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“Shane Jones is announcing a $ 100 million spend, which will include funding for the electorate in which he is represented. While Mr. Jones might think he will buy votes from him, New Zealanders can see it.”
Jones is campaigning to win Northland from Matt King, the national MP who currently holds it. A Colmar-Brunton poll in August showed King at 46 percent, Willow-Jean Prime of Labor at 31 percent and Jones at 15 percent.
Jones told Newshub Seymour that the “headline approach” is not worthy of an answer other than tacky and negative. “
He said the funding “signals the final grand event of the Provincial Growth Fund’s development strategy, and the fact that it’s in the north I don’t think should give rise to these tacky accusations that it is being pursued for local political purposes. “.
National finance spokesman Paul Goldsmith described the $ 100 million of PGF money as an “outrageous use of taxpayer funds” so close to the election.
“There is no reason this funding could not have been announced weeks, or even months ago. Shane Jones must be very concerned about the fate of his party. Announcing this amount of funding so close to an election could also violate convention. from the cabinet. “
Jones disagreed and insisted that cabinet rules were followed.
“Obviously, all applicants have gone through a process sanctioned by the cabinet and all approvals have been issued within the mandate of the cabinet.”
University of Otago law professor Andrew Geddis said it is a “little bit complicated” because in the pre-election period, there is no blanket requirement that the government park its businesses while the campaign unfolds.
“There is a weak expectation expressed in the Cabinet Manual that some types of decisions are frozen before the elections, but it is things like appointments, etc., where a new government might have wanted to take a different path,” he said.
“I think spending like the one Jones is proposing falls outside of even that weak expectation … If National is elected, he’s free to reverse the promises!”
He said the real problem is that the ad “feels a bit like a bribe with our own money” or “nonsense.”
“We don’t really have constitutional rules against this … Instead, political shit is left to the detector … People can see what’s going on and decide if it’s a good expense, or if it smells like desperation and one last roll of the dice “.
In other words, it is more a question of political ethics than of constitutional rules.
Napier Labor MP Stuart Nash defended the funding when pressured during an interview with Mike Hosking of Newstalk ZB.
“Why shouldn’t the Maori and Marae receive it?” Nash asked.
Hosking replied, “Because we have better things to do with our money and don’t believe the jobs you said you would do or turn out to be the promised job machine.”
Nash said he understands it will create about 3,000 jobs.
“There are a number of marare that are incredibly important community facilities that are in disrepair and I think this is a great way to create jobs,” he said.
“I am a provincial deputy … Nine years under the previous government, there was no investment in the regions. What this Provincial Growth Fund did was allow the government to travel the regions and invest in facilities and programs.”
Labor recently unveiled its plan to replace the PGF – an NZ First policy – with a $ 200 million fund, as part of its election manifesto.
Existing PGF projects would move forward over the next period if the Labor Party ruled alone, which would be possible in the latest Newshub poll, but unallocated PGF funds would be reconsidered.
NZ First leader Winston Peters said the Labor Party copied the idea, but with much less money promised, it shows they never went to the regions.
“When we launched the provincial growth fund in Gisborne, they insisted that their leader come and launch it and they have been at each of our launches across the country,” he said.
“Here comes the true test of sincerity and generosity when it comes to the provinces. They are going to abandon them again.”
NZ First was at 1.9 percent in the latest Newshub poll.
