Neil Paviour-Smith: Forsyth Barr Managing Director on the results of the Mood of the Boardroom survey

Business leaders aren’t sugarcoating their messages for the Government.  

The Herald's annual Mood of the Boardroom survey shows business leaders are less optimistic about the economy than they were a year ago. 

Only a third of respondents back the Government's current growth agenda. 

Forsyth Barr Managing Director Neil Paviour-Smith told Mike Hosking concerns are being expressed about the need to tackle the difficult problems and long-term issues. 

He says there’s a need for the Government to be much clearer around the plan to tackle things like infrastructure, long-term savings, and the Crown’s fiscal position, which acts as a ball and chain around the economy. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
To the mood of the boardroom at twenty three to seven,
What have we got? The views of one hundred and
fifty of the country's leading business executives are the consensus.
New Zealand's at an inflection point, desperately needing clearer leadership
and direction. We've got growing for you as our complacency
potentially pushing us towards second world status now. Neil Pavia
Smith is the managing director of for Soth. Barron is

(00:20):
with us.

Speaker 2 (00:20):
Good Morningding, Mike.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
Do you generally agree with the consensus of your fellow
business leaders?

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Yes, I do. I mean there's no sugarcoating things at
the moment. Yeah, it's pretty hard messages and here for
the government to take. But I think it does reflect
every tough times in the economy. It reflects at tough
times in real New Zealand, and there's concerns being expressed
about the need to tackle the really hard issues, the

(00:50):
structural efforts that we have and some of the longer
term issues that are are being raised through the comments.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
They would come back and say we're doing everything we can.
Every leber is being pulled, Is that true?

Speaker 2 (01:05):
I think the government's working very hard there's a lot
of energy. I think outside of economic matters, you'd certainly
give them a strong tick. And you know, I expect
them to do well across areas like education, crime and
so forth, foreign trade and foreign relations and what have you.
But when it comes to economic matters, I think there

(01:26):
is concern that there we're lacking sort of the long
term focus areas like infrastructure, some of the long term savings,
other matters and Crown's fiscal position which really acts as
a ball and chain around the economy. So you know,
those are big concerns and I think there is a

(01:47):
need for the government to be much clearer around what
plan is in those areas.

Speaker 1 (01:51):
Having looked at the choices, which is a center left,
center right government. Have your critical of center right, the
center left comes out even worse. So I mean, are
we in a parlor state in that sense?

Speaker 2 (02:01):
Yeah, I think there are there are concerns about the
whether the Labor Party is ready to form government, and
there are certainly real concerns about to coalition parts parties
they would form with the Grent and around economic matter,
it's no doubt. So you know that that's a concern

(02:22):
that I think it gives an opportunity for the government
to deten some of the key issues, but it also
potentially takes the pressure off around some of the core
matters as well.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
Have they missed a trick? One of the criticisms of
this government is they could have gone harder sooner and
we might not be sitting here in the latter part
of twenty five in the state we're in. Is that
fair or not?

Speaker 2 (02:42):
I think it's difficult to argue two years in that
they inherited a real mess and not to be sort
of going much harder and to continue to blame the
previous when you take a softer approach than could have
been done. So yeah, I agree with that, and I
think that's been reflected through a lot of comments that,

(03:05):
you know, while things are probably picking up right now
and we see lots of evidence of that, you know,
some of the core structural concerns, the long term issues
that the Zealand faces haven't been seized through. This opportunity
that I've been given.

Speaker 1 (03:20):
Is lux and a problem. I don't know how much
weight you place on these scooes of cabinet ministers, but
he's not right up there. Is that on him and
him specifically or not.

Speaker 2 (03:31):
I think that there is a concern about both his
leadership around some of these longer term issues and also
Finance Minister, and that's been noted through the survey. So
this is not a catastrophic outcome, but there's certainly a
very strong message in here that you know, while business

(03:52):
is innovating and addressing costs and focusing on issues of
concern adapting to the sort of geo environment we're in,
there's little structural reform addressing those deeper issues around the
economy and the longer term matters as well. So there's
no doubt that quarter three will probably see an increase

(04:14):
in the economy, a pack up that'll be agri lead
if the straits coming down and so forth, that should
lead into a more confidence around the housing sector, more
business confidence and so on, and gradually seeing an increase
in the economy, improvement and right track long track type
polls and an election outcome. So there are reasons to

(04:36):
be optimistic, but hoping it's not a strategy, and the
business community is looking for stronger leadership from the Prime
Minister and Finance Minister around some of those core long
term issues and the structural gifts.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
Of New Zealand well so appreciated very much. Neil Pavio Smith,
who's the ForSight Bud Managing Director, part of the Herald's
mood of the boardroom this morning. For more from the
mic Hosking Bakfast, listen live to News Talks at b
from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio