Podcast appearances and mentions of craig renney

Craig Renney joins us LIVE at 9pm to have a look over the GDP numbers which he has already described as a "dead cat bounce" which concerns about what is happening over the rest of the yearTed Cruz has been embarrassed by the strangest of places right wing commentator Tucker Carlson and we also will have a look at the history of Benjamin Netanyahu attempting to scare the world into a war with Iran.Matariki around the country, what's happening where?=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Barbara Edmonds and Craig Renney were in Christchurch talking about Govt Budgets and hinting at what Labour will campaign on such as Tax Reform. Emz shares her experience at the event.The govt is being sued by two major entities, Environmental Law Initiative and Lawyers for Climate Action NZ representing 300 lawyers, for regressive climate policies and not meeting it climate emission reduction targets with unambitious and regressive policies.Jacinda is meeting with big names in media and podcasts in politics promoting her book "A different kind of Power". We look at some of the reflections she has about her time as Prime Minister.=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions has called Budget 2025 a reverse Robin Hood budget that steals from working people. CTU economist Craig Renney spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Tonight on The Huddle, CTU economist Craig Renney and Phil O'Reilly from Iron Duke Partners joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! The 2025 Budget was unveiled today - what did we think of it? Do we agree cutting down Government KiwiSaver contributions was the right move? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join us at 2pm for the headlines from the Budget as Craig Renney comes our from the lock up and gives is a first look=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Join us live at 9pm for a wrap of the budget, the headlines, the deep dives and what CTU's Craig Renney and Labour's Barb Edmonds have found in the numbers=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

At the time of preparing this show Craig Renney and the CTU have been banned by Treasury to attend the budget lock up for the first time ever. Along with other third party, non-media groups such as the TPU, Business NZ and the NZ Initiative have also been banned. The company that makes BHN applied for access to the lock up and we'll tell you the whole sordid story tonight after 9pmMarama Davidson joins us LIVE at 9pm to talk the Green Party Alternative Budget. The Green Party is proposing an "income guarantee" that would give everyone who is out of work at least $395 a week, and to completely overhaul the Working for Families scheme. It is one of the announcements in its alternative Budget revealed this morning.=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Tonight on The Huddle, CTU economist Craig Renney and Tim Wilson from the Maxim Institute joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Why has the CTU been excluded from the Budget lock-up? The green bins debate- do they need to go? Simeon Brown suggested Aucklanders could shave 2 percent off their rates bills if they went away. What do we make of this? The IRD is cracking down on chasing up people overseas who haven't paid back their student loans. Why have they taken so long to do this? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is fast-tracking amendments to the Equal Pay Act, the law which prohibits employers from paying men and women different rates for the same work, in a move which will scrap all current pay equity claims and make it harder for employees to make a claim. Craig Renney joins us to talk over the economics of the change and Labour's Workplace Relations Spokesperson, Jan Tinetti joins us to talk the impact to those who the Equal Pay Act is currently helping

We're starting a campaign to support Women's Refuge tonight. If this government want's to put women into hardship, then we better get behind one of the groups that helps women when they're at their most vulnerable.See www.BHNShop.nz for detailsUnemployment data released today by Statistics New Zealand shows ongoing weakness in the labour market, with falling employment, falling hours of work, and nearly half of all workers getting a pay rise less than inflation. NZCTU economist Craig Renney joins us tonight to flesh out the numbers.The fallout continues by the government halting all current pay equity claims, makes it harder to lodge new ones with a fiery day in the debate chamberDonald Trump get's old 'Never gonna happen' to his face by the Canadian PM about the US annexing their northern neighbour=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

The Government is fast-tracking amendments to the Equal Pay Act, the law which prohibits employers from paying men and women different rates for the same work, in a move which will scrap all current pay equity claims and make it harder for employees to make a claim. - Craig Renney joins us LIVE at 9pm to talk over the economics of the change- Labour's Workplace Relations Spokesperson, Jan Tinetti, joins us LIVE at 9.20 to talk the impact to those who the Equal Pay Act is currently helpingChris Hipkins was on Breakfast this morning talking about Erica Stanford using her gmail account making the case that Parliament Cyber Security have been telling MPs not to use systems outside the security of Parliament, which means if Mr Luxon is so chilled about it either security is wrong, or he doesn't care about Stanford being a security issue.Christopher Luxon has announced that National wants to ban under 16s from social media accounts which raises a couple of questions, the first is...is this really the most pressing issue you have right now PM to be on top of...and...id under 16s are banned from social media...who will David Seymour have to snapchat with?================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Tonight on The Huddle, CTU economist Craig Renney and journalist Clare de Lore joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! David Seymour has made some suggestions about the ministries he would cut down or scrap altogether. What do we think? Do we agree with this idea? The Greens have unveiled a plan to create 40,000 new 'green jobs' as part of their alternative budget due out in a couple of weeks. Do we support this concept? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Craig Renney joins us LIVE from Australia today as Finance Minister Nicola Willis says funding for almost every Government department will be frozen in this year's Budget. This means today, the forecast for the NZ economy is so much worse than any knew as of yesterday.Shock news today that The Working Group has come to an end with co-host and beloved Socialist Martyn 'Bomber' Bradbury writing a post today stating of Damien Grant that "a Free Speech Champion has been bullied into it because his right wing mates don't like my free speech" which is the reason the podcast is now ended.See the post here https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2025/04/29/comrades-it-is-with-deep-sadness-that-i-announce-the-working-group-has-been-cancelled-by-the-political-right/Associate Education Minister David Seymour has written to all 78 mayors - city, district and regional - asking them to consider what they could do to stamp out truancy at a time when his Government cut attendance officers in the Ministry of Education=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Labour MP Barbara Edmonds joins us LIVE at 9pm to talk over the utter failure that is the FamilyBoost package that Nicola Willis was 99.988% wrong saying 21,000 families would get it, and only 249 haveCraig Renney explains how Nicola Willis does not understanding the funding of the FamilyBoost package which can be demonstrated by how she says they will open the funding, when there is no funding to openQ&A this week shared numbers around Charter Schools which lead us to only one conclusion...no one wants charter schools...which is just another failure this government has promised and not delivered on=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Tonight on The Huddle, Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson and Craig Renney from the CTU joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Labour is talking up the potential of a snap election, saying 'we are ready'. Do we think there's a chance Winston Peters is going to blow it all up - or is Labour just stirring? Do we think Simeon Brown is being too hard on the senior doctors - given how badly we need them in this country? New Zealanders' concerns about the impact of climate change has declined to 69 percent from 76 percent in 2022 and 80 percent in 2023. Why do we care less? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll have Tamatha Paul on LIVE to talk about all the free publicity that the Sensible Sentencing Trust have giver her and the message of defunding the police. We also want to drill down into the idea of defunding the police and what it means when it comes to legislation and changed to funding.Nicola Willis has given NZ a gloomy update on the economic future face Aotearoa, Craig Renney will come on LIVE to talk about what we were told, and what it all meansWe'll have a look at the Trump influence on the world and the $4 trillion his tariffs knocked of the US stock exchange todayChris Hipkins was on Breakfast this morning talking about how National's claim of consultation over the new defence spending was actually just an "informing" and a quick look at Chippy's response to the One News polling from last night=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

New Zealand's out of recession, but many Kiwis could take a while to feel better off. Our economy grew by 0.7% in the December quarter – surpassing all economists' expectations. But unemployment's expected to keep rising this year, and many households are still doing it tough. Council of Trade Unions Economist Craig Renney told Francesca Rudkin that confidence in the New Zealand economy is still lacking. He says that many people will need to feel the difference in their wallets in order to believe the economy is recovering. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government is making the claim that this year is the first drop in violent crime since 2018. CTU economist Craig Renney has crunched the numbers and has some thoughts around the claimRetailers and members of the public will soon have beefed-up rights to detain and arrest suspected thieves by using "reasonable force", the Government has announced. It says the measures will help tackle retail crime but the changes have been slated by business lobby groups — including the Employers and Manufacturers Association and Retail NZ — who say it could lead to violence.It might be saving money, but the social impact of David Seymour's new school lunch initiative is proving costly in some of our most deprived communities. We are also getting more and more reports of the quality of the food delivered under Labour's policy, versus the "cheaper and better" options being delivered (sometimes) today=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

The Government has declared 2025 the year of economic growth, with its current action plan for the next quarter honing in on various economic growth plans. Craig Renney, chief economist for the CTU, and former advisor to Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson, joins Thomas this week to discuss economic growth from a left-leaning perspective and what he thinks needs to be done. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The latest unemployment figures were released last week, and now stand at 5.1% - this is the highest since September of 2020, and a number that has been steadily rising since 2022.  Economist and Policy Director at The New Zealand Council of Trade Union's Craig Renney says that there are much more complex and worrying numbers behind this number of 5%.  Producer Evie spoke to Renney about why our unemployment numbers continue to rise, how the government can help people get back into work and whether we're going to see an ease in these numbers anytime soon.

Buckle up, it looks like I might agree with a trade union. CTU policy director Craig Renney is worried about the same thing I am, and I think he is right to be worried. What he is worried about is the possibility that we will become a net exporter of population. Oh the irony that as an exporting nation, one of the growth industries is people. If you have followed the migration story these past few years a couple of large, and some would argue alarming, things have happened: 1) A huge number of people arrived. 2) A huge number of people have left. Things are sort of starting to settle. The arrival numbers are tailing off. But the departure numbers, although not breaking records the way they were, are still large. The key part of that numeric equation is we are at a tipping point. It is more than possible that if the arrival numbers drop just a bit more, but the departure bit doesn't stop, we will have more people leaving than arriving. We will be a net exporter of people. The really scary thing about that is the one in, one out idea isn't in and of itself a good thing if the “out” is a brain surgeon and the “in” is an uber driver. The overall picture, i.e. a shrinking population, is a disaster as well because for every person who thought too many arrived and they had no houses etc, having a shrinking population is as bad, if not worse. Reputationally it's catastrophic. We are the country no one wants to live in. That's not normally a portrait of a robust, successful, prosperous nation, is it? What it says is those looking to move here don't fancy it. They pick somewhere else. In the meantime, those already here look to leave for brighter, more appealing pastures. We are the ugly girl in the corner of the school dance. It's a reminder, as if we needed it, that this country has a series of problems of size and severity that we have not faced in many a long decade. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An updated estimate by the CTU for the cost of progressing the Treaty Principles Bill to its first reading shows a 50 percent increase, due to the number of submissions received. CTU Chief economist and Labour Party policy council member Craig Renney spoke to Paddy Gower.

The Prime Minister has again been forced to clarify his commitment to abortion laws, as the National Party caucus kicks off the new year in Hamilton. Abortion rights advocates have written to Christopher Luxon raising concerns about Simeon Brown taking over the health portfolio, given his vocal opposition to abortion. Christopher Luxon delivered his State of the Nation speech today at an event in Auckland sponsored by Kiwibank and attended by conservative politicians and business leaders. CTU economist Craig Renney joins us tonight to explain what he heard I'm sure there'll be updates on the Idiocracy that is the US government as well. DISCORD is open up tonight for you to have your say in the first talkback session of 2025 ================================= Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ ================================= Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ Follow us on Bluesky Pat @patbrittenden.bsky.social Chewie @chewienz.bsky.social Emily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.social Magenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Damien Grant full of crap, Bomber with a head of steam, Craig Renney is a god send Former ACT, National and NZ First MPs say this Government won't last the term Harry Tam joins us to talk the new Gang Squad this government is bringing in Karen Plunket wants the Government to regulate speech ================================= Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ ================================= Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ Follow us on Bluesky Pat @patbrittenden.bsky.social Chewie @chewienz.bsky.social Emily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.social Magenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

LIVE at 9pm 'fan fave' Chloe Swarbrick joins us to talk the year in politics which on many levels was a tough one for the Greens, what's to come in 2025 and maybe specifically what happened today when Nicola Willis opened the books at HYEFU Once we have chatted with Chloe, CTU economist Craig Renney joins us to talk specifically HYEFU and what the books show, along with what it means for NZ moving forward The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term as a big dent in the tax take and higher expenses deliver continued budget deficits. Under the new measure the deficits for the next three years would rise less than forecast in the May budget and see a surplus posted in 2027/28. Using the established measure the deficits would rise more than expected in the budget and a surplus was not expected in the forecast period to 2028/29. ================================= Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ ================================= Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ Follow us on Bluesky Pat @patbrittenden.bsky.social Chewie @chewienz.bsky.social Emily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.social Magenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Two new ferries for the Cook Strait are expected to begin operation in 2029, the Government has announced. The price of the new ferries was not revealed, however, with Finance Minister Nicola Willis saying it was commercially confidential until procurement and negotiations for landside infrastructure were completed. Tonight we are speaking to the National Secretary of the Maritime Union of NZ, Carl Findlay and Labour's Spokesperson for Transport and Infrastructure Tangi Utikere and a late call up into the team, Craig Renney from the CTU about the press conference and what we know today, that we didn't know yesterday ================================= Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ ================================= Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ Follow us on Bluesky Pat @patbrittenden.bsky.social Chewie @chewienz.bsky.social Emily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.social Magenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

Gravity Credit Management proudly sponsors the Working Group. For more information on Gravity click the link.  Kia Ora Aotearoa! Welcome to The Working Group, New Zealand's top political podcast not funded by NZ on Air. I'm your host, Martyn Bradbury, editor of The Daily Blog. Joining me tonight:  Damien Grant - libertarian liquidator and Cthulhu of Capitalism. Max Harris - Political Commentator and strategist Craig Renney - The Council of Trade Unions Economist Tonight's Issues: CTU day of action - Is this the most anti-worker Government ever? Benefit increases and unemployment - how bad is the economy? Is the prosecution guideline backlash an attempt by the Right to take over the Judiciary? Welcome to The Working Group, jump on in. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TEXT: Working to 3598  Check out the Social Media - https://bento.me/theworkinggroup

The books were opened today and, according to Nicola Willis, it doesn't make for good reading. Economist Craig Renney joins us to talk about what the truth is in these open books versus what the politicians are telling us. ================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

The Council of Trade Unions (CTU) economist Craig Renney, suggests it will cost about $4 million to progress the controversial, and doomed, Treaty Principles Bill to a second reading at Parliament. ================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

The Council of Trade Unions (CTU) economist Craig Renney, suggests it will cost about $4 million to progress the controversial, and doomed, Treaty Principles Bill to a second reading at Parliament. The day after. Looking over the fall out from Donald Trump versus Kamala Harris. Most say Harris won easily. Trump, as usual, is deluded into thinking he won...or at least that's what he's saying. The Health Minister has laid out the Government's implementation plan for reaching its five health targets, which the Commissioner of Health NZ says can be achieved "within current resources". ================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

A conservative estimate suggests it will cost at least $4 million to progress the controversial Treaty Principles Bill to a second reading at Parliament. CTU economist Craig Renney spoke to Corin Dann.

Economist from the CTU, Craig Renney, joins us to talk about the latest unemployment numbers and what it means, we also have a chat about NActNZ's policy to get Councils to borrow money for their infrastructure. ==================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Economist from the CTU, Craig Renney, joins us LIVE to talk about the latest unemployment numbers and what it means The Government has given Councils the ability to borrow for water infrastructure allowing them to pay off the debt over the lifetime of the asset #TheBish shares his thoughts on the Maori Ward being voted down in Kaipara Disctruct yesterday, we'll check in with him Karen Chhour accuses Oranga Tamariki of being a "cash cow' and the calls for her to be sacked grow louder from the opposition citing her lacking skillset for the position =================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Craig Renney and Simon Wood mic drops on Damien Grant on TWG Podcast on funding to Health NZ and child poverty ==================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Matthew Tukaki joins us tonight as we look at ACT's fundraising to try to pass legislation and spread their message of their "Treaty Principles" bill Craig Renney and Simon Wood mic drops on Damien Grant on TWG Podcast on funding to Health NZ and child poverty Kamala Harris raised a record $81M in 24 hours from around 900,000 donors, 60% f them being first time donors. She us leading Trump in some new polling and the right are panicking ==================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Kia Ora Aotearoa! Welcome to The Working Group, New Zealand's top political podcast not funded by NZ on Air. I'm your host, Martyn Bradbury, editor of The Daily Blog. Joining me tonight: Damien Grant - libertarian liquidator and Cthulhu of Capitalism. Michael Wood - E Tu Union's Negotiation Specialist Craig Renney - the sickle and the hammer, The Council of Trade Unions Economist Tonight's issues: Shane Reti amputates public health - what happens next?     OCR holds but only because economy is tanking     The irony of starting Boot camps while apologising for abuse in State care     Biden finally steps down - is Kamala Harris the solution? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TEXT: Working to 3598  Watch on YouTube Watch on X Watch on Instagram Check out the Social MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Collaborative Voices profiles community organisations and their people in a way that actively demonstrates how organisations are working.

This is budget sacrificing the future - Craig Renney Economist and Director of Policy at New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. Craig and I talked about how this budget is sacrificing future generations for Apparent political gain. We also talked about the tax savings going to those like landlords who needed at least while those who need the most financial help got the least help. We also talked about how the revenue and taxation system had to be reformed if New Zealand physical and social infrastructure was not going to crash. We also wondered if fast fast track they legislation wouldn't cause more distrust of the government ! Broadcast on OAR 105.4FM Dunedin www.oar.org.nz

The Council of Trade Unions says tax and spending cuts have been favoured over what New Zealanders need in this year's Budget. CTU head economist Craig Renney spoke to Corin Dann.

Craig Renney joins us live at 9pm to look over Budget2024. The winners, the losers and how Nicola Willis broke her election promise Toitū Te Tiriti protests happened over the whole country today, we'll take your stories, look at some of the submissions you've sent in, happy to take more at bighairynews@gmail.com ===================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

The Working Group Podcast had some interesting conversations around the TV poll and the damage Seymour is doing to Brand Luxon ====================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Join us this week as we dissect the tumultuous landscape of New Zealand politics. From plummeting poll numbers to a potential leadership shakeup in the National Party, and the looming spectre of economic uncertainty amidst global geopolitical tensions, we delve deep into the heart of the nation's political arena.  Watch on YouTube Watch on X Watch on Instagram Check the Social MediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Craig Renney from the CTU comes on to talk about a couple of questions around Government debt and interest deductibility that have risen up over the last few weeks. ACT shows the "depth" of talent they have in their MPs by the arts and culture spokesperson outing himself as someone who doesn't really read, know any NZ writers, or basically attend any arts and culture events. $1.7b more for Pharmac. Good news, or are their fishhooks to be weary of? OneNews poll out tonight that we're told will "rock the entire parliament". We'll have a look. Sean Plunket claims VUWSA President "doesn't seem to grasp the concept of free speech" all while it's obvious he doesn't grasp the concept of journalism. James Shaw resigns from Parliament with some revelations on Q&A this weekend about how close he came to quitting under the Labour Government. ===================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Unions and Work Safety - Craig Renney Broadcast on OAR 105.4FM Dunedin www.oar.org.nz

Yesterday (29 January) at this time we interviewed the chief economist of the CTU Craig Renney. Craig Renney is now also on the Labour Party's policy council. He was elected late last year by Labour Party members.

ACT leader David Seymour wants to convince his coalition partners to flatten the tax system in this year's Budget, arguing everyone can be better off. The Party is proposing to scrap the lowest tax threshold, reduce the highest rates, and give lower-and-middle income earners a tax credit. The Finance Minister Nicola Willis has asked Treasury to look at whether aspects of ACT's plan can be incorporated. New Zealand Council of Trade Union's chief economist Craig Renney spoke to Corin Dann.

The Council of Trade Unions is urging the Government not to cut public spending to reduce inflation. Annual inflation increased by 4.7 percent last year, down from 5.6 percent the previous year. Trade unions say government support is needed for middle and low-income families, not spending cuts, which could harm the economy. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney spoke to Corin Dann.

The Council of Trade Union's chief economist says higher unemployment is looming. Stats New Zealand released economic figures yesterday - showing the economy shrank 0.3 per cent in the three months ending September. It also revised figures for the June quarter - showing a 0.5 per cent GDP rise, compared to the 0.9 per cent reported. The union's Craig Renney said this shows the economy is weaker than assumed. He spoke with Corin Dann.

The Council of Trade Unions says landlords will get $3 billion in tax cuts thanks to National and ACT's coalition agreement. That's about $1 billion more than the National Party fiscal plan outlined before the election. The Coalition agreement with ACT says the parties would "restore mortgage interest deductibility for rental properties with a 60 percent deduction in 2023/24, 80 percent the year after, and 100 percent in 2025/26." Council of Trade Unions' economist and director of policy Craig Renney spoke to Corin Dann. We invited Finance Minister Nicola Willis on to the programme to discuss the CTU's figures, but she declined.

Mr Luxon seems to still be talking about his tax cuts happening as promised pre-election all while not committing to how to pay for them post-election. We thought we'd get CTY's Craig Renney on to talk about the apparent gap between what was promised pre=election and the difficulty to implement it post-election ================================================ Help us by nominating #BHN for the people's choice award at https://www.nzpodcastawards.com/nominate. As part of the nomination you need to share a link to the podcast. Please use this one https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/bhn-big-hairy-news/id1629215711 Help us beat out the MSM podcast with huge budgets behind them. Thanks team ================================================ Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Christopher Luxon was on breakfast television talking about coalition talks and where his tax cut pledges are at today, as compared to when he made them in the run up to the election CTU policy analyst and economist Craig Renney joins us to talk about where coalition talks are at and where National is at today, based on their policy promises prior to the election Suella Braverman might have something to teach NZers about opening up the door for racists and xenophobes to walk through. Bomber warned last week that the door that David Seymour opens with his treaty referendum will possibly put a number of other conversations on the table that are currently in some pretty ugly corners of the internet. We'll take a look at some of the protests over the weekend surrounding Israel and Gaza. ================================================ Help us by nominating #BHN for the people's choice award at https://www.nzpodcastawards.com/nominate. As part of the nomination you need to share a link to the podcast. Please use this one https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/bhn-big-hairy-news/id1629215711 Help us beat out the MSM podcast with huge budgets behind them. Thanks team ================================================ Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Incoming Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says coalition talks with NZ First and Act could take up to a week to complete and he's unlikely to make it to Apec. Luxon had stated his desire to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Leaders' Summit in the United States this week, which would require a deal to be finalised ahead of a flight on Wednesday evening. Speaking to Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking, the incoming Prime Minister said that was now not likely. An “awful lot of ground” had been covered in discussions with NZ First and Act, covering the manifestos and full policy positions of all three parties line by line. Discussing every single policy was a huge amount of work, he said. ”We're very aligned on the big goals but [we have] different policy mechanisms for how we deliver those goals.” Discussions were now into areas that were “a bit crunchier” and discussions about Cabinet posts were underway. But they hadn't really talked in terms of bottom lines, he said. ”It's been a bottom-up build of ‘Take us through your manifesto, we'll take you through ours'.” Speaking to both Hosking and TVNZ's Breakfast, Luxon repeatedly refused to commit to delivering a foreign buyers' property tax - claiming the confidentiality of negotiations. He said what voters cared about was the outcome of tax relief to lower and middle-income New Zealanders, and he was absolutely committed to that happening. It comes after various meetings took place over the weekend as National, Act and New Zealand First continued with talks in Auckland after spending time in Wellington last week. It's understood Christopher Luxon, David Seymour and Winston Peters are yet to meet all together but could have the opportunity to in the coming days with both Seymour and Peters indicating to the Herald on Friday they would return to Wellington at some stage this week. Seymour yesterday was predicting the next government could be formed in time for Luxon to head to Apec on Wednesday. He said representatives of the three parties had worked hard over the weekend but more work was still to be done. “We're narrowing the range of issues and that gets us closer to an agreement, but it would also be fair to say that we're not there yet.” Despite the progress made over the weekend, Seymour believed it wasn't guaranteed Luxon would make it in time for Apec. “Just the sheer amount of administrative stuff that has to happen, checking and cross-checking, makes it a really tight timeline.” However, he was optimistic Kiwis could have their next government decided in a matter of days. “I think there's every prospect of having a government by the end of the week, but like I say, [government formation] only happens once every three years, every time is different.” It has been speculated one aspect the parties were still working through was National's $14.6 billion plan to provide tax relief. To achieve that, National campaigned on partially removing the current ban on foreign buyers in the housing market so they could be taxed. Luxon intended to allow homes worth more than $2 million to be bought by foreigners but they would be taxed at 15 per cent. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney said it was possible removing the ban could be a sticking point in negotiations. “I can't see a universe in which New Zealand First decides it wants to restart selling New Zealand houses to overseas purchasers. “I think one of the key reasons that New Zealand First possibly chose Labour in 2017 was because Labour had proposed a foreign buyers ban, so to do a complete 180 on that in that period of time would seem to be a bit of a stretch and it kind of runs completely counter to the economic philosophy of New Zealand First.” Renney, also a former staffer of Labour finance spokesman Grant Robertson, said some compromise could be found concerning overseas investment in new builds. However, Renney believed that was “pretty well covered” in current legislation. Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The left in crisis - Craig Renney and Matt McCarten. Craig Renney Economist and Director of Policy at New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. Matt McCarten is a New Zealand political organiser and trade unionist, of Ngāpuhi descent. McCarten has been active with several trade unions including the Hotel and Hospital Workers' Union, Unite and One Union; the latter two of which he founded. He has also been involved with several leftist or centre-left political parties including , NewLabour, and the Alliance, parties. Broadcast on OAR 105.4FM Dunedin www.oar.org.nz

BusinessNZ and the Council of Trade Unions both say they hope the new government will be more responsive. Both organisations seem to agree that the last government didn't always seem to have a good ear for what people were saying. CTU chief economist Craig Renney and BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope spoke to Corin Dann.

DescriptionKyle chats with Council of Trade Unions Director of Policy and Economist Craig Renney about economic narratives during this election year, how to talk about economics from the left, the importance of engaging with people and why focusing on outcomes for workers is so important.We're in the FINAL 24HR of our PledgeMe so get on board if you're keen to help out!AND jump in and help to Triple the Vote!This episode's co-hosts:Kyle, CraigTimestamps0:00 Introductions1:24 National Attacking Economic Analysts 4:39 Grappling With a Left Leaning Economic Public View6:37 Getting a Palatable Progressive Economic Message Out8:37 The Wage Growth Disparity11:07 The Myth of Inflation14:10 Recessions & What We Want Out of the Economy18:14 What's Stopping the Conversation20:25 How Did the Technical Recession Develop23:10 How These Issues Happen and What We Can Do28:09 Making a Strong Economy29:10 What's NextIntro/Outro by The Prophet MotiveSupport us here: https://www.patreon.com/1of200

The National Party is hitting back at criticism its tax cuts will cost front-line services. It's promising to cut $2.3 billion in bureaucratic spending. CTU economist Craig Renney says services like biosecurity and work on family violence, among others, are on the chopping block. National's finance spokesperson Nicola Willis says the CTU didn't bat an eye when Labour announced $4 billion in cuts to bureaucratic spending. Willis spoke to Corin Dann.

The Council of Trade Unions says National's plan to cut public service spending will target frontline services. CTU economist and a former advisor to Labour's finance spokesperson Grant Robertson, Craig Renney, says National's promised tax cuts would be bank rolled by money being chopped from core services, not back offices like the party claims. Renney spoke to Corin Dann.

Craig and Tim break down the campaign launches of the big parties over the weekend, with National opting not to include any new policies while Labour unveiled its plan to provide free dental care for under-30s. Both parties had to deal with protestors - is that a sign of the times? National's tax policy has been under the microscope by critics, as has both parties' cut to climate change funds. And the 53rd Parliament has adjourned, what major laws has it passed - and not passed? Craig Renney is currently the Economist and Director for the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, and has held roles as the Senior Ministerial Advisor to the Minister of Finance, and Advisor to the Leader of the Opposition. Craig volunteers for Labour election campaigns in the Wellington area in his spare time. Tim Hurdle is a former National senior adviser, was the National Party Campaign Director in 2020. He is a director of several companies, including Museum Street Strategies, a public affairs firm.

Craig and Tim break down the campaign launches of the big parties over the weekend, with National opting not to include any new policies while Labour unveiled its plan to provide free dental care for under-30s. Both parties had to deal with protestors - is that a sign of the times? National's tax policy has been under the microscope by critics, as has both parties' cut to climate change funds. And the 53rd Parliament has adjourned, what major laws has it passed - and not passed? Craig Renney is currently the Economist and Director for the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, and has held roles as the Senior Ministerial Advisor to the Minister of Finance, and Advisor to the Leader of the Opposition. Craig volunteers for Labour election campaigns in the Wellington area in his spare time. Tim Hurdle is a former National senior adviser, was the National Party Campaign Director in 2020. He is a director of several companies, including Museum Street Strategies, a public affairs firm.

New research has found rising corporate profits have contributed to over half of current domestic inflation. This information conflicts with earlier reports that increased wages and supply costs were the bigger driving forces behind inflation. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney says research shows that corporate profits have been boosting inflation all over the world- not just New Zealand. "That's because companies can change prices far more quickly than workers can change their wage arrangements." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New research has found rising corporate profits have contributed to over half of current domestic inflation. This information conflicts with earlier reports that increased wages and supply costs were the bigger driving forces behind inflation. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney says research shows that corporate profits have been boosting inflation all over the world- not just New Zealand. "That's because companies can change prices far more quickly than workers can change their wage arrangements." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An economist says rent controls could be a successful short-term solution for cooling an overheating rental market. The Green Party is campaigning on introducing an annual three percent cap for rent increases, alongside a landlord register. The Council of Trade Union's Craig Renney says it must be paired with a major drive to build housing. "Any future price cap legislation becomes irrelevant, because people feel as if they're in control of their rental situation."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NZ taxation Driver of Inequality - Craig Renney Economist and Director of Policy at New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. We will be discussing the relationship the mass of the dysfunctioning of our social and physical infrastructure particularly health and education due to young willingness of government to implement on those people and organisations who can afford to pay and the fact that our our present taxation actually drives inequality in New Zealand! Broadcast on OAR 105.4FM Dunedin www.oar.org.nz

Economists Eric Crampton of the New Zealand Initiative and Craig Renney of the Council of Trade Unions share their views on what Budget 2023 got right and what it got wrong.Crampton explains why giving subsidies to the game development industry is a sort of mutually assured waste of taxpayer money, and how tobacco tax could mean the government books take an extra year to return to surplus. Renney tells us how S&P Global Ratings said NZ government debt was not unlike a designer Hermès handbag and makes the case that Budget 2023 is not as inflationary as some have claimed. But neither think that it matched up to its 'No-Frills' moniker.

The Government is being called on to invest any money it may borrow, into things that create a stronger economy. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has confirmed no major tax overhaul will be made this term, including on capital gains or a cyclone levy. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney told Kate Hawkesby if we borrow for things like roads, schools and hospitals, we're all better off as a society. He says if we don't borrow or invest, simply to reduce debt, we will find ourselves in a situation where the infrastructure we want or need isn't there. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is being called on to invest any money it may borrow, into things that create a stronger economy. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has confirmed no major tax overhaul will be made this term, including on capital gains or a cyclone levy. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney told Kate Hawkesby if we borrow for things like roads, schools and hospitals, we're all better off as a society. He says if we don't borrow or invest, simply to reduce debt, we will find ourselves in a situation where the infrastructure we want or need isn't there. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions is staggered by figures that show the country's richest families pay about half as much tax on their income as an average New Zealander. The IRD investigation shows the median effective tax rate for people worth more than 50-million-dollars is just 9-point-4 percent compared to more than 20 percent for middle income New Zealanders. CTU economist Craig Renney says the data shows inequality here is worse than in the UK. He spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

A claim has come that the Official Cash Rate increase will continue to hit pockets and stretch incomes The Reserve Bank has shocked many by hiking the OCR 50 basis points to 5.25 percent. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney would like to see increases paused, so people can get used to it. He told Tim Dower lots of people are facing multiple economic strains at once. Renney says many are facing increasing mortgages on top of existing cost of living concerns. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A claim has come that the Official Cash Rate increase will continue to hit pockets and stretch incomes The Reserve Bank has shocked many by hiking the OCR 50 basis points to 5.25 percent. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney would like to see increases paused, so people can get used to it. He told Tim Dower lots of people are facing multiple economic strains at once. Renney says many are facing increasing mortgages on top of existing cost of living concerns. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A more hands on approach from the government in order to tackle inflation is being urged by the Council of Trade Unions. CTU economist Craig Renney says short sighted governments haven't helped with the long-standing problem of rising prices, and a new legal framework could be the cure. He says government agencies should be legally required to be more forward thinking, and understand the damage their policies might have in future. Renney spoke to Gyles Beckford.  

The Council of Trade Unions says we need to look at new ways to take the heat out of inflation. 70,000 people are forecast to lose their jobs as the Reserve Bank plunges the economy into recession. The Council of Trade Unions plan includes cutting student loan repayments, giving first home buyers 25 year fixed mortgages, and introducing a tax free threshold. Policy Director Craig Renney says if the answer is 70,000 jobs being axed, we need a better answer. He says inflation is a long run problem in New Zealand, because we don't build enough houses, or deliver the public services we need. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Council of Trade Unions says it's time for New Zealand's corporate tax rate to come under the blowtorch in the wake of the record Official Cash Rate rise. CTU chief economist Craig Renney says the rise to 4.25 per cent means young mortgage holders continue to bear the cost of what he terms an "economic crisis". He says banks and other large companies that have performed well during the pandemic will continue to thrive. Renney spoke to Corin Dann.  

National's tax plan will give $10 in tax cuts to the top 5 per cent of income earners and landlords for every dollar of tax it cuts for the bottom half of earners, according to new calculations from the Council of Trade Unions. If you take a fairly costly interpretation of National's policy, the changes would give people earning the Prime Minister's salary about $54,000 over the three years of the next Parliament, while people on the minimum wage would get a bit less than $350 over the same period. National's finance spokeswoman Nicola Willis said she completely rejected the figures. The centrepiece of National's election promise is a tax plan that will bin a raft of Labour's taxes, including the new 39 per cent bracket, the extension of the bright line test and the removal of landlords' ability to deduct interest costs from their tax bills. At the heart of the plan is a policy to adjust tax brackets to take account of inflation that occurred between the end of 2017 and the end of 2021 - National says it will adjust those brackets further if it can. The party costed the bracket policy at $1.7 billion earlier this year. CTU economist Craig Renney, a former adviser to Finance Minister Grant Robertson, said it would in fact cost $200m more in its first year ($1.9b) because inflation has pushed more people into higher tax brackets, adding to the initial cost. "It's hard to understand why in a cost-of-living crisis that disproportionately harms the poorest, you would design a package that is so heavily skewed to those who need it the least. More than half of taxpayers would receive either $2 a week or nothing at all," said Renney. Council of Trade Unions (CTU) economist Craig Renney made the calculations. Photo / Mark Mitchell "If Christopher Luxon was prime minister he would gain around $54,000 over three years, or $349 a week, quite apart from the gains from the properties he owns. A minimum wage worker would gain $2.15 a week - not enough for a loaf of Tip Top White," he said. National Party leader Christopher Luxon said today that the party's tax policies were a more effective way of addressing the country's cost-of-living crisis. It wasn't about changing taxes all together, but increasing the current thresholds in line with inflation. ”Most people say when you've got high inflation it's unfair that people get caught in what we call ‘bracket creep',” he told AM. ”We're not changing the principles of that system, [but let's] a least take the current system and be fair to everyone.” Willis said National rejected the CTU's claims. “We completely reject these numbers as they are based on a number of false assumptions including about aspects which are not in our tax plan and that the entire plan will be rolled out immediately.” "We question the motivations of the analyst, given his immediate previous role as a political adviser to the Finance Minister," she said. If all of the package was implemented in the first year National took office, the CTO reckons it would come to about $3.4b in lost revenue - and more than $11b over the course of the next Parliament. This lost revenue would make it difficult to fund National's spending commitments, which include increasing education and health spending by at least the rate of inflation, without additional borrowing. National has said that the policy would in fact be staggered, this means the final annual cost of the plan would still be high, but the initial cost would depend on what National chose to cut first. "This is a question of priorities. If the Government is going to spend $11 billion, it should be focusing that money on public services like health, education and housing or on boosting incomes for families who need it, not a tax package focused on the well-off," Renney said. At the heart of Renney's calculations is updating National's figures for what they will cost in 2024, 2025, and 2026 - the years the party will have to implement the policy if they win the 2023 election. National's tax bracket plan, for example, was costed using the latest IRD data in 2022, however that data used figures dating back to 2020 to work out how much tax people were paying in order to model how much cutting the level of tax would cost. Renney has adjusted that data for the inflation that has occurred to date, and the inflation that is expected to occur by 2024 to come up with a figure that more accurately reflects the cost of the policy when National would implement it. He has done the same to the repeal of the 39 per cent tax bracket, which taxes people 39 per cent on every dollar earned above $180,000. The calculation includes the repeal of a policy implemented last term that stopped the ability of landlords to offset rental losses. Last term, National said it would repeal this policy, but has not committed to doing so this term. National has not produced costings of its full tax plan, saying it will do so after the last set of Treasury forecasts, known as PREFU, are released in the weeks leading up to the election. The CTU has costed the policy as though all of the tax changes will be implemented in National's first year of Government. It is not clear what policies will be rolled out first. However, leader Christopher Luxon has also said the party would axe the changes relating to property “immediately”. - Thomas Coughlan, NZHSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Council of Trade Unions says National's proposed tax plan would give peanuts to the working and middle classes. It's crunched the numbers based on IRD and National Party data. The council says the cut will cost 11 billion dollars over three years,  and will mostly benefit top income earners and property investors. CTU economist Craig Renney told Kate Hawkesby says there are better ways to spend that money. He says that could be spent on health, education or protecting the poorest workers. National Party Finance Spokesperson Nicola Willis has rejected the numbers saying they haven't released their entire plan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Council of Trade Unions says National's proposed tax plan would give peanuts to the working and middle classes. It's crunched the numbers based on IRD and National Party data. The council says the cut will cost $11 billion over three years and will mostly benefit top income earners and property investors. CTU economist Craig Renney told Kate Hawkesby says there are better ways to spend that money. He says that could be spent on health, education or protecting the poorest workers. National Party Finance Spokesperson Nicola Willis has rejected the numbers saying they haven't released their entire plan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Economists say rising unemployment is the new pain set to hurt New Zealand's economy on the back of unexpectedly high inflation figures. Data for the September quarter shows prices rose by 7.2 percent in the last year - down from 7.3 percent in June - but higher than the Reserve Bank had expected. There are forecasts our central bank will now increase the official cash rate to as high as five percent next year. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney and New Zealand Initiative chief economist Eric Crampton spoke to Corin Dann.

We know National's scrapping the top tax rate so wealthy New Zealanders pay less tax, but it's also indexing the tax brackets to inflation so everyone gets a tax cut.  We also know the Government just raked in an extra $10 billion more in taxes.  What we don't know is what Labour's planning to do with taxes going into the next election...  Until recently Craig Renney would have been part of designing that policy - working closely with the Finance Minister as his senior economic advisor but he's now with the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, its economist and director of policy, and he's here to help us puzzle together Labour tax policy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Council of Trade Unions has released its new economic strategy. Basically a wish list before the election. Ideas include a state-run investment bank, a four day work week, and a new Ministry of Green Works. With us now is the CTU economist, Craig Renney. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past week we have been introduced to a phenomenon titled where workers are say enough is enough, and are no longer going above and beyond for their employer. Younger generations are taking the job description verbatim, and completing what they are paid to do. So is this just laziness or is it just doing your job for an employer who may not value you the way you may deserve? Joining us to explain "Quiet Quitting" is Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our labour market continues to squeeze tighter, based on the latest Stats New Zealand quarterly figures. Wages rose at an annual rate of 3.4 percent, the highest seen in 14 years while unemployment remains very low - though it has risen marginally, to 3.3 percent. It raises the question - what is the ideal jobless rate? New Zealand Council of Trade Unions chief economist Craig Renney, and New Zealand Initiative senior fellow Bryce Wilkinson spoke to Corin Dann.

The Council of Trade Unions says more needs to be done to protect low income workers.The latest wage figures show inflation has increased, but the union says pay isn't being matched.Meanwhile, despite forecasts, unemployment has slightly risen.Union economist Craig Renney joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Council of Trade Unions says more needs to be done to protect low income workers. The latest wage figures show inflation has increased, but the union says pay isn't being matched. Meanwhile, despite forecasts, unemployment has slightly risen. Union economist Craig Renney joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Opposition parties are calling on the government to attack record high inflation by cutting spending, regulatory bottlenecks, and taxes and they're keen to make it an election decider next year. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney would prefer to see an increase in the minimum wage increase, and benefits kept in line with inflation. As people struggle to keep up, how much pressure is on employers to up wages to help them out? BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope and First Union researcher and policy analyst Edward Miller spoke to Corin Dann.

The OCR has increased to 2.5%, the highest rate since 2016, and the Consumer price index is expected to increase with results released this week. CTU Economist Craig Renney thinks more needs to be done for low-income families as their budgets shrink. Craig Renney joins the Weekend Collective to discuss the cost of living crisis and how the government can support low income families. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CTU economist Craig Renney joined the Weekend Collective to discuss the recently announced cost of living payment that will be received by all Kiwis earning less than $70,000 anually.LISTEN ABOVE

CTU economist Craig Renney joined the Weekend Collective to discuss the recently announced cost of living payment that will be received by all Kiwis earning less than $70,000 anually.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's just under a week to go until Finance Minister Grant Robertson unveils his fifth Budget. To discuss what they hope to see next week, and what they hope doesn't get included, Thomas chats with economists Craig Renney and Eric Cramption. Follow On the Tiles on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are out on Fridays. You can find more politics news at nzherald.co.nz/politics. You can follow Thomas Coughlan on Twitter @coughlthom See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon has been dubbed out of touch following his comments on axing a public holiday.The National party leader made calls to scrap Labour Day to make way for Matariki yesterday.But he has since back-pedalled, saying he was being facetious, and doesn't care what day gets cancelled to make way for it.Council of Trade Unions Policy Director Craig Renney told Roman Travers no public holiday should be cancelled - especially Labour Day.He says Labour Day commemorates the struggle for an eight-hour working day, won in New Zealand back in 1840.LISTEN ABOVE

Craig Renney, CTU economist, joined Andrew Dickens on his reaction to the fuel announcement, and what he would prefer rather than excise tax cuts. LISTEN ABOVE 

Concerns the National Party's tax plans could cause more harm than good.Leader Chris Luxon's announced in his first State of the Nation speech that he'll reverse every tax increase the current Government has imposed if he becomes Prime Minister.He also wants to adjust all tax bracket thresholds, so people pay less tax.Council of Trade Unions Chief Economist Craig Renney told Kate Hawkesby that's not going to fix the country's problems.“Property speculators is not going to reduce the price of fuel, reducing taxation on multiple landlords is not going to reduce international shipping costs.”LISTEN ABOVE

Pressure on the Government to lift the minimum wage before Christmas. Stats New Zealand figures show a six percent annual increase in rents across the country, and a four percent annual rise in food prices.  Both easily top wages at 2.4 percent. Council of Trade Unions economist, Craig Renney, told Heather Du Plessis Allan a change could be made before the Government adjourns for the year. “What we're wanting to see is wages catch up with some of the inflation which is being driven by international factors. Just simply we want to see wages catch up with where costs have risen to.” LISTEN ABOVE 

Pressure on the Government to lift the minimum wage before Christmas. Stats New Zealand figures show a six percent annual increase in rents across the country, and a four percent annual rise in food prices.  Both easily top wages at 2.4 percent. Council of Trade Unions economist, Craig Renney, told Heather Du Plessis Allan a change could be made before the Government adjourns for the year. “What we're wanting to see is wages catch up with some of the inflation which is being driven by international factors. Just simply we want to see wages catch up with where costs have risen to.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand's Labour Cost Index showed a 2.4% wage increase last year. But when you set that against an inflation increase of 4.9% over the same period, in real terms the average New Zealander took a 2.5% pay cut. In a tight labour market, we should in theory all be marching into our boss's office and asking for a raise – so why isn't this happening? To find out, Bernard Hickey talks to CTU chief economist Craig Renney and Kiwibank economist Mary Jo Vergara.When the Facts Change is brought to you by The Spinoff Podcast Network together with Kiwibank. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week Thomas is holding down the fort for a special look at the country's books and how the economy is faring after a year of Covid-19. Our panel, made up of guests Interest.co.nz journalist Jenée Tibshraeny and former economic advisor to Labour and CTU economist Craig Renney, discuss the Crown's accounts, debt, inflation, interest rates, and what's next for New Zealand's economic future. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we're talking about global capitalism, and how it's in danger of destroying itself from the inside out. The concept is known as a “doom loop”: as the economy grows, those who own all the assets get more and more, those who don't get poorer and poorer, and as a result growth slows as the machine grinds to a halt. And the key to stopping this doom loop lies in addressing inequality and productivity. To explore this idea and how it affects New Zealand, Bernard Hickey talks to the Productivity Commission's Ganesh Nana and Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney.When the Facts Change is brought to you by The Spinoff Podcast Network together with Kiwibank. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.