PHOTO: Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson. Photo credit: Newshub.
OPINION: Despite Jacinda Ardern saying “the Reserve Bank is independent, don’t put pressure on it”, Grant Robertson appears to have cracked, caving under attacks from National and ACT.
The Finance Minister has asked the central bank to consider house prices when making a decision on interest rates and printing money.
It’s not technically messing with the bank’s independence – he’s done it in a letter talking about the bank’s remit, something he’s perfectly entitled to do.
But it puts Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr under huge pressure on Wednesday – a day where he’s holding a major press conference.
All he will be asked about now is house prices: “What are you going to do? Are you to blame for runaway prices?”
So Robertson is passing the buck a bit, but what else is he to do?
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