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Act and National in end-of-year spend-up


National and Act are spending up large as they race to use up budgets before the financial year ends on Thursday.

NZPA
Tue, 28 Jun 2011

Act and National are spending up large as they race to use up budgets before the financial year ends on Thursday.

National got $7.1 million to spend on the last year for its 58 MPs to run their parliamentary and electorate offices (including promotional material) while ACT with five MPs, got $631,000.

Both parties were running ad campaigns to spend money granted to leaders based on how many MPs they have. Balances can't be carried over to the next financial year.

National has produced leaflets with a survey attached about last month's budget. The survey asks voters which party they support and seeks to establish if they are swing voters.

National is refusing to say how many leaflets have gone out or how much they cost but, while branded with party logos, they are within Parliament's rules.

The ads won't count under election spending limits as that is only counted from September -- three months before voting day.

Act is spending $50,000 on a one-week campaign to reinstate youth rates. It has paid for newspaper ads and is planning a mail-out to 100,000 households this week.

The party's parliamentary leader, John Boscawen, said the spending was within the rules.

National got $7.1 million to spend on the last year for its 58 MPs to run their parliamentary and electorate offices (including promotional material) while ACT with five MPs, got $631,000.
NZPA
Tue, 28 Jun 2011
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Act and National in end-of-year spend-up
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