Live politics blog Dec 4
Robertson: Willis 'appears not to have read the Budget'
Labour finance spokesperson Grant Robertson has hit back at allegations of sneaky budget building, leveled by new finance minister Nicola Willis.
Speaking to reporters minutes ago, Robertson said Willis had over estimated how many projects received time-limited funding. That short-term funding, such as for the school lunches and school cyber security programmes, were justified, he said.
He said the 2023 Budget, published in May, clearly listed programmes which had time-limited funding.
If this had come as a surprise to National, then Robertson said Willis hadn't been paying attention while she was in Oppossition.
"If she can't read and understand what is in the Budget document, then I am deeply concerned about how she's going to do the job of finance minister," he said.
He said time-limited funding had been used by finance ministers for a very long, for a variety of reasons. During the post-Cabinet press conference, Willis pointed to the fact a school cyber security programme received only one year's funding. Robertson said that was because the Government was considering whether to enter a government-wide cybersecurity contract.
He said that while waving the Budget document, pointing to page 89 - where it was shown that funding for that project was guaranteed for only one year.
"I heard her say that she needed to make a new document, or make some changes to the Public Finance Act, to make sure it is all in one place - all of the short term funding. It already exists. It's called the Budget," he said.
"She appears not to have even read the Budget."
Speaking to reporters minutes ago, Robertson said Willis had over estimated how many projects received time-limited funding. That short-term funding, such as for the school lunches and school cyber security programmes, were justified, he said.
He said the 2023 Budget, published in May, clearly listed programmes which had time-limited funding.
If this had come as a surprise to National, then Robertson said Willis hadn't been paying attention while she was in Oppossition.
"If she can't read and understand what is in the Budget document, then I am deeply concerned about how she's going to do the job of finance minister," he said.
He said time-limited funding had been used by finance ministers for a very long, for a variety of reasons. During the post-Cabinet press conference, Willis pointed to the fact a school cyber security programme received only one year's funding. Robertson said that was because the Government was considering whether to enter a government-wide cybersecurity contract.
He said that while waving the Budget document, pointing to page 89 - where it was shown that funding for that project was guaranteed for only one year.
"I heard her say that she needed to make a new document, or make some changes to the Public Finance Act, to make sure it is all in one place - all of the short term funding. It already exists. It's called the Budget," he said.
"She appears not to have even read the Budget."