Henare Tau: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Henare Tau: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 13 March 2013. Volume:688;Page:8461. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
1. 
Hon TAU HENARE (National) 
 to the  
Minister of Finance 
: What reports has he received on the Government’s financial position? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance) 
: 
 Last week Treasury released the Government’s Financial Statements for the 7 months to the end of January. They show that the Government’s financial position continues to track slightly better than forecast in the half-year update. The operating balance before gains and losses for the 7 months was around half a billion dollars smaller than forecast in December and the operating balance including gains from Government investment funds actually shows a surplus of $4.2 billion reflecting recent strengths in financial markets—around $4 billion better than expected. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: What were some of the reasons for the slightly better financial results for the 7 months to 31 January? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: Really the main factor over which we have control has been the control of Government spending. The Public Service and public servants across New Zealand deserve credit for the diligent way in which they have managed Government spending such that it is running slightly below what we forecast. The other factor is improving revenue. Core Crown tax revenue was $486 million above forecast. We are starting to get some of the benefits of a broad based - low rate tax system which means it is more efficient and is actually taxing a broader range of income. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: What approach is the Government taking to managing its finances so that it remains on track to achieving a surplus in 2014-15? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: The approach we have taken is considered and consistent change over time on Government expenditure. So Government departments and services such as health and education have now for 2 or 3 years had clear constraints within which they are operating. They have taken the time and the trouble to understand how their delivery of services must change and they are enrolling their staff across the board particularly front-line staff in making those changes. This has enabled us to deliver a good restraint on expenditure that will help us get to surplus at the same time as improving the quality of public services. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: How does the Government’s financial position compare with the situation faced by other developed countries? 
Hon BILL ENGLISH 
: We are in a relatively strong position. All developed countries have faced similar pressures since the onset of the global financial crisis. However in many of them their gross borrowing continues to grow and will grow for quite some time yet. When we reach surplus in 2014-15 then Government borrowing will be able to stop increasing. Secondly we have been able to avoid large-scale drastic changes to our public services such as we are seeing in Australia where Australian states have in recent times made tens of thousands of public servants redundant. We have chosen a more moderate and therefore more successful pathway of change.