We all know the New Zealand media have been bought and paid for by the Labour government with its so-called “Public Interest” Journalism Fund, but, jeez, do they have to make it so obvious? Hardly a day goes by that Kiwis aren’t inundated with the most ludicrous beat ups and confected hit pieces from the Team of $55 million.
And, of course, as the polls continually narrow, their favourite target remains National’s leader, Chris Luxon.
Well, it’s not as if there isn’t a lot to criticise Luxon for, but the Media Party’s beat-ups are verging more and more on, not so much the ridiculous, as the kindergarten-level pathetic. “Eugenic breeding policy!” “He called New Zealand mean names!” “He’s a big, mean, baldy, poopy-pants!”
Well, all right, I made the last one up, but… give it a week or two.
And now we learn that, shock, horror, the Opposition leader perfectly legally, perfectly legitimately, accessed an incentive scheme cooked up by the green-left.
Newshub can reveal Christopher Luxon’s family recently upgraded to a Tesla Model Y and it appears they have claimed the Clean Car Discount on it.
The Government introduced a $8625 discount on electric vehicles to drive uptake in 2021.
Okay… and… ?
Isn’t this what they want New Zealanders to do? If Labour didn’t want people accessing the scheme, why introduce it? It’s not as if the scheme is means-tested. Well, considering it applies to cars that cost more than most luxury vehicles, it’s not as if Joe Punch-Clock is going to be snapping one up, even with an eight grand discount knocking the price to a low, low $70,000 or more.
It’s welfare for rich people – and we’re supposed to be shocked that rich people use it?
I’m reminded of Kerry Packer’s jibe at a Senate Estimates committee accusing him of “dodging taxes”. As Packer reminded them, he didn’t avoid tax, he merely paid the minimum he was required to under Australian tax laws. Laws, he flung back at the committee, that they wrote. As Luxon might remind sniffy Jenna Lynch:
I read the rules, said “what am I allowed to do” and that’s exactly what we’ve done. We have obeyed them absolutely.
Kerry Packer
Unfortunately, Luxon is not made of the same stern stuff as Packer. Instead, Tit-hands has fumbled and blinked and stammered. As usual.
He previously revealed his ownership of the Model 3 on both AM and Three’s 7Days, but last week backtracked and said his wife owned a Tesla, not him.
Now Newshub has confirmed the family no longer owns the Model 3 and has upgraded to a Model Y.
And now for some truly ground-breaking investigative journalism.
We ran the number plate through the Clean Car Discount website.
It popped up with a message that says, “We’ve already received a rebate application for this vehicle.”
Well. Stop the presses. Woodward and Bernstein, eat your hearts out. Slink off in shame, Ed Murrow.
Luxon has been excoriating the Government’s Clean Car Discount with the National Party repeatedly highlighting that wealthy Tesla owners are benefiting from the scheme.
“We have got a situation at the moment where we have got a Government that is taxing people with utes and there is no alternative and actually subsidising wealthy Tesla drivers by giving them subsidies,” said Luxon on AM in November.
Newshub
Again… so what? This is as weak as hatchet job as when journalists tried to gotcha Paul Keating for using private hospital services instead of going on a Medicare waiting list.
The subsidy is there: who wouldn’t access it if they were entitled to it, whether it was party policy, or if indeed they personally agreed with it, or not?
As Packer also reminded the assembled senators, the government isn’t spending our taxes that well that anyone should let them keep a dollar more of it than they can.