September 22, 2025 • 8 mins
Nicola Willis says there's been a clear message to all ministers - we don't want the billions recently allocated for infrastructure sitting in Government bank accounts.
A small scale hospital project announcement yesterday and a school property maintenance announcement today have both talked up the boost they'll give the construction sector in the coming 12 months.
The Finance Minister says they want signed contracts, spades in the ground, and jobs.
"The instruction to all Government ministers has been - make sure you know where your maintenance contracts are at, where those construction projects are at, to get them out the door."
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Right. We've spoken to Erica Stamford about this. The government
is shoveling money out the door to classrooms to get
them fixed up. They're old, they're moldy, and they're broken,
and they will have that money hopefully in these school's
pockets today, tomorrow, sometime this week if they need it.
Niicola Willis is the Finance minister with us now Minister,
good evening, good evening, Ryn will we see more announcements
(00:22):
like this of accelerated funding.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
We've given a very clear message to all ministers. We've
allocated billions of dollars of extra funding for infrastructure over
our past two budgets. We don't want it sitting around
in government bank accounts. We want it resulting in signed contracts,
spades in the ground, high vis and jobs. So the
instruction to all government ministers has been make sure you
(00:48):
know where your maintenance contracts are at, where those construction
projects are aut get them out the door.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Are you have you got any other examples that you
think you can point to where we'll get more money
out the door.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Well, you've seen that from us, that we've got the
seven billion dollars worth of projects underway or happening before Christmas.
So that's across transport projects. So yesterday we had the
big announcement in the hut of the Mailing interchange. Tomorrow
the Utucky to Live in Highway will get started. Are
you also seeing that in health where we've already announced
(01:20):
the contracting arrangements for the expansion of the emergency room
at Wellington Hospital, the signing of that contract with Dunedin Hospital,
and there are other projects coming in that health area.
Look across the board, Ryan, we've made big investments in infrastructure.
The key is we don't want it sitting there as
a theory and a business case. We want it resulting
in a construction contract and people in work.
Speaker 1 (01:43):
Okay, how many jobs do you by the end of
the year, how many jobs will you have put on
the table?
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Well, look, people have different analyzes of how many jobs
are created per contract, but the Infrastructure Commission estimates that
for every billion that you invest, you are creating hundreds
of jobs. So look, we expect hundreds off not thousands
of jobs to be created through these new construction contracts
by Christmas.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Yes, and that's with the money going out or the
money announced, because there's a difference which you've just explained
to us. So is that is that you hope, because
you've allocated the money, will get those hundreds or thousands
of jobs by Christmas or the contracts assigned and they
will be created.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Well, Look, as I say, it's difficult to assign these numbers,
which is why I'm being cautious about not giving you
a specific one. And that's because there's a combination of things.
There's those major construction projects that will commence before Christmas,
that's the seven billion worth of projects. Then there's these
maintenance projects that are being brought forward in education and elsewhere,
and the jobs per contract will vary. Some of those
(02:50):
jobs will be of long duration, some of short duration.
Certainly expect a lot of activity.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
The biggest regret in government would it be cutting the
kying order funding. I mean, that's devastated construction.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
I am going to correct you on that one because
I am absolutely sick of this myth. In the past
two years, Coying of Aura has built more than seven
thousand new homes. Yeah, how many were is because all
of the funding.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
How many were labor?
Speaker 2 (03:20):
They weren't. So let me finish my point, which let
me finish this point because labor have misled people on this.
They put funding and budget twenty twenty three, their last
budget into Coying of Aura, and we kept that in
place for housing construction. We in addition put in more
funding for social houses, two thousand more to be delivered
by community housing providers. The change that we have made
(03:44):
is that our analysis showed that fifty percent of people
on the social housing waitlist needed a one bedroom home,
yet only twelve percent of Coying Aura's overall housing was
one bedroom homes, which is just a silly miss match.
So we are working to make sure we've got the
right houses and the right.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Totally understand that who need that. But you can't seriously
go to the construction industry and say this is a
labor myth that we've pulled projects from Cayeing Order. The
construction industry themselves are telling us that one of the
biggest barriers they've faced is a pullback from KO.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
We have changed some of the projects, but overall we
have added seven thousand homes in the last two years.
That's just a simple fact rhyme. It is true that
the construction sector has gone through a tough time, and
I fully appreciate that. One of the big changes that's
affected them is that when interest rates got really high,
and let's remember they didn't start dropping again until last August,
(04:45):
a huge number of private construction projects completely fell over
because they no longer stepped up at those expensive rates
of borrowing, and that's had a massively depressive impact on
the construction sector.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Reserve Bank governor will hear soon by the end of
the week. Hope who that is? That's right.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
I'm happy to confirm that you will know by the
end of the week for the new Reserve Bank governors.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Okay, will you make sure that if they because you
know Adrian Or for twenty nine months he failed to
get inflation within the target and then he's still got
a pay rise when he went for his next contract.
I mean, are we going to be stricter with the
next governor.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Well, my requirement of the Reserve Bank governor, which I
set out in my Monetary Policy remit, is that they
need to keep inflation inflation in the target band between
one and three percent over the medium term. So it
is acceptable to get a small blip out of that
if it's just a quarterly thing, and then it goes
back to the me. But those couple of years of
(05:40):
out of control inflation under or in labor, we're unacceptable,
created carnage in our economy and a real reminder of
where we need to keep our eye on inflation economy.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Speaking of it and Trump and the terriffs. If we
got hammered so badly by his last announcement, what's to
stop us getting equally hammered next time you do there's
another crazy moment or a liberation day.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I think we can see clearly now that we are
not in the group of countries that's been hardest hit
in nor would we expect to be in future. We've
also got clarity for our American exporters about the rate
of tariff they can expect to face into the future,
which is obviously unwelcome at fifteen percent, But at least
they know what they're dealing with, and we can have
(06:24):
some certainty that the rest of the world hasn't gone
into an all out trade war. You remember when he
first made his announcement back in April, people were talking
about all sorts of retaliatory tariffs happening and free traders
we know it collapsing. That hasn't transpired. In fact, a
lot of our trading partners have leaned even more positively
towards free trade and that's good for New Zealand because
(06:45):
we have a constellation of free trade arrangements, we're not
just dependent on the US.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
To approve projects in the fast track.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Is that success Well, it is and I'm advised that
there will be at least half a dozen more decisions
before Christmas. In terms of those projects. Ryan also another
one that's been provisionally approved. But they're exciting. These are
projects that are going to add hundreds of millions to GDP,
that are going to create thousands of jobs. The my
Tahi Village housing project in Nelson that's going to impact
(07:14):
employment activity by around two thousand, seven hundred jobs. I'm
advised the Auckland Port one over its lifetime will support
employment of one hundred thousand workers in Auckland, Milldale and Auckland,
which has been given provisional approval that will result in
eleven hundred more homes being delivered and generate around half
a billion and GDP. So these are exciting projects that
(07:35):
would not have been approved without fast Track. They would
have been stuck in the system for years. Let me
remind you, this is a piece of legislation that has
been opposed by opposition parties. We've said no, you need
to get these big private sector developments out the door,
and we're doing it a lot faster than would have
otherwise been the case.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Nicola Willis financemister, appreciate your time. Hopefully they can do
without the I don't know if you saw the story,
but the speed humps at Mildale. Hopefully they can build
those eleven hundred homes without the need for tons more
of them. Nicola will it's the Finance minister. For more
from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen live to news talks.
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
(08:15):
on iHeartRadio.
Right. We've spoken to Erica Stamford about this. The government
is shoveling money out the door to classrooms to get
them fixed up. They're old, they're moldy, and they're broken,
and they will have that money hopefully in these school's
pockets today, tomorrow, sometime this week if they need it.
Niicola Willis is the Finance minister with us now Minister,
good evening, good evening, Ryn will we see more announcements
(00:22):
like this of accelerated funding.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
We've given a very clear message to all ministers. We've
allocated billions of dollars of extra funding for infrastructure over
our past two budgets. We don't want it sitting around
in government bank accounts. We want it resulting in signed contracts,
spades in the ground, high vis and jobs. So the
instruction to all government ministers has been make sure you
(00:48):
know where your maintenance contracts are at, where those construction
projects are aut get them out the door.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Are you have you got any other examples that you
think you can point to where we'll get more money
out the door.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Well, you've seen that from us, that we've got the
seven billion dollars worth of projects underway or happening before Christmas.
So that's across transport projects. So yesterday we had the
big announcement in the hut of the Mailing interchange. Tomorrow
the Utucky to Live in Highway will get started. Are
you also seeing that in health where we've already announced
(01:20):
the contracting arrangements for the expansion of the emergency room
at Wellington Hospital, the signing of that contract with Dunedin Hospital,
and there are other projects coming in that health area.
Look across the board, Ryan, we've made big investments in infrastructure.
The key is we don't want it sitting there as
a theory and a business case. We want it resulting
in a construction contract and people in work.
Speaker 1 (01:43):
Okay, how many jobs do you by the end of
the year, how many jobs will you have put on
the table?
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Well, look, people have different analyzes of how many jobs
are created per contract, but the Infrastructure Commission estimates that
for every billion that you invest, you are creating hundreds
of jobs. So look, we expect hundreds off not thousands
of jobs to be created through these new construction contracts
by Christmas.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Yes, and that's with the money going out or the
money announced, because there's a difference which you've just explained
to us. So is that is that you hope, because
you've allocated the money, will get those hundreds or thousands
of jobs by Christmas or the contracts assigned and they
will be created.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Well, Look, as I say, it's difficult to assign these numbers,
which is why I'm being cautious about not giving you
a specific one. And that's because there's a combination of things.
There's those major construction projects that will commence before Christmas,
that's the seven billion worth of projects. Then there's these
maintenance projects that are being brought forward in education and elsewhere,
and the jobs per contract will vary. Some of those
(02:50):
jobs will be of long duration, some of short duration.
Certainly expect a lot of activity.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
The biggest regret in government would it be cutting the
kying order funding. I mean, that's devastated construction.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
I am going to correct you on that one because
I am absolutely sick of this myth. In the past
two years, Coying of Aura has built more than seven
thousand new homes. Yeah, how many were is because all
of the funding.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
How many were labor?
Speaker 2 (03:20):
They weren't. So let me finish my point, which let
me finish this point because labor have misled people on this.
They put funding and budget twenty twenty three, their last
budget into Coying of Aura, and we kept that in
place for housing construction. We in addition put in more
funding for social houses, two thousand more to be delivered
by community housing providers. The change that we have made
(03:44):
is that our analysis showed that fifty percent of people
on the social housing waitlist needed a one bedroom home,
yet only twelve percent of Coying Aura's overall housing was
one bedroom homes, which is just a silly miss match.
So we are working to make sure we've got the
right houses and the right.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Totally understand that who need that. But you can't seriously
go to the construction industry and say this is a
labor myth that we've pulled projects from Cayeing Order. The
construction industry themselves are telling us that one of the
biggest barriers they've faced is a pullback from KO.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
We have changed some of the projects, but overall we
have added seven thousand homes in the last two years.
That's just a simple fact rhyme. It is true that
the construction sector has gone through a tough time, and
I fully appreciate that. One of the big changes that's
affected them is that when interest rates got really high,
and let's remember they didn't start dropping again until last August,
(04:45):
a huge number of private construction projects completely fell over
because they no longer stepped up at those expensive rates
of borrowing, and that's had a massively depressive impact on
the construction sector.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Reserve Bank governor will hear soon by the end of
the week. Hope who that is? That's right.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
I'm happy to confirm that you will know by the
end of the week for the new Reserve Bank governors.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Okay, will you make sure that if they because you
know Adrian Or for twenty nine months he failed to
get inflation within the target and then he's still got
a pay rise when he went for his next contract.
I mean, are we going to be stricter with the
next governor.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Well, my requirement of the Reserve Bank governor, which I
set out in my Monetary Policy remit, is that they
need to keep inflation inflation in the target band between
one and three percent over the medium term. So it
is acceptable to get a small blip out of that
if it's just a quarterly thing, and then it goes
back to the me. But those couple of years of
(05:40):
out of control inflation under or in labor, we're unacceptable,
created carnage in our economy and a real reminder of
where we need to keep our eye on inflation economy.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Speaking of it and Trump and the terriffs. If we
got hammered so badly by his last announcement, what's to
stop us getting equally hammered next time you do there's
another crazy moment or a liberation day.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I think we can see clearly now that we are
not in the group of countries that's been hardest hit
in nor would we expect to be in future. We've
also got clarity for our American exporters about the rate
of tariff they can expect to face into the future,
which is obviously unwelcome at fifteen percent, But at least
they know what they're dealing with, and we can have
(06:24):
some certainty that the rest of the world hasn't gone
into an all out trade war. You remember when he
first made his announcement back in April, people were talking
about all sorts of retaliatory tariffs happening and free traders
we know it collapsing. That hasn't transpired. In fact, a
lot of our trading partners have leaned even more positively
towards free trade and that's good for New Zealand because
(06:45):
we have a constellation of free trade arrangements, we're not
just dependent on the US.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
To approve projects in the fast track.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Is that success Well, it is and I'm advised that
there will be at least half a dozen more decisions
before Christmas. In terms of those projects. Ryan also another
one that's been provisionally approved. But they're exciting. These are
projects that are going to add hundreds of millions to GDP,
that are going to create thousands of jobs. The my
Tahi Village housing project in Nelson that's going to impact
(07:14):
employment activity by around two thousand, seven hundred jobs. I'm
advised the Auckland Port one over its lifetime will support
employment of one hundred thousand workers in Auckland, Milldale and Auckland,
which has been given provisional approval that will result in
eleven hundred more homes being delivered and generate around half
a billion and GDP. So these are exciting projects that
(07:35):
would not have been approved without fast Track. They would
have been stuck in the system for years. Let me
remind you, this is a piece of legislation that has
been opposed by opposition parties. We've said no, you need
to get these big private sector developments out the door,
and we're doing it a lot faster than would have
otherwise been the case.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Nicola Willis financemister, appreciate your time. Hopefully they can do
without the I don't know if you saw the story,
but the speed humps at Mildale. Hopefully they can build
those eleven hundred homes without the need for tons more
of them. Nicola will it's the Finance minister. For more
from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen live to news talks.
It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
(08:15):
on iHeartRadio.
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