Ryan Bridge: These targets will be the making or breaking of Luxon

I've not seen Luxon this tetchy and brassed off before. 

"Guys, no disrespect, but it's not about the frickin targets, it's actually about the outcomes, and the outcomes here are actually reducing violent crime." 

He was being asked about the national gang list which the cops have been sanitising. Hygienically cleaning it apparently to remove the dead and those who've said goodbye to thug life. 

The reason he's worked up is the targets: they're off track and he's being peppered, or assaulted, depending on how you look at it, with questions. 

This morning in the Herald, beneficiary numbers are projected up, not down. The Jobseeker target is a reduction of 50,000 people, but the forecast is an extra 11,000, which is set to peak in January 2025. 

So the question for the government, and all of us, is whether the targets are worth it? 

Politically for Luxon they're clearly causing some frustration. Is the political cost of constant updates and inquisition worth the end result? The answer is of course yes. 

Ask anyone who's successful how they got there and they'll usually say small, intentional planned steps in a particular direction. 

Things don't just happen in life - you make them happen. 

We all have targets in our own lives. Where do you want to be in ten years? I want to run a marathon by the time I'm 40, I want to retire at 55, whatever. If you don't set a target, it'll likely never happen – that's what happened with the last lot. 

Make no mistake, these targets will be the making or breaking of Luxon. The key issue that will unseat him 2029. 

He's set the goals, now he needs to meet them, and perhaps be a little more relaxed about the questions along the way. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I have not seen Christopher Luxen this tetchy and brass
off before the freaking target Can we get that again, Leo,
The freaking targets, he says, it's the freaking targets. He
was answering a question about the National Gang List. The
cops have been sanitizing the list, hygienically cleaning the list,

(00:21):
spray and wiping the list. It apparently is to remove
people who are dead, who obviously shouldn't be on the list,
and people who have said goodbye to thug life already.
The reason he's worked up as he keeps getting asked
about the targets, they're off track and he's been peppered
or assaulted, depending on how you look at it. With
questions violent crime victimizations up not down, and this morning

(00:43):
in the Herald, beneficiary numbers projected up not down. The
question for the government and all of us is whether
the targets are worth it. Politically for Luxen, they're clearly
causing some frustration. Hence the freaking targets comment. It's the
political cost that he is enduring and is it worth it?
The constant updates and the inquisition are they worth the

(01:06):
end result and the answer, of course, is yes. Ask
anyone who is successful how they got there, and they
will usually say small, intentional, planned steps in a particular direction.
Things don't just happen in life. You have to make
them happen, and you have to plan to make them happen.
We all have targets in our own lives. We do

(01:28):
you want to be in ten years? We do you
want to be in five years? I want to run
a marathon by the time I'm forty. I want to
retire at fifty five. Whatever it is. You don't set
a target. If you don't set a target, it'll likely
never happen. And that's what happened with the last lot.
They got rid of a whole bunch of them. Remember,
make no mistake, these targets will be the making or
breaking of lux and the key issue that could unseat

(01:51):
him in twenty twenty nine. He has set the goals.
Now he needs to meet them and perhaps just perhaps
be a little less titchy when he's asked about them
along the way. The Frickin' target. For more from News
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