PM Jacinda Ardern has previously described business confidence as the elephant in the room. New Zealand Herald Cartoon by Rod Emmerson
PM Jacinda Ardern has previously described business confidence as the elephant in the room. New Zealand Herald Cartoon by Rod Emmerson
OPINION:
Labour's emphatic election victory will give it all the power it needs to implement policies many business owners are fearful of.
But it also presents an opportunity for the Government to improve its relationship with business. And the Prime Minister and her Cabinet must build a better rapport withbusiness.
For various reasons business people have a hard time trusting Labour, even though ironically they often prosper under Labour-led governments.
Two years ago Jacinda Ardern described plummeting business confidence as the "elephant in the room" and she set out to "reset" the Government's relationship with the sector.
But in many respects the relationship has worsened.
The Herald's recent Mood of the Boardroom Election survey highlighted Ardern's ability to build confidence within the business community as poor.
Executives praised the PM's handling of major crises, including Covid-19, but gave her low marks for economic management and setting strategy.
There's a big question mark over Labour's ability to lead New Zealand out of the Covid-induced economic downturn.
BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope remarked that while the Government's economic response had underpinned the economy during the initial response to Covid-19, long-term plans were less well understood.
Mainfreight chief executive Don Braid said it was time for Ardern to embrace the business community rather than relying on the bureaucrats for advice and execution.
Westpac NZ chief executive David McLean said the future has never been so uncertain and that means the need for crisp and clear policies and plans has never been greater.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Finance Minister Grant Robertson during their press conference in Palmerston North. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Some of the mistrust among general business people comes down to the poor performance of some Labour MPs and Labour's inability to deliver on 2017 election promises such as KiwiBuild and Auckland's light rail.
But it's also because they don't believe Labour understands business very well.
Comments from the likes of Willie Jackson and Deborah Russell at the Epidemic Response Committee during the peak of lockdown riled the business community, for example.
Russell came under fire for suggesting businesses in financial strife lacked strength in the first place while Jackson downplayed the impact of lockdown, suggesting another week wouldn't hurt or destroy anyone.
It's those sorts of comments that business people remember, especially when they are told they will be consulted on policy only to be left in the dark – such as what occurred in the oil and gas sector.
So as business owners contemplate more employment law, climate change restrictions and potential tax changes they are rightfully nervous.
They see Labour as young, inexperienced and commercially naïve.
A second term presents an opportunity for Labour to change that sentiment.
The next few years will be extremely difficult and if Labour is to bring home its agenda then it needs to help business in other ways.
The first step is getting the whole party, not just Grant Robertson and a few others, to work with business not against them.
