Budget day is all about the Minister of Finance's big reveal. But spare a thought for other party leaders who must prepare speeches opposing something they haven't read yet.
Budget day is a bonanza of both action and silence at Parliament. There is a buzz about the place as the denizens anticipate what might be revealed by the minister of Finance in his annual budget speech.
But there is also a quietude in the hours beforehand. Journalists are locked away getting an early peek at the numbers. So are government MPs. You might think Parliament's lunchroom would be abuzz with tourists and MPs but it is unusually empty.
In the party leader's offices staff are putting the finishing touches on the speeches to be delivered in response to the budget.
Grant Robertson outlines Budget 2023
Each party leader gets to make a 20-minute speech. That is too long a tirade to improvise, a script is required. The party leaders also traditionally get a courtesy-copy of the budget outline an hour before it is announced. But that is not enough time with which to write a good twenty-minute speech, nor form a reasoned opinion. Especially if you consider the enormous scope of any budget.
But how do you write a script denouncing announcements unknown? There are a variety of approaches and this year's party leaders employed most of them.
The generic approach
The first approach is to pretty much ignore anything the Minister of Finance just announces and go wide, denouncing all and sundry. This was the mainstay of National Party leader Christopher Luxons' approach.
As the first speaker up after Grant Robertson he has the least time to prepare a specifically crafted, well-reasoned rebuttal so his approach is necessarily limited. Safely, he opted for variations on an 'everything is terrible and it's all their fault' election speech, focusing especially on 'cost-of-living' mixed in with broad claims of government failure.
Christopher Luxon during his budget response. Despite appearances, he is not giving Grant Robertson the 'thumbs-up' sign for a job well done.
"Now, this is the "blow-out Budget", and it's just spend more and expect Kiwis to pay for it - that's what it is; that's what we've come to expect. But I'm not surprised. You know, we've had a change of Prime Minister, he's tried to adopt some new language and some new words, but the reality of it is just the same old Labour Government with the same tired, failed approach to running the economy."
Most of what Christopher Luxon talked about was either broad or not reliant on likely announcements, so it could be pre-written and apply regardless of what was said. …