New Zealand Finance Minister Grant Robertson said today that the country’s economy is “doing better than expected and is more open than anywhere else in the world”. Yet, “as we look around the world, it is clear that this global pandemic is continuing to grow.” In the face of ongoing uncertainty, “now is the time to be cautious and keep our powder dry.”
Robertson announced to set aside the remaining NZD 15B of the NZD 50B Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund, with no plans to spend it ahead of the election. “We are setting aside a significant sum of money to be used as needed in the future,” he added.”This is the fiscally and socially responsible thing to do.”
“We are doing everything we can to keep Covid-19 at our border – nobody wants a second wave. The responsible course of action is to make sure we are prepared for the worst – to give confidence to New Zealanders that we will be able to continue to act swiftly and decisively in our ongoing fight against this virus,” Robertson said.
