Nicola Willis Visits the Eastern Bay

Finance Minister Nicola Willis visited the Eastern Bay last week. In an interview with 1XX News, Willis spoke about the government's response to the cost of living, saying they're focused on growing the economy and keeping inflation under control.

She admits that there's a long way to go for that to be felt by every family, but that they've been successful in that work so far.

Willis added that her focus is on supermarket competition and seeing consumers get a better deal on their groceries. She acknowledges that things are still tough for families and says that the way out is through encouraging growth in the economy so that people can earn more.

Along with East Coast MP Dana Kirkpatrick, the Finance Minister visited a number of social service providers in the area. These included whanau mentoring services and a rural education program. She said that these organisations are often putting people on the pathway to work which she says is the best pathway to independence.

When commenting on housing, Willis says it's still a struggle, but that moves such as replacing the Resource Management Act and bringing in alternative building products are some of the ways the government plans to make more land available for housing, and reduce the cost of new builds.