Mini-Hoon: Ganesh Nana on a failing 'strategy'

Last night I spoke with economist Ganesh R Ahirao, who has written another letter with 19 other economists to PM Christopher Luxon and Minister of Finance Nicola Willis, calling on them to abandon their fiscally stringent approach to the economy.

Here’s the letter:

We discussed:

* the Government’s sole focus on cutting interest rates as the way to boost the economy;

* the need for investment in infrastructure and public services rather than solely focusing on reducing debt; and,

* the disconnect between financial management and economic growth.

We talked about how:

* Austerity measures have historically failed to solve economic problems;

* Government debt is not the primary issue; external debt is more critical;

* The private sector has not stepped in to fill gaps in the economy;

* Economic resilience requires investment in infrastructure and services;

* Reducing government spending may exacerbate economic downturns;

* The current fiscal policy lacks a clear rationale for its approach;

* Saving for a rainy day should include economic preparedness, not just financial savings;

Chapters:

00:00 Economic Concerns and Government Response

09:50Rethinking Fiscal Policy and Economic Resilience

Subscribe in full as a paying subscriber for more detail and analysis in the full video and podcasts that go out with my Daily Chorus email newsletters. Paying subscribers support my work being done in the public interest here, and via my appearances on other media such as RNZ & 1News. Paying subscribers also get early and full access to our webinars, our chat room, my morning ‘Early Bird’ post with the full ‘Picks n’ Mixes’ digests of news links, and can comment on articles.

Ka kite ano

Bernard

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thekaka.substack.com/subscribe