What did the Treasury tell Nicola Willis when she got to the Beehive?

Treasury’s briefing to new Finance Minister Nicola Willis suggested she stick with the Government’s fiscal rules set in 2022, although left room for her to refine them. Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson set the current fiscal rules after the pandemic, based on Treasury advice. In the November briefing, the Treasury told Willis that fiscal sustainability was a key policy issue and that fiscal rules were an effective way to communicate the Government’s commitment. To achieve the surplus, Treasury said the Coalition Government could consider decreasing expenditure, limiting new spending, increasing taxes, or use debt more efficiently. Improved productivity was the key to better living standards in the future, it said.