NZ PM tells businesses to ditch 'parent-child' approach amid confidence slump

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has urged businesses to shed a "parent-child mentality" and take greater responsibility for their own growth and disruption, rather than waiting for government direction. Luxon made these remarks to business leaders in Rotorua, where the local chamber of commerce reported the "sharpest fall" in business confidence in nearly a decade.

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The affordability of doing business, it’s getting harder and harder ... How long can we hang on?

Melanie Short, chief executive of the Rotorua Business Chamber, expressed concerns about the increasing difficulty and cost of doing business. "How long can we hang on?" she asked, highlighting the plummeting business confidence. Luxon responded by calling the prevailing sentiment "quite negative" and stating that businesses must focus on "retooling and radically disrupting" their operations if they are to succeed.

Luxon's comments have drawn criticism from the opposition Labour party, which labeled them "out of touch" and patronizing. The Prime Minister's office later suggested his remarks had been "mischaracterised."

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The view was "quite negative", saying New Zealand businesses needed to move away from a "parent-child mentality" of waiting to see what the Government would do.

Meanwhile, Luxon's coalition partners have also introduced significant policy proposals. Act has proposed allowing teachers to use "reasonable force" against disruptive students and imposing fines on parents who fail to engage with schools over their child's behavior. Some educators, however, have warned that such policies could compromise school safety, advocating instead for more support for learning and well-being in classrooms.

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If businesses were not “retooling and radically disrupting” their business, “you ain’t doing your job”.

New Zealand First has put forward a plan to boost birth rates by offering a $5,000 tax-free grant for the first three years of a child's life, applicable to up to three children. Eligibility requires at least one parent to be a New Zealand citizen. However, National party officials have criticized this policy as expensive and complex, deeming it "untargeted spending which would simply increase taxes on working New Zealanders."

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Labour has called those comments “out of touch” and patronising, while the PM’s office later told RNZ his comments had been “mischaracterised”.