Subscribe to RSSLabour Embraces PPPs For Transport
Labour’s David Cunliffe this afternoon labelled the government’s infrastructure investment “a fraudulent combination of re-announced spending and reallocated expenditure” and welcomed the idea of public-private partnerships for transport projects.
In a speech to the Institute of Policy Studies, the party’s finance spokesman said that National “have announced the Kopu Bridge eleven times, and are spending billions on a holiday highway north of Auckland so their mates get to their baches faster - but there is no new money for it; only money that has been taken away from other road projects.
“But they have no new thinking. No vision of an integrated transport system. No preparation for a low carbon future or the risk of future oil shocks.
“Nothing that could help increase Auckland productivity through trains that get people to work more quickly, take cars off the road, and enable all transport to be more effective.
“Instead of putting us on a path to a stronger future, they have put us on a low growth path.”
David Cunliffe (left) at opening of New Lynn transport hub
In a speech on Labour’s current financial thinking, the MP embraced pblic-private partnerships for transport projects.
“We can expand public-private partnerships for new transport infrastructure. The project scale must be right and the PPP benefits must outweigh any increase in cost of capital, but that leaves plenty of scope for win-wins.”
1 Comments
Labour are as bad as National. I`d like to be able to vote for them next year but this crap from Cunliffe just shows they are equally ambivalent about the CBD tunnel and the development of rail in Auckland.
When almost every PPP project overseas has been an unmitigated disaster costing taxpayers and ratepayers more than normal ways of paying projects would have, out comes Cunliffe saying what a “win-win” it would be. What utter drivel!
Labour need to grow some balls and stop sitting on the fence. They are such a wishy washy bunch they are really beneath respect. I hate everything National and SJ stand for but at least they believe in something.
For goodness, can`t they just come out and say we believe in the CBD tunnel and we`ll help fund it. To date no top Labour minister has come out and said we want it. They are just sitting quietly in the background hoping National will get all the crap and no one will ask them any questions.