The row over Labour's fiscal plan continued on Monday 5 October (1News, The Spinoff, RNZ). Nicola Willis called the plan "not credible" and said Labour was avoiding the cost of its promises. Barbara Edmonds said there was "sufficient headroom" and that she was confident pay equity claims could be settled, adding that Treasury's costing of claims, reported at about 3 billion and rising, was not the final bill. National says restoring pay equity would cost 1 billion and leave an $8.5 billion hole; Labour says it has 0.5 billion unallocated. The Spinoff reported that Labour's path to surplus matches the government's forecasts, with spending falling to 30.4% of GDP.
Voters are being asked to trust two sets of numbers that cannot both be right, and pay equity is the largest unknown.
If you work in a pay-equity-affected job, the real question is whether the claims are settled and when. For others, it is what else gets squeezed.
Labour says the plan is responsible, pays for every promise and avoids a figure so as not to weaken negotiating positions.
National says refusing to cost the biggest item makes the whole plan unreliable.
Treasury's own pre-election update, due before polling day, is the most neutral number to wait for. Until then both sides' figures are advocacy.
1News, The Spinoff, RNZ (5 Oct 2026)
Politics · ElectionPress ✓ 3 outlets · each side's numbers attributed
National calls Labour's fiscal plan "not credible" as Labour insists it has "sufficient headroom"
The row is over pay equity: National puts the cost of restoring it at about $11 billion, Treasury's costing is reported at about $13 billion, and Labour will not name a figure.
The argument over Labour's fiscal plan carried into Monday 5 October, according to 1News, The Spinoff and RNZ's election live blog. National finance spokesperson Nicola Willis called the plan "not credible" and said Labour was avoiding fronting up to the cost of its promises. She also said some former Labour finance ministers would be ashamed of it. Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said the plan had "sufficient headroom" and that she stood by it.
Edmonds said Treasury's costing of pay equity claims, put at about $13 billion and rising, did not mean that would be the final bill, and said she was confident the plan could settle the claims. National says restoring the old regime would cost $11 billion and leave an $8.5 billion hole. Chris Hipkins said the plan was responsible and paid for every promise. The Spinoff reported that Labour's path back to surplus matches the government's forecasts, with spending brought down to 30.4% of GDP. The figures are the parties' own and have not been independently audited.
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By the numbers
$11bNational's cost for restoring pay equity (1News)
~$13bTreasury costing of claims, per Edmonds, "not the final bill"
30.4%spending as a share of GDP in Labour's plan (The Spinoff)
At Morningside, Auckland, on Monday 5 October, Green co-leaders Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick pledged funding to remove level crossings on the Western Line (1News, RNZ). While they spoke, a car drove across the tracks as a train approached, with lights flashing and the barrier down. Davidson cited almost 70 crashes and hundreds of near misses at Auckland level crossings over a decade. On Saturday the party had set out a roughly $4 billion passenger rail package.
Level crossings limit how many trains can run, so removing them is central to Auckland's rail plans as well as to safety.
If you cross the Western Line by car or on foot, obey the barriers. The policy would only change anything if the Greens are in government.
Supporters say removal saves lives and allows more frequent trains.
Critics say the cost is high and the party has not said where the money would come from beyond its tax policy.
The cost was not given in the reports DailyDrop saw, which is the detail to look for.
1News, RNZ (5 Oct 2026)
Politics · TransportPress ✓ 2 outlets · safety figures per Green co-leader Marama Davidson
Greens promise to remove Auckland level crossings, and a car crosses the tracks as a train approaches
Green co-leaders Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick used an event in Morningside, Auckland, on Monday to pledge funding to remove level crossings on the Western Line, according to 1News and RNZ. As they spoke, a car drove over the tracks with the lights flashing and the barrier down while a train approached. Swarbrick said it showed why the crossings needed to go.
Davidson said there had been almost 70 crashes and hundreds of near misses involving vehicles and pedestrians at Auckland level crossings over the past decade. The announcement follows the party's $4 billion passenger rail package from Saturday, which includes an overnight Auckland-Wellington train and the return of the Southerner between Christchurch and Dunedin, according to 1News.
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Word of the day
Level crossingTransportA place where a road crosses a railway at the same height, usually with lights and barrier arms.