On Thursday, Finance Minister Nicola Willis handed down her second budget, which she dubbed the "growth budget", with a centrepiece $NZ1.7 billion tax break for businesses.
It was instantly derided as a "fudge-it" by waste-watch groups for its failure to tackle mounting debt, and an "austerity budget" by Labour for banking billions in savings that were planned for women-majority industries.
There was also a major shake-up to KiwiSaver, New Zealand's version of superannuation, with default contribution rates upping from three to four per cent, but government contributions halved.
The budget's headline figure was a deficit only slightly smaller than predicted in 2024, despite Ms Willis's desperate search for savings.
Debt, which has skyrocketed in recent years due to pandemic-era spending, was tipped to peak at 46.5 per cent of GDP in 2027 before subsiding.
In the new set of books, those figures are unchanged.
Ms Willis instead hailed a turnaround in Treasury's economic forecasts, as New Zealand's economy turns the corner from a recession in 2024.
"Treasury is forecasting growth will accelerate over the next four years, bringing 240,000 additional jobs, rising incomes, stable inflation, lower interest rates, a return to balanced government books, and an end to rising debt," she said.
The government's "Investment Boost" tax break - which allows businesses to immediately deduct 20 per cent of the cost of a new asset - assists with the turnaround, with an estimated lift to GDP of one per cent.
Ms Willis said she opted for the policy over a company tax cut as it "delivers more bang for buck" by applying to future investments.
"It is designed to encourage firms to make more growth-enhancing investments now and into the future," she said.
In the lead-up to the budget, discussions were dominated by changes to the "pay equity" claims, in which workforces dominated by women can apply to the government to re-grade and increase their wages.
The government cut 33 existing claims - including for teachers, hospice workers and midwives - and invited them to apply again with tougher criteria to meet.
Prime Minister Chris Luxon declined to reveal how much had been saved from that exercise, but the budget books showed it was $NZ12.8 billion over the next four years.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said the KiwiSaver and pay equity changes amounted to "pay cuts and stealing from our kids' retirement funds".
"(Ms Willis) is choosing austerity to make up for her poor fiscal management," he said.
At the other end of the political spectrum, the Taxpayers' Union lamented the government's inability to cut further, given the mounting cost of servicing debt.
"We're going to need a bigger debt clock," spokesman James Ross said.
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