Budget 2023 highlights: What's in it for YOU?

Brian from Mount Roskill

The key highlights:
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Extension of 20 hours Early Childhood Education to include 2-year-olds - $1.2b

Abolition of $5 prescription co-payment - $619m
Cheaper public transport for children - $327m
$71b in infrastructure spending
Inflation forecast to stay higher, for longer
Net core Crown debt hits $181b
The cost of living package targets families with young children.

For parents
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Two-year-olds included in 20 hours of free early childhood education from March 2024, at a cost of $1.2 billion over four years. This saves eligible parents about $133 a week. Subsidies for childcare centres rise by 5.3 per cent, costing $260 million over four years.

Public transport
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$327 million for free public transport for primary school-aged children, half price public transport for under 25′s from 1 July - benefiting about 774,000 people. Pay rises for bus drivers.

Health
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Removing $5 co-payment for prescriptions, cost: $618 million over four years.
More money to help reduce waiting lists ($118 million) and $100 million to boost primary care. $63 million for 500 extra nurses. $75 million more for Pharmac.

The tax change
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Tax rate for trustees to increase to 39 per cent from April 2024 - the same as the top income tax rate. Aimed at stopping people using trusts for their income to avoid the higher tax rate. Expected to raise $350 million a year.

Post-cyclone infrastructure
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National Resilience Plan set up with initial funding of $6 billion - first priority is repair and rebuild of telecommunications, energy and roading after Auckland flooding and Cyclone Gabrielle.

Housing
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$403 million to expand scheme for heating and insulation installations to 100,000 more homes. 3000 new public housing places.

The economy
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Inflation is forecast to drop to 3 per cent by next September.
Treasury no longer forecasting a recession, due to cyclone recovery. Unemployment is forecast to peak at 5.3 per cent in late 2024.
GDP is forecast at 3.2 per cent this year, dropping to 1 per cent next year.

The books
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Return to surplus forecast in 2025/26. Net debt is forecast to peak at 22 per cent in 2024.

The surprises
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$34 million increase in funding for Te Matatini (over two years) - up from $3 million a year now. The festival will get more funding than the NZ Symphony Orchestra for the first time.

New 20 per cent rebate for game development studios - allowing them to claim up to $3 million a year in rebates.
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