Rogernomics described as tragic for Hastings

Press, 23 July 1987, Page 18

Rogernomics described as tragic for Hastings

PA Wellington The operations director for Brierley Investments Ltd, Mr Selwyn Cushing, says Rogernomics has been so tragic for Hastings that logic dictates there should not be a single vote for Labour in the electorate. Addressing National Party members in Hastings, Mr Cushing said another three years of Rogemomics would see Hastings take another huge step backwards. The policies pursued by the Labour Government, Mr Cushing said, had completely negated the original benefits from devaluation and had led to a greatly over-valued New Zealand dollar. The effect was that the

financial and speculative sectors were being favoured and primary producers and manufacturing exporters disadvantaged, leading to a redistribution of income and wealth against the regions.

“This imbalance Is unhealthy because solid sustainable growth in the economy will come only from a strong productive sector.

“The country’s interest requires stability in the exporting regions and to get that any Government will have to adopt a management role.” Mr Cushing said he could see nothing wrong with intervention, as the “law of the jungle” meant absolutely no joy for the provinces because the ser-

vices and consumables sectors were relocating to the population centres of Auckland and Wellington, particularly the former. "Although for the most part market forces should be allowed to rule, there must be some surveillance mechanisms to curtail this misallocation of resources” he said.

Mr Cushing suggested regional tax incentives, suspensory loan schemes and a “reverse” payroll tax, whereby payroll tax collected in Auckland and Wellington could be credited back off those employers who created jobs in provincial areas, as some means of halting the redistribution of wealth away from the provinces.