Finance Minister Nicola Willis has revealed her second Budget at Parliament today, outlining how much the coalition Government will spend and where it will go.
Here are some of the main things to emerge.
- KiwiSaver: Raising default rate of employee and matching employer contributions to 4%
- KiwiSaver: Extending government contribution and employer matching to 16 and 17-year-olds
- KiwiSaver: Halving government contributions to a maximum $260.72 a year
- KiwiSaver: Those with income over $180,000 will no longer receive government contribution
- Twelve-month prescriptions for medicines if clinically appropriate and safe to do so – $91 million over four years.
- Investment Boost tax incentive – businesses can deduct 20% of the cost of a new asset on top of depreciation – $1.7 billion a year.
- Pay equity: Changes to pay equity saving close to $11 billion over four years (operating total), with a further $1.8 billion in capital also saved.
- Over $1 billion for health infrastructure, including developing Nelson Hospital and Wellington’s emergency department.
- Investment of $646 million in learning support, $700 million in new schools and classrooms
- $24 million over years for greater access to aged residential care and longer care outside hospitals
- $128 million over four years for more social housing homes.
- SuperGold Card: $154 million over four years to help 66,000 SuperGold Card holders with rates payments
- Inland Revenue to get new funding of $35 million a year for increased tax compliance and collection
- RNZ’s funding reduced by around $18 million over four years
- JobSeeker and emergency benefit tightened for single, unemployed 18 and 19-year-olds by way of parental assistance test.
- $200 million over four years for Crown co-investment in new gas fields
- Best Start: First year of tax credit to be means tested for those with family income over $79,000, and cutting off entirely for families earning just over $97,000.
- Working for Families abatement threshold lifted from $42,700 to $44,900, abatement rate raised from 27% to 27.5%. Tipped to see around 142,000 families receive an average $14 a fortnight.
- $480 million over four years of additional funding to support frontline police
- Foodbank funding of $15m extended for another year
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1News Political team Maiki Sherman and Benedict Collins explain what the Budget means to New Zealanders. – watch on TVNZ+
