Source: Radio New Zealand
Finance Minister Nicola Willis. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has dismissed claims the coalition’s pay equity changes amount to an abuse of power as “hyperbole”.
An unofficial select committee run by 10 former MPs from across the political spectrum has condemned the changes, arguing the government had violated the rule of law in retrospectively cancelling existing rights and remedies.
The law cancelled 33 claims from female-dominated workforces which sought to prove they were underpaid in comparison to similar male-dominated industries, and raised the threshold for future claims.
Willis went head to head with Labour’s Tangi Utikere on Morning Report’s weekly political panel this morning.
Labour’s Tangi Utikere. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Asked how the criticism “flagrant and significant abuse of power” sat with her, Willis said it was “hyperbole”.
“The legislation passed with a majority of support from Parliament and the reason it did is that there was agreement across the three parties of government that pay equity [is] important, we need to continue it in New Zealand, but the scheme that had been designed by Labour had gotten out of control, had become far too expensive, so we tightened up the scheme.
“That has resulted in $10.8 billion which was made available in last year’s budget, being invested in additional help for children with education needs and the health system and the police system and critical frontline services.”
Utikere pushed back.
“This is not hyperbole and I’ll tell you what, Nicola is right about one thing when she says this is how the parliament works; it works this way under the current government in not having a select committee process and ramming things through all stages under urgency in an attempt to avoid clear scrutiny at all costs.
“To hear that the minister responsible is simply not going to bother reading the report is hugely disrespectful to the many, many, many women who are directly impacted by this terrible decision that this government has taken.”
Pushed on how Labour would pay for the pay equity scheme, foregoing the roughly $10b in savings, Utikere did not address the question.
“We need to understand which claims have been paid out already, which new claims have started, but let’s have no doubt about this, Labour is absolutely committed to paying women what they deserve, unlike the current government.”
Willis said it was “typical” from Labour.
“Make the promise with no idea how to pay for it and actually, we know from history how Labour would pay for it. They would borrow more and they would tax more.
“The challenge that we have with that is that that is exactly the wrong recipe for our economy right now, simply borrowing and adding to the national debt, which they more than doubled last time they were in office, simply taxing New Zealanders more, destroying their disposable income, is not a way to solve problems.”
On the coalition’s introduction of ‘move-on’ orders for homeless people, Utikere said it was a “short term band aid” solution.
“[This] government has gutted public housing. Our focus is simple, on building more homes and making housing more affordable. And if you sort out those issues, then move on orders effectively become redundant.”
He did not say Labour would commit to scrapping the move-on orders.
Willis said the coalition had built more new state homes this term than the last government had in a “previously comparable period”.
“I don’t accept the case that this government isn’t working really hard on social housing for vulnerable communities. We are, this is an ‘and’ issue.
“It’s saying, do that support but also, if there are people who continue to disrupt the peace of others, who terrorise retail shops to the extent that some have closed down here in Auckland because it’s not safe for their staff, then actually there needs to be a social response to that.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
