Not time to deny another crisis is looming

 For those who tend to think I'm a little one eyed and I think the sun shines out of this governments posterior then take a read of this.

THIS IS NOT A TIME TO DENY WE ARE EITHER IN OR GOING TO BE IN SHORTLY, ANOTHER CRISIS.

We're still dealing with the impacts of a government who held the seat of power for 9 years, fiddled with the books to make surpluses look good, while selling off state housing assets, re-arranging numbers to make benefit numbers look better and denying a housing crisis existed, all while slashing spending on essential social services and failing to take action on children in state care because it "wasn't politically popular", that New Zealand does not need to have this again around the very real situation of costs of living.

Prime Minister. Don't be like John Key and his group. Not all of us sit pretty on larger six figure salaries and subsidised travel. A $12 block of cheese and $3 per litre gas may be ok for cabinet ministers who get driven around all day, but to those on the lower incomes, 'stuff's getting real'.

On a personal level, generally we are ok. We don't live in the lap of luxury but we're not on struggle street either but we are making choices we didn't have to make just a few short months ago. 40% of our income fortnightly goes on rent alone. It costs now $25 more to fully tank our car in the last four months and that is looking for the gas station that offers the most value for money. Generally I don't subscribe to the notion that there is a significant difference between one brand to another.

But what you as a government define as a crisis is irrelevant. No one cares about the apparent justifications as to why this and that happens. The issue is that these rising costs negate any impact that raises in minimum wage levels or pay increases have, therefore, individually, there is no economic benefit in real terms. You raise a benefit by say $3 a week, but my normal every day shop, or other living expenses top $3.50 or more, which easily right now can be done, then I'm actually worse off. That is a crisis. You're trying to tell me that my situation is not important and urgent. 

We all know that more than half of our cost of fuel alone is one form of tax or another. Whether that is a regional fuel tax, levies, GST, even a temporary cessation of one or more of these, even if it is not GST, would provide some relief from these impacts even faster, and more sustainably than increases in benefits and minimum wage rates. If we removed 30c per litre of levies, 10 litres saves someone $3, 20 litres $6. In my car alone from empty, about 55 litres, is about $16.50 a tank.

The sentiment I felt from this non-admission, was the same as I heard Dr Megan Woods last year on breakfast say that a $10 a week rise in rent is not detrimental.  To whom Dr Woods. Not to you? Surely not. But what about those who's weekly rent is tantamount to 60% of their income or more. Surely, in this governments second term they can't be that out of touch already. Some of the signs I am seeing are almost reminiscent of National's third term arrogance. 

I don't agree with Mr Luxon's plan either. Sadly the National party as previously stated have a tendency of fidgeting as opposed to fixing. The thing is if we lose income, our ability to spend is going to need to be fixed, and National was just as bad at borrowing as anyone else on average. Mostly because they were more like the government who was walking into the supermarket only to remember they had forgotten their wallet somewhere else.

But if we aren't in one right now generally, you cannot discount the fact that to many, we're already there and that any increases already planned for benefits and wage increases are already taken up with the cost of living.

If this isn't a crisis. What is?