Budget 2022 At A Glance: What You Need To Know

There’s a lot of spending flying around in Budget 2022 – here’s the main expenses in an easy-to-read list.

Cost of living: $1b package:

$814m for a $350 per person cost-of-living payment for individuals earning under $70k, equating to $27 a week per person over three months from 1 August for about 2.1m people,
Funding to continue half-price public transport fares for further two months, plus ongoing concession for Community Services cardholders,
$235m to continue fuel excise and road user charge reductions for a further two months
$73m for 26,500 more insulation and heating retrofits for low-income homeowners
Urgent supermarket legislation to ban covenants over land as a barrier to supermarkets accessing new sites and restricting competition
Child support payments passed to sole-parent beneficiaries as income instead of being retained by governmentHealth: $11.1 billion across the forecast period:
$1.3b for health capital investments, including $572m for Whangārei Hospital, a further $78.3m for Hillmorton mental health project in Canterbury, and initial redevelopment planning for Nelson Hospital
Record ongoing annual funding boost for Health NZ: $1.8b in year one, plus $1.3 billion in year two
$488m for strengthening primary and community care
$299m for Māori health services
Remediation of DHB deficits (planned at $550m in ’21/’22
Pharmac to get extra $191 million over the next two yearsThree alcohol and drug treatment courts made permanent
$166.1m over four years for ambulance services including adding 48 ambulances and 13 other vehicles, 248 paramedics and frontline staff, and 22 call centre staff
$90.7m over four years for air ambulance services
$102m boost for community healthcare$86m for GPs in high-needs areas
$76m for training and primary care specialists
$39 million over four years for Hauora Māori workforce development
Already announced $100m for mental health, and $90m for rolling out in-school Mana Ake mental health and wellbeing programme$220m operating and $100m capital for investments in data and digital infrastructure for the reforms and health systemsDental needs grants increased from $300 to $1000
Piki programme for free therapy in Wellington region extended

Climate:

Emissions Reduction Plan spends $2.9b from Emergency Response Fund
$16m over four years for community-based renewable energy projects from the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund
$31m for a Māori climate action platform

Education: $2b operating, $855m capital funding:

$293m operating and $8m capital funding for replacing the decile system with the new Equity Index
$184m increase in school operating grants
$777m in capital investment including $219m for replacing furniture and equipment, $385m for building and refurbishing 280 classrooms at more than 40 schools, $88m for the Christchurch School Rebuild, $105m for Māori-medium kura
$270m operating and $5m capital funding for pay parity for education and care, and kindergarten teachers
Already announced $230m boost for apprenticeships, and support for Mana in Mahi and Māori Trades and Training Fund

Justice cluster*: $2.7b total operating, $65m capital funding:

$190m to strengthen legal aid scheme
Already announced funding to maintain police officer-to-population ratio
$92m operating, $2m capital funding for serious and organised crime harm minimisation strategy
$165m operating, $21m capital funding for Tactical Response
$47m for Te Ao Marama District Court model$34m operating, $13m capital funding for 15 March firearms commitments
$28m operating, $2m capital for supporting bereaved families and whānau in the coronial system
$141m for democratic processes including Electoral Commission funding for elections
$4m to strengthen the Independent Police Conduct Authority
Already announced $115m operating funding for family and sexual violence prevention
* This now includes Ministry of Justice, New Zealand Police, the Department of Corrections, the Serious Fraud Office, Crown Law Office

Natural Resources cluster: $1b operating, $12m capital funding **

$179m total operating funding for Department of Conservation
$32m operating, $2m capital funding for animal health and welfare regulation
$92m operating, $2m capital for Biodiversity Strategy
$19m incentives for biodiversity support by private landowners
$179m for resource management reforms$118m operating, $5m capital
funding for advisory services on rural land use
** Includes Ministry for the Environment, Department of Conservation, Ministry for Primary Industries

Māori and Pacific: $580m package across health, social and justice sectors:

$25m for Māori cadetships
$18m for Pacific STEAM futures
$8m for Tupu Aotearoa employment and training services
$10m for Te Ringa Hapai Whenua Infrastructure Fund
$26m for Progressive Procurement for Māori businesses
$40m for Māori media
$28m for protecting appropriate use of matauranga Māori and other taonga
$167m for Whānau Ora Commissioning Agencies
$168m for Hauora Māori (Maori Health Authority) Commissioning of health services
$16m to expand the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund
Disability support: $934m for disability system transformation
$735m for disability service sustainability, with additional demand expected
$100m for rolling out Enabling Good Lives approach allowing service users to budget their own services
$108m to establish the new Ministry for Disabled People and support operations

Housing:

$221m for Affordable Housing Fund
$1b to support public and transitional housing
$355m for redesigning emergency housing system
$75m for Homelessness Action Plan

Covid-19:

Budget 2022 sets aside $1.2b for immediate Covid-related public health needs
$58.4b of the $61.6b Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund (CRRF) has been allocated, leaving $3.2b. The CRRF will be closed and remaining funding repurposed, with $1.2 for urgent public health needs and $1b for cost of living relief

Broadcasting, arts and culture:

$370m over four years operating, $306m capital funding for the new Public Media Entity
Funding for NZSO, Royal NZ Ballet, Heritage NZ, Te Papa, Nga Taonga Sound and Vision, Matariki celebrations, museums, Waitangi National Trust Board

Business and industry:

$100m for a Business Growth Fund for SMEs
Continuation of the $200m Regional Strategic Partnership Fund
$60 to progress Income Insurance Scheme design

Industry Transformation plans:

$37m for Construction Sector Accord Transformation plan
$30m for Advanced Manufacturing Industry Transformation plan
$5m for Agritech Industry Transformation plan
$20m for Digital Technologies Transformation plan
$40m for Primary Industry Transformation planOther:
Further funding to progress Auckland Light Rail
$349m for rail networks and rolling stock
$10.9b over five years contribution to the NZ Superannuation Fund, greater than required
$60m to improve broadband infrastructure in worst-served regions
$30m for Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) cybersecurity agency
New parliamentary accommodation
Air New Zealand’s recapitalisation plan to maintain the Government’s 51% shareholding
Replacement facility for Te Papa spirit collection
Purpose-built facility for Whangarei Airport’s Rescue and Firefighting Service
Funding for Chatham Islands exports and imports vessel Southern Tiare
Upgrading courts’ case management system
Upgrading satellite GPS accuracy

Totals and fiscal balancing:

$61.9b total for infrastructure upgrades 2022-’26
$6.156b in new operating spending from Budget 2022 over five years, coming to $5.9b net
$30.609b total operating expenditure for 2022-24

Source: rnz.co.nz Republished by arrangement.
Russell Palmer, Digital Political Journalist
@russellpalm [email protected]