It was the content, as much as the delivery, of Hipkins’ speech that should concern the Government. Finance Minister Nicola Willis clearly couldn’t hold back her response until her scheduled appearance before the Finance and Expenditure Committee the next morning. Taking National’s first call after Hipkins, she tried to paint the Prefu fairy tale, as just that, a fairy tale. Her case boils down to this: that those Prefu forecasts were wrong and unreliably rosy. Finance Minister Nicola Willis defends the forthcoming Budget at the Finance and Expenditure Committee.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 30, 2026 20:34 UTC