Luxon flagged the Government was trying to be as transparent as possible about expected poor results in the second financial quarter, with a forecast hit to inflation and growth thanks to the “Iranian situation”.
But he said Q1 figures of 0.8% were “pretty strong” considering the Middle East conflict kicked off on February 28, with 2.1% growth over nine months.
April had seen the country’s biggest-ever trade surplus of $2bn, with exports up $10bn in the year.
“I think we’ve managed the crisis well. We haven’t done dumb things that other countries have done that they’re going to have to unwind…in terms of subsidies and all those kinds of things,” Luxon said.
“My real hope is that we can come through it pop up the other side and and get the show back on the road again.”
Yesterday Luxon told party faithful gathered in Lower Hutt that if National was re-elected, it would make KiwiSaver mandatory for all workers from July 2028, with employer and employee each required to contribute at the default rate of 6% by 2032.
National would also require employers to keep paying contributions for workers aged over 65, and a government contribution would go to those on parental leave.
The party also planned to have babies automatically enrolled in KiwiSaver, with a $1500 Baby Boost payment to kickstart their savings. – a step up from the $1000 recently announced by New Zealand First.
The KiwiSaver policies were well-received at the conference, while Education Minister Erica Stanford also received wide praise for her education policies.
But those gathered were given a reality check about the upcoming election, with party president Sylvia Wood and campaign chair Simeon Brown both saying polling and the outcome of November 7 would be “tight”.
Brown also warned against strategically voting for Act and NZ First, comparing National’s coalition partners to distracting children who are constantly fighting.
The weekend also saw the launch of the Green Party’s new tax plan, including a “super-rich tax”, inheritance and gifts tax, a higher corporate tax rate for companies with more than $30 million annual turnover, and the reversal of the coalition’s changes to interest deductability.
Income tax rates would change, giving a tax cut to the 96% of Kiwis who earn less than $160,000. The party forecast its plan would bring in $32 billion of new revenue over four years.