Labour's Robertson heads to Paris for new policy ideas

Monday 11th January 2016

The Labour Party's finance spokesman, Grant Robertson, is heading to Paris to pursue new economic policy ideas as the party looks to refresh its platform this year ahead of the 2017 general election.

His attendance at a Future of Work Forum being organised by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development comes as the daily political newsletter, Politik, reports Robertson as taking a keen interest in Denmark's "flexi-security" model, which pays workers who lose their jobs a relatively generous, time-limited form of unemployment benefit in exchange for greater ability to hire and fire quickly.

Politik reports that Labour's Future of Work Commission, the engine room for the party's economic policy redevelopment, is "looking seriously" at the Danish policy, although there is less enthusiasm for "universal basic income" policy, which Finland is currently implementing and pays all citizens a basic income irrespective of whether they are in work or not.

"I think that the universal basic income has got a long way to go before anyone could legitimately say it was an answer but the ideas that lie behind it are really important, which is providing that income security at a time of volatility," Robertson told Politik editor Richard Harman.

Labour is also focusing on the growing trend towards automation of a far wider variety of both blue and white collar jobs than in the past, and at what education and training policies would help people find work to replace the jobs that are disappearing.

The findings of the Future of Work Commission are due for publication in November this year, Robertson said.

The outcome will be pivotal to the formulation of more electable policies than Labour has taken to the last two general elections, which included a higher pension age and a capital gains tax on all but the family home.

"All over the world countries are grappling with how to ensure the future of work is fair and prosperous for all, and they will be sharing those ideas at the forum," said Robertson in a statement ahead of his departure for Paris and for a series of meetings in London.

“The rapidly changing nature and experience of work, driven by the forces of automation and globalisation, will have a fundamental effect on New Zealanders. A New Zealand Institute of Economic Research study earlier this year found that 46 percent of jobs in the New Zealand economy will cease to exist in the next two decades. There is a real risk of growing inequality if we do not actively manage this change," he said.

“While this kind of disruption is scary there is great opportunity for New Zealand in the new economy if we are prepared. This means looking at how we ensure access to technology, high quality and responsive education and training systems, and greater income security."

Politik also reported that Robertson is willing to listen to local governments seeking regional development through public-private partnerships, to which Labour is generally opposed.

“I would be very, very rigorous in my analysis of those kind of developments because I think we have seen them go wrong, but we’ve seen with roading that you can do it well," he told Politik's Harman.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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