4. Question No. 4—FinanceNICOLA WILLIS (Deputy Leader—National) to the Minister of FinanceQuestion No. 4—Finance4. NICOLA WILLIS (Deputy Leader—National) to the Minister of Finance: Does he agree with Westpac senior economist Satish Ranchhod that the pressure on households' finances will become increasingly stark over the year ahead" and how long has inflation been outside of the Reserve Bank's target range?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): In answer to the first part of the question as I have stated many times in this House we are acutely aware of the cost of living pressures faced by households now and over the coming year. That's why we've taken steps to support New Zealanders including through measures the Government announced at Budget 2023. In terms of the second part of the question as the member well knows managing inflation is primarily the responsibility of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. As the member has not specified a time frame in the second part of the question I can inform her that inflation has been outside the target range on a number of occasions in recent decades including four quarters from December 2010 four quarters from September 2012 eight quarters from December 2014 and eight quarters from June 2021. I would further note that the Reserve Bank and Treasury both forecast inflation to be back within the target range from the third quarter of next year.Nicola Willis: Does the Minister think he got it wrong when he reassured New Zealanders in May last year that inflation was only going to be a short-term challenge and does he expect the cost of living crisis will become better or worse this year?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Well advice that we were receiving in the early part of last year indicated that inflation was coming towards its peak. That is not what turned out to occur. Across the world we've seen inflation stay higher for longer than had been forecast.Nicola Willis: Is he concerned by reports of an apparent surge in the number of New Zealanders leaving permanently for Australia and does he think it says good or bad things about the relative position of the New Zealand economy?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Over the years there has been significant migration between New Zealand and Australia. What I would say to the member is that if she is here today advocating for policy settings that exist in Australia I look forward to her advocacy for a capital gains tax and for a much higher top tax rate.Nicola Willis: Is he aware that mortgage holders in Australia are much better off than mortgage holders in New Zealand with the official cash rate in Australia at 3.85 percent compared to 5.5 percent here?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: As I said in my primary question the official cash rate is set by the Reserve Bank independently of the Government.Nicola Willis: Has he seen reported comments by Wellington City Missioner Murray Edridge who says there has been a tripling in demand for these services compared to three years ago—"we're seeing a demand that we haven't seen before. People who would just get by before are now getting to the point where there's just not enough money to go around."—and does the Minister of Finance realise that that's an indictment on his economic management?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: In answer to the first part of the member's question I'm very aware of Mr Edridge's comments and have spent a significant amount of time with him over the years and have a great deal of admiration for the work that he and the Wellington City Mission does. The reason why the Government has stepped forward over the last year and at Budget 2023 to help ease the cost of living pressure for New Zealanders is because we are fully aware of the pressure on households. I would note that most of those measures that we have proposed to take pressure off people have been opposed by the National Party.Nicola Willis: Well does he think allowing average income New Zealanders to keep more of what they earn by reducing their income tax burden would put them in a better position to deal with the rising cost of living and if so why has he refused to prioritise tax relief but has instead prioritised capacity relief for just about every single Government agency?Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: What I would say is that on this side of the House our strong belief is that the way for people's incomes to rise is for wages to rise. The member might believe that the only route to that is tax cuts; we do not."