Word: cullens
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...leadership of political novice Don Brash, a former governor of the country's Reserve Bank. Are people ungrateful, or has Labour reached its use-by date? It may simply be that New Zealand politics is becoming a more unpredictable game or, as Deputy P.M. and Finance Minister Michael Cullen argues, that Kiwis now expect a larger pay-off after the hard years of restructuring: "'Where's my dividend?' people say. Well, we need to move along a steady path and not blow it all at once. We will target our Budget surplus toward spending on public services and investment...
...Cullen has been sounding like a scrooge during the campaign, trying to protect the surplus at all costs, worrying about rising oil prices, a strong dollar and a scary current account deficit. But Brash is feeding the instinct for immediate gratification, although he is using the language of incentive, hard work and aspiration to sell it. National is promising large tax cuts across the board, with a plan that would see 85% of taxpayers charged a marginal rate of 19? in the dollar or less. Despite the output and jobs growth, real earnings have remained flat for the past five...
...unemployment rates for Maori and Pacific Islanders are way above national averages; one-third of Maori children live in families that rely on welfare. Clark says education and acquiring skills will get them out of poverty. "Labour's always got an Achilles heel around issues such as race," says Cullen, who claims his party straddles all of New Zealand's ethnic communities...
...Cullen questions National's commitment to improving the lives of the poor and whether it will be able to afford the increased costs that are inevitable if Treaty claims are to be settled by 2010 without reneging on its tax cuts or blowing the Budget. Cullen believes Labour is well on track, with its "little bit of stick, a lot of carrot" approach moving people off unemployment and sickness benefits. Brash says that's not enough. At a time when businesses are finding it hard to fill job vacancies, 15% of the working-age population are being paid...
...nearly so easy for Key is battling the formidable Cullen. (Facing the Finance Minister in Parliament, says Key, "is like playing Andre Agassi at tennis every week. It improves your game enormously.") In a TVNZ studio, during a debate between eight economics spokesmen, Cullen is itching to get involved, like a burly rugby breakaway hoping to crunch a small ball carrier if he would only dare to come his side of the ruck. Perky, motor-mouthed Cullen hints at Key's hidden agenda to cut public services and reprise the scorched-earth policies of former financial warriors Roger Douglas...