain budget, unfortunately [Robertson] has not taken the initiative."
He said the attraction of Australia just got that much better, since people with jobs are still struggling.
Seymour said addressing cost of living is just "smart rhetoric", not smart politics.
If he was delivering the Budget, Seymour said he would simply pull back expenditure.
2:27pm - Here is a statement from Business NZ on the Budget:
Small businesses across the country will breathe a collective sigh of relief after the 2022 Budget earmarked $100 million of capital funding for a Business Growth Fund.
Buy NZ Made executive director Dane Ambler says many small businesses are "teetering on the edge" and are in desperate need of more financial support.
"The Fund is intended to improve access to finance and enable small business to grow.
"Small businesses have shown resilience to get through the past 12 months, despite a perfect storm comprised of COVID in the community, staff shortages, a closed border and shipping costs and delays.
"With the threat of a looming recession, inflation and ongoing shipping issues, we need to continue to help local businesses get back on their feet and thrive.
"We have reached out to hundreds of manufacturers, retailers and service providers, many of whom are closing or facing real difficulty staying afloat.
"The flow-through of COVID is only just reaching some businesses. We needed decent support for Kiwi companies from today’s Budget, and we look forward to seeing how businesses can benefit from the fund in the next 12 months."
2:25pm - Back to the Newshub Nation panel in the studio, economist Shamubeel Eaqub said the fact that the Government is targetting lower income New Zealanders, with the extension for cheaper public transport and cost of living relief, that is a good sign.
He said we're seeing a marrying of political and social pressures.
2:22pm - Davidson said that she would like to see something on rent controls, since that helps those on low incomes too.
On health funding, she said that she welcomes this extra money, but hopes it gets out to Māori and Pasifika health providers.
She hopes it is "properly resourced and properly empowered".
2:20pm - Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is joining Newshub Nation now.
She said she wanted to see a lift for those on the lowest incomes. She also said that New Zealand can't address climate change properly without also addressing poverty.
Davidson said that while half-price public transport has been extended, that is only the beginning and she would like to see more, especially in rural parts of New Zealand.
2:15pm - We now have a panel on Newshub Nation, with host Rebecca Wright.
The panel is business journalist Dita de Boni, economist Shamubeel Eaqub, and academic Ella Henry.
For Eaqub, the big winner for him is infrastructure, especially health.
De Boni said she would've liked to see more social spending. She said it's all about food, health, and spending, and there isn't enough to help those on low incomes.
Henry said she's heartened by extra support for Māori, as well as cheaper dental treatment.
2:13pm - Robertson is talking about cost of living.
He said this is a Budget reponse to the challenges facing New Zealanders, while looking ahead.
"The here and now matters, but so does looking to the future," he said.
Robertson added that the currently high inflation levels are expected to be temporary.
2:10pm - Robertson said that net debt will now peak at 19.9 percent.
On COVID-19, he said the impacts still remain with New Zealanders. There are also longstanding challenges with climate change and housing.
He said that Budget 2022 is being delivered in a difficult time for New Zealanders and the world - especially with the rising cost of living.
Robertson added this is about a "balanced approach to fiscal policy".
2:05pm - Finance Minister Grant Robertson is speaking in Parliament.
He said the investments made in this Budget build on the previous years' Budgets.
He added that this Budget addresses key areas including health, child wellbeing, and cost of living.
Robertson is listing out this year's Budget big-winners, including the previously-announced climate emergency response plan.
2:03pm - Here is a statement from National Party leader Christopher Luxon:
Budget 2022 confirms that New Zealand is going backwards under Labour faster than ever, Opposition Leader Christopher Luxon says.
"This is the Backwards Budget. Kiwis, the economy and outcomes are all going backwards under Labour and today's forecasts confirm the situation is only going to get worse before it gets better.
"Labour's spending addiction means the books are going backward. Not content with a $6 billion spending spree, they've also raided future budgets - spending $2 billion from Budget 2023 and $0.4 billion from Budget 2024. And that's before you count climate spending and the cost of living bandaid - which are on top.
They're pushing out surpluses and shifting the goal posts to clear the way for more spending by lifting debt limits.
"With inflation at a 30-year-high and prices running laps around wages, Kiwis are experiencing the worst cost of living crisis in a generation. The forecasts today show inflation is rampant for years to come.
"More and more Kiwis are falling behind each week, squeezed by growing costs and a Government that refuses to offer them meaningful income tax relief while ramming through the biggest spend-up in New Zealand history.
"Labour's cost of living package is a temporary band aid. The squeezed middle are paying the price for Labour's economic mismanagement.
"And despite smashing the record for government spending, outcomes are going backwards. They've added more than 10,000 bureaucrats to the public service, yet outcomes are getting worse.
"Under Labour, wait times for surgery and specialist assessments have blown out, literacy and numeracy achievement rates have hit alarming lows and violent crime and gang numbers have exploded.
"New Zealand is going backwards, fast. We simply cannot afford this Labour Government."
2pm - The Government has announced relief for cost of living and funding for health reforms as part of Budget 2022.
Low and middle-income New Zealanders struggling with the skyrocketing cost of living will receive $350 over three months under Budget 2022.
From August 1, roughly $27 per week will be paid out to an estimated 2.1 million Kiwis who earned less than $70,000 in the last tax year and are not eligible for the Winter Energy Payment.
It will cost $814 million and be enabled through legislation being introduced on Thursday. Inland Revenue is currently in the process of setting it up.
And in health, the new Health NZ and Māori Health Authority bodies are being set up with a colossal $11 billion over four years, while the Government's also bolstering Pharmac's Budget, pumping more money into GPs, and increasing dental grants for low-income whanau.
That giant $11 billion figure reflects forecast spending over four years to ensure health services previously funded through the outgoing District Health Boards (DHBs) are maintained and to deal with DHB deficits.
It begins with a record $1.8 billion funding boost in the first year which Health Minister Andrew Little says will assist the new health entities have a "clean start" when they begin operating from July 1.
1:50pm - We're only 10 minutes away from the Budget announcement.
Here's what you can expect from the 2pm reveal and what's already been announced so far.
1:45pm - Kia ora, and welcome to Newshub's live updates for Budget 2022.
We'll bring you all the reactions as it happens.
You can watch Newshub Nation's Budget special in the livestream above, too. That begins at 2pm.
