1 00:00:00,200 --> 00:00:02,200 Speaker 1: Have a listen to this for me, You've only cut 2 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:05,360 Speaker 1: two thousand people. For all that noise of you hoeing 3 00:00:05,519 --> 00:00:08,280 Speaker 1: through the public service, you've lost two thousand people out 4 00:00:08,280 --> 00:00:11,799 Speaker 1: of sixty four thousand. Yeah, so what were you doing? 5 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: A couple things there. One is if the trend had continued, 6 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:17,919 Speaker 1: you'd have eight thousand more. So we've actually stopped that. 7 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:20,360 Speaker 1: That right there is part of the reason why this 8 00:00:20,440 --> 00:00:23,040 Speaker 1: government is polling so poorly, because it's all talk, isn't 9 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:26,639 Speaker 1: it bugger all action? Now, I'm sorry, I realized this 10 00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:28,160 Speaker 1: is a lot to start the week with, Like we're 11 00:00:28,160 --> 00:00:30,639 Speaker 1: starting strident. I don't mean to continue like that. But 12 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:33,120 Speaker 1: were you as surprised as I was to hear that 13 00:00:33,159 --> 00:00:36,560 Speaker 1: we've only cut two thousand public servants? And we even 14 00:00:36,560 --> 00:00:39,519 Speaker 1: more surprised that the Prime Minister's explanation is no more 15 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:43,680 Speaker 1: than a verbal shrug. This, I think will be profoundly 16 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:46,159 Speaker 1: disappointing to a lot of people who expected this government 17 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:49,600 Speaker 1: to get public spending under control and public cutting public 18 00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:52,840 Speaker 1: servants is part of getting that spending under control. There 19 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:56,000 Speaker 1: is no reason why we have as many public servants 20 00:00:56,040 --> 00:00:59,000 Speaker 1: as we have today, sixty three thousand. There is no 21 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:02,400 Speaker 1: reason why we have more than double the thirty thousand 22 00:01:02,400 --> 00:01:04,480 Speaker 1: public servants that we had in two thousand and one. 23 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:07,560 Speaker 1: Our population hasn't doubled since two thousand and one, it's 24 00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 1: gone up about thirty seven percent. If you were just accordingly, 25 00:01:10,800 --> 00:01:14,560 Speaker 1: then we should have forty one thousand public servants, not 26 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:18,000 Speaker 1: sixty three thousand public servants. Now, I would have expected 27 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:20,399 Speaker 1: that the Prime Minister would have a better explanation than 28 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:23,760 Speaker 1: simply saying, at least it's not as bad as labor. Well, 29 00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: maybe so, but I hoped for better. I hoped for 30 00:01:27,400 --> 00:01:30,080 Speaker 1: a government that was going to actually turn this around, 31 00:01:30,880 --> 00:01:32,680 Speaker 1: certainly more than a government that just feels like it's 32 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:35,800 Speaker 1: actually labor dressed in blue clothing. And isn't this just 33 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:39,680 Speaker 1: the latest example of talk from this government that is 34 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:42,560 Speaker 1: not being matched by action. They promised to cut spending. 35 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:46,080 Speaker 1: Every year they spend more than Grant Robertson. They promised 36 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 1: to get on top of debt. Every year they add 37 00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:50,760 Speaker 1: more to the debt. They promised to stop the race 38 00:01:50,800 --> 00:01:53,040 Speaker 1: based policies. Oh, we just keep finding them. They keep 39 00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:55,760 Speaker 1: waving them through unless we bust them at it. I 40 00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:57,960 Speaker 1: think this, in part answers the question that we were 41 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 1: asking last week, which is why is it that three 42 00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:02,360 Speaker 1: polls in a row was so tight that it wasn't 43 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:05,040 Speaker 1: actually clear if this government would win an election if 44 00:02:05,040 --> 00:02:07,760 Speaker 1: an election was held today. This is why they're not 45 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:10,280 Speaker 1: brave enough. They should be braver. In fact, if they 46 00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:12,920 Speaker 1: were braver, they might be more popular. It's worth remembering 47 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:15,240 Speaker 1: that for all the hard decisions that was taken by 48 00:02:15,240 --> 00:02:17,960 Speaker 1: the Fourth Labor Government, which is definitely the most transformational 49 00:02:18,240 --> 00:02:20,240 Speaker 1: that we can think of, right, for all those tough 50 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:23,839 Speaker 1: decisions taken in the first three years, they actually came 51 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:28,080 Speaker 1: back with a bigger majority in nineteen eighty seven. So 52 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 1: maybe you get rewarded for doing what you'll say you'll do, 53 00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:33,080 Speaker 1: tough as it may be, rather than just talking tough 54 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:36,760 Speaker 1: and then doing very little. For more from Heather Duplessy 55 00:02:36,800 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 1: Allen Drive, Listen live to news talks they'd be from 56 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:43,280 Speaker 1: four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.