Savings progress must continue to keep rates in check

“Today’s decision by the Reserve Bank to hold the Official Cash Rate shows that spending discipline is working, but the job isn’t done. The biggest influence on the cost of living is the cost of government, and progress on savings must continue if we want to keep downward pressure on inflation and interest rates,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Government needs a party that watches spending like a hawk. Otherwise, inflation will be our future as well as our past. Taxpayers need more ACT in Government to cut more waste and grow the economy.

“When we entered Government, inflation was high and the OCR was 5.5 per cent. The Coalition has turned the tide with more disciplined Government spending.

“ACT Ministers have driven $14 billion of savings across three Budgets, helping avoid more debt, taxes, and pressure on interest rates. That discipline has helped put the Government on a path back to surplus a year earlier.

“ACT has been effective at getting our partners to agree with us. In Budget 2026, we agreed on a target for a smaller public service and fewer departments. The best time to listen to us would have been three years ago, but the second best time is now.

“Today’s hold is welcome, but it is no reason to ease off. Government is inherently wasteful, and the fight against waste is never truly won. Keeping inflation and interest rates down requires discipline year after year.

“Saving should start at the top. New Zealand cannot afford a Government that is twice the size of similar countries. ACT has released a plan for fewer Ministers, fewer departments, clearer accountability, and a smaller, more efficient Government.

“Just as ACT has set the agenda on No New Taxes, we set the agenda on cutting waste.

“The alternative is a nightmare. Labour and its coalition partners are lining up hundreds of billions of dollars of new promises that would send inflation and interest rates up like a rocket.

“Labour has already promised $34 billion. Then you look at their coalition partners in the Greens, who are past $250 billion, with TOP hot on their heels at $229 billion. Hello again, 2022. We can’t afford another Government pouring fuel on the fire. Inflation and interest rates would be much higher.

“If we want New Zealand to be the best little country in the world, we need a Government that is smaller, more efficient, and focused on getting results from every dollar."