2012 Budget highlights
Here’s some of the more significant aspects of the 2012 Budget:
- Household savings rate is positive for the first time in a decade, and is forecast to increase to almost 4% by 2016
- Unemployment is forecast to drop below 5 per cent by 2015
- Forecast fiscal surplus in 2014/15 is $197 million
- Core Crown expenses to fall progressively from 33.5 per cent of GDP in 2011/12, to 30.2 per cent of GDP in 2015/16
- $385 million of new investment over four years in research, science, and innovation
- $250m from asset part-sales going towards Kiwirail
- Deferring the auto-enrolment exercise for KiwiSaver, until surplus is locked in
- Goals No 2 and 3 of 10 announced – reducing prisoner reoffending by 25% in five years and increasing the rate of participation in early childhood education to 98%, up from 94.7% currently
- $1.5 billion extra to Vote Health over four years – will include 4,000 more elective ops a year
- Tobacco excise tax to increase 10% (plus inflation) on 1 Jan 2013 and repeat for the next three years (so a real 40% increase in excise tax)
- $512 million towards new frontline education initiatives
- $104m for housing