“Before Parliament has even sat, ACT’s approach of opposing and proposing has succeeded by bringing real change to monetary policy,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.
“The Governor of the Reserve Bank has been saying that if we didn’t have a housing bubble we’d have a depression instead. Those can’t possibly be the only choices available.
“A saner approach to monetary policy will be a massive relief to younger New Zealanders. Loose monetary policy means they see their future getting further away while they stand still.
“As ACT has argued for some time, the Reserve Bank is not fighting inflation if the inflation is in asset prices. The Reserve Bank’s mandate needs to be changed to include asset price stability.
“By writing to the Reserve Bank Governor saying exactly that, Grant Robertson has vindicated ACT’s position that the Bank should consider asset prices, not just the consumer price index, when setting policy.
“ACT has led the debate on the issue of monetary policy and asset price inflation. We are pleased to see the Government is listening just as we have been listening to New Zealanders up and down the country who are concerned about the Reserve Bank inflating asset bubbles.
“This move by the Finance Minister shows the role that an effective and constructive opposition party can play.”