Pursuits
New Zealand Immigration Boom Makes Its Books Harder to Balance
- Higher-than-expected arrivals to weigh on Thursday’s budget
- Finance Minister prioritizes debt reduction over tax cuts
View of Auckland city and harbour at sunset, North Island, New Zealand
Photographer: Matteo Colombo/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
New Zealand’s increasing allure is proving a headache for its finance minister.
Bill English, who delivers his annual budget in Wellington Thursday, is finding that record immigration and its drag on public services is eating into money earmarked for new policies and tax cuts. Together with weaker-than-projected tax revenues, that could see him struggle to repeat 2015’s surplus, the nation’s first in seven years.