Family Boost, a 25% rebate on early childhood education costs for families earning up to $180,000, capped at a measly $75 a week, was Willis’ brainchild. She sold it as a cost-of-living lifeline, funded by axing Labour’s “wasteful” consultant spending. Yet, economists warned her directly: the numbers didn’t add up, and the policy’s design was a mess. Willis ignored them, betting her reputation on a flashy promise to mask National’s thin policy slate. The result? A predictable flop that’s left families high and dry.
Yesterday, RNZ reported:
Fewer than 50 families are likely to receive National's full $252 fortnightly tax break, based on the FamilyBoost scheme's lower than expected uptake, The Council of Trade Unions says.
The revelation comes as a result of figures showing just 249 families have consistently been receiving the full $75-a-week FamilyBoost rebate for ECE costs, a key plank of National's tax cuts package.
Why did it crash? Willis’ policy is a bureaucratic quagmire. Families must wrestle with IRD’s convoluted system, uploading receipts and navigating red tape National had promised to cut...time and effort most families can’t spare while working numerous jobs for not enough pay in a cost-of-living crisis. Willis blames the IRD for misjudging uptake, assuming families would flock to her scheme despite its paltry payout. The income cap, her attempt at looking inclusive, missed the mark for low-income families and barely helped the middle class. It’s Willis’ signature move: over promise and under deliver, then dodge and blame someone else...just this time she can't blame Labour.
Economists’ warnings, dismissed by Willis as naysaying, have proven spot-on. She knew the policy was shaky but pushed it to score political points, prioritising optics over outcomes. The $400 million supposedly saved from consultants was her talking point, but Family Boost’s failure exposes her true focus: tax breaks for the rich, not relief for struggling families.
Willis’ arrogance is staggering. She’s tried to scapegoat IRD for the low uptake, but this is her mess. The 74,000 families she promised to help are now collateral damage in her quest for headlines. Meanwhile, National’s broader agenda of slashing public services, rolling back environmental protections, and cozying up to corporates, is full steam ahead. Family Boost is a microcosm of Willis’ tenure: big talk, shoddy execution, and a refusal to own the fallout.
Kiwi families deserved better than Willis’ half-baked scheme. Real childcare solutions, like affordable access and systemic investment, were never on her radar. Instead, she’s left parents scrambling while she spins excuses. Willis needs to take responsibility and step down. She cannot possibly pretend to be the Minister of Finance with this type of mess on her hands.
