Willis vs Edmonds: Investment Boost and small business clash in Queenstown
National's Nicola Willis and Labour's Barbara Edmonds clashed over Investment Boost and business policy at the ASB Great debate in Queenstown on 14 October.
The debate put the two finance spokespeople on the same stage before an 800-strong audience. TVNZ's Jack Tame moderated. ACT leader David Seymour, New Zealand First deputy leader Shane Jones, Green co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick and The Opportunity Party's Qiulae Wong completed the six-person panel, according to RNZ reporting of the event. RNZ
Investment Boost dominated the exchange between Willis and Edmonds. Willis defended it as a way to encourage firms to invest in productive assets and equipment. Edmonds confirmed Labour would scrap it and replace it with a policy targeted at small business.
Budget 2025 launched Investment Boost as a tax incentive to encourage businesses to invest, grow the economy and lift wages, according to the Beehive release at the time. Beehive The Government said in February that Investment Boost is changing investment behaviour, bringing projects forward, increasing scale and lifting productivity. Beehive
Labour's alternative is its Small Business Action Plan. The party has costed the package at $1.56 billion and said it will be fully funded by refocusing Investment Boost and directing more support towards small businesses. Labour Labour said the plan will help small businesses get paid sooner, invest more easily and spend less time on paperwork. A separate Labour commitment would give small businesses a fair shot at government contracts and reduce time spent on government paperwork.
Tax was the other point of difference. Willis attacked Edmonds over Labour's capital gains tax, a tax on the profit made when assets are sold. Willis had hinted ahead of the Queenstown event at future business tax relief. Edmonds used her opening remarks to tell the audience she would be the next finance minister. Labour has previously admitted a 'small' $90m error in connection with disputed Investment Boost claims.
The wider panel widened the debate beyond the two main parties. Wong, Edmonds, Jones and Swarbrick all said they would support a bed tax for Queenstown, a levy on overnight visitors, if in government. All politicians were asked if they supported a cross-party review on superannuation and retirement. Seymour answered yes. The Greens campaigned in Queenstown on the back of a $6b economic plan the party said would deliver 284,000 jobs.
The broader context here is what the Queenstown format put to the test for those running the campaigns. It tested the finance spokespeople on detail and fiscal trade-offs, and Investment Boost versus a targeted small business package is now a clear either-or for business voters. It also tested coalition positioning in front of a provincial business audience. Support for a Queenstown bed tax from four of the six speakers, and a yes from Seymour on a cross-party superannuation review, gave smaller parties room to differentiate without breaking with their larger partners. For National and Labour, the exchange locked in tax and investment incentives as the central economic contrast for the remaining campaign.
