In an increasingly volatile world economy, eN-Zed is at the mercy of geopolitical tremors far beyond our shores. The escalating war in the Middle East, a situation eN-Zed didn’t create and can’t control, is a prime example. As Prime Minister Christopher Luxon recently warned, we are facing a ‘big shift’ in reality. This USA & Israel v. Iran war is a direct threat to our supply chains and our fuel security.
This highlights one of the fundamental duties of any government: To build an economy strong enough to act as a shock absorber. We must be able to weather these economic shocks, internalise the impact, and emerge with our economy and our people’s livelihoods intact. We didn’t do that with Covid because the politicians ignored the expert advice and they governed the economy like children, not grown-ups.
The Prime Minister’s recent acknowledgement that we must ‘prepare for the worst-case scenario’ serves as a cold bucket of water for those who believe a nation can be managed through ideological optimism alone. When fuel supplies are threatened and petrol stations in towns like Levin begin to run dry due to logistics surges, ‘hope’ doesn’t keep the trucks moving or the lights on.
A government must be composed of intelligent, mature people who understand that:
- Expert Advice is Non-Negotiable: Managing a National Fuel Plan or instructing the Treasury to adjust ‘tax and transfer’ systems requires a deep respect for technical expertise. It is not the time for radical social experiments; it is the time for cold, hard data.
- Rationality Trumps Rhetoric: Finance Minister Nicola Willis has been clear: the government cannot ‘blunt all of the pain’. A mature government is honest with its citizens about the limits of state power, rather than making populist promises that lead to further debt and economic instability.
- Proactive vs. Reactive: Increasing fuel level updates to twice a week and engaging with international partners for refined fuel are the actions of a ‘prudent’ government.
When we contrast this with the ideological leanings of a Labour-Greens-Te Pāti Māori coalition, the danger becomes clear. Such a coalition has historically prioritised expansive spending and policies that can stifle productivity. In a world where we have only seven weeks of fuel on hand, eN-Zed cannot afford a government that treats the economy (and taxpayers) as a bottomless piggy bank.
If our economy is weakened by high debt and low growth, we lose our ‘fiscal cushion’. When the next global shock hits, whether it’s a fuel shortage or a supply chain collapse or an earthquake or another plague, a weak economy will shatter rather than bend.
We live in challenging times that demand a ‘prudent response’. To survive and thrive, eN-Zed requires leaders who prioritise a strong, intact economy. We need a government that listens to its advisers, stays ahead of the curve, and possesses the maturity to make the rational, sometimes difficult, decisions necessary to protect all eN-Zedders’ futures. We need a steady hand on the tiller, not a coalition driven by ideologies that would leave us vulnerable when the inevitable hits.
eN-Zed 