Wednesday, November 5, 2008


Why am I standing for the Tukituki electorate?

With climate change, peak oil and the financial market meltdown in 2008 we face some tough decisions. The Alliance and its policies are a bridgehead for New Zealand to an equal society and a sustainable environment.

What are the key issues of this election and why?
A fair economy in a new economic environment. The Trickle Down myth of Rogernomics didn’t deliver, except for income inequality and an increase in poverty. For the poor to get a little bit better off, the rich have to get much richer. When resources such as oil are limited, New Zealand risks turning into a floodlit golf course and a farm while the rest of us shiver in the dark. Time is running out for planned change to renewable and sustainable energy sources, soon we will have restrictions on growth forced upon us. Choose the Alliance to change your world.

What would the electorate gain from my election?
The Alliance will provide a raft of measures to support the engine room of the economy, the workers. Our policies include free education, free health care, 100% government power, affordable housing, and secure jobs as measures to protect New Zealanders. A progressive tax plan with a new financial tax on market transactions will replace GST. We will support workers by increasing the minimum wage to $17 an hour. The Alliance will increase superannuation to 72.5%.

How important is the party vote?
The party vote is about the policy of government, and the Alliance needs your party vote to return to Parliament. Vote for what you believe in, a positive choice in the Alliance will give New Zealand the real change that people want – real alternatives to the Douglas reforms.

My final message to the electorate.
The Alliance Party wants a major overhaul of New Zealand’s taxation system to assist low to middle income earners, and to pay for free education and a substantial boost for health spending, including free health visits. The Alliance is the only party outside of government to spell out where the money to cover its promises comes from. The key points are:
- First $10 000 income tax free
- Immediate removal of GST on food and phasing out of GST over time.
- Less tax for low to middle income earners on progressive tax scale.
- Introduction of a financial transactions tax.
- Introduction of a capital gains tax, with the family home exempt, as in Australia.