After largely remaining silent during the election campaign, Steven Joyce has finally piped up and made a press release on National's website.
Despite there being a plethora of information available concerning New Zealand's debt situation, Joyce tries to mislead the public by providing false information.
But what is even more problematic for National is that he's decided to start his campaigning late and base it on negative politicking and lies.
Perhaps this change in tack is a result of John Key handling the tea pot tapes saga so atrociously, or perhaps it's the fact that National has no plan except their already failed policy ideas. It's really hard to tell what exactly has spurred Steven Joyce to make such a complete dick of himself:
“Labour’s latest attempt to smear the Government's economic record is short on facts, long on revisionist history, and promises absolutely nothing," says National Party Campaign Chair Steven Joyce.
So there is some of the inane rhetoric that pervades the article.
“Labour constantly pretends they didn’t drive New Zealand into recession before the rest of the world. They pretend the Global Financial Crisis and the Canterbury earthquakes never happened, and they want to pretend they didn’t leave behind massive debt and spending messes to clean up.
The fact of the matter is that the increased debt National has got us into is far more than what the Canterbury earthquakes and Global Financial crisis has cost us. Their tax cuts for the wealthy has totally failed to stimulate the economy... and that was the extent of National's plan.
"Their economic ‘facts’ don’t stand up to 30 seconds of scrutiny.
Here is Labour's policy page. It took me a few minutes just to read the index. So once again Joyce is just spouting unfounded rhetoric.
They fail to mention the GST changes were part of a tax switch that Labour is refusing to undo. They don't mention that most of the rise in unemployment occurred before the National Government's first Budget and as a direct result of the recession that started under Labour in early 2008.
Well that is just a blatant lie. Here is the evidence:
After that whopper, I wonder how Joyce can continue... but he does:
"Their economy with the truth doesn't stop there either. After-tax wages have actually risen 10 per cent faster than the cost of living during National’s term of Government...
Yet another lie. Here is the evidence:
....and the number of Kiwis moving to Australia was higher in Labour's last term.
Labour did not campaign at the last election to reduce the gap with australia and reduce the mass exodus... although their increasing the minimum wage would probably help. Reducing the amount of people leaving and the wage disparity with Australia was National's campaign pledge in 2008 and they have failed to deliver.
"And finally comes the most shocking part – once again they promise precisely nothing that would help meet the economic challenges New Zealand faces in the world.
Maybe Joyce should spend more than 30 seconds reading Labours plan.
"National has committed to get back to surplus in three years and pay down debt, to ensure we can afford the public services New Zealand families rely on. Our 120-point economic action plan will grow industries and exports.
National have in fact got the country into huge amounts of debt. The government debt has grown by $38 billion since they gained power. You don't provide services by slashing public service jobs? National's plan amounts to taking from the poor to subsidize the rich. It is simply dumb and will not work.
"By contrast Labour has gone through three stages in this campaign:
1. They started by racking up $16 billion in extra debt.
2. They then ran out of money and went to sleep.
3. Now they have woken up - but to the sound of their own dishonest 'facts'.
1. Labour is not the government yet and the figure of $16 billion is wrong.
2. Labours campaign seems to be well funded. It's National MP's who are MIA.
3. As exhibited above, Steven Joyce is a blatant liar! I wonder how he sleeps at night.
"The truth is that Labour’s solution to debt is to borrow more, and their solution for job growth is to whack at least 10 major new costs on business.
I guess Steven Joyce missed the part about Labours CGT announced in July.
"The only things that Labour is racking up faster than debt are smears and untruths. Labour is panicked and attempting to pull the wool over the eyes of the New Zealand public. Under Labour, New Zealand would owe our future."
Perhaps this sentience is a reaction to the media fiasco surrounding the tea pot tapes. I mean really! Labour is panicked... did Joyce happen to see his leader run away yesterday with his tail between his legs? Back to the drawing board Steven Joyce.
