Hands-off Nats hand out boarding passes to Oz

With unemployment at a 13-year high it’s no coincidence that over 53,000 Kiwis have left for Australia in the last year, says Labour’s Finance spokesperson David Parker.

“Almost 174,000 Kiwis have left for Australia on John Key’s watch. There are another 175,000 Kiwis looking for work here in New Zealand, many of whom will be giving serious thought to joining their countrymen across the Tasman.

“This Government has no idea how to stop the Kiwi exodus.

“If National fulfilled its promise of 170,000 new jobs there might be a hope of keeping Kiwis here but Bill English himself has conceded the Government is far behind that target. So more tickets are sold.

“John Key actively campaigned on reducing the flight to Australia, instead it’s at near-record levels. His hands-off approach is a massive disappointment to New Zealanders.

“But instead of accepting responsibility. John Key continues to make excuses. The targets National sets itself keep being missed.

“As David Shearer said last weekend, ‘there is a better way, a Labour way’. We can stem the tide by working with industry to create more jobs, change tax so there’s a focus on growth and reform monetary policy to help our exporters and keep jobs in New Zealand.

“National’s hands-off approach is not working.”