Welcoming Remarks from Richard Stone – President of the Wellington Employers Chamber of Commerce at the Hon Bill English, Pre-Budget Lunch

26 April 2012

With this year’s budget just little less than a month away we are very fortunate to have Finance Minister Bill English here today to tell us as much as he can about the Government's priorities.

We know the government is facing severe fiscal constraints with the escalating costs of the Christchurch earthquake compounding the challenges of already significant deficits and debt.

You can be sure that the business community accepts the necessity of a tight budget and the need to return to surplus by 2015. Returning to surplus and repaying debt is essential to ensure New Zealand can withstand future shocks.

In making the tough decisions though please don’t forget that the best way to restore the government’s books and rebuild the economy is to provide an environment where the business sector can flourish and create wealth.

The Wellington business community is ready and able to make its contribution to economic growth. Too many people in Parliament think of Wellington as a town of civil servants. This isn’t the case. Wellington has a thriving business sector as you can see from the businesses represented here today. It was also shown at the event hosted by Wellington City Council at Parliament last year where MPs were introduced to a range of innovative Wellington businesses.

However, with a combination of public service cuts, corporate drift and the government focus on Auckland and Christchurch, this is a difficult time for Wellington business.

The Chamber supports the cap on public servant numbers but we think care needs to be taken given the impact on wider business confidence the restructuring is causing.

If reducing expenditure is the goal, difficult areas such as interest free student loans, income for families and dare I say it superannuation are where the real gains are to be made.

In making the tough decisions leading up to the budget I implore you to resist any temptation to forgo investment in Wellington infrastructure. Transmission Gully and other State Highway One projects all face critical points in the decision making process this year. These roads are vital if the Wellington economy is to reach its potential and we are grateful for the government’s on-going commitment to them.

Please welcome Bill English.

ENDS

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