April 29, 2014 12:00pm by David Farrar

A small boost for Defence

The Government has confirmed $100 million in new funding for the defence force in the coming financial year – part of a $535 million package for the next four years.

A $100.9 million investment into operating funding for the 2014-15 financial year, has been confirmed in the coming Budget.

“This significant investment in our defence force, combined with the savings and reinvestment achieved through recent reforms, means the Government is addressing the long term funding gap which we inherited,” Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman said.

The Budget, due to be released May 15, will confirm the defence funding approach agreed by Cabinet in November, last year.

The $100.9 million was the first stage of an allocation of $535.5 million operating funding for the NZDF over the next four years.

Our expenditure on defence, as a proportion of GDP, is relatively low for a developed country. The NZDF do very good work around the world, despite our small size.