ACT PROPOGANDA PLAN LACKS CREDIBILITY

Taranaki-King Country voters will have plenty of scrap paper to light their fires thanks to another planned ACT propaganda blitz.

"It appears Owen Jennings has borrowed some old tricks from failed pig farmer and ACT founder Roger Douglas by announcing a plan to solve the "major problems" of the electorate," Deputy Prime Minister and New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters says.

"Jennings says he has a plan to create 3,000 jobs in the region, but what he didn't say was that Mr Douglas helped destroy at least as many jobs when he was Finance Minister. He was also instrumental in creating ghost towns in rural New Zealand.

"Unfortunately, ACT has a proven record of non-delivery when promising more jobs. Back in 1983, Mr Douglas said:

"Social justice requires full employment... 99.9% of all unemployed people want to work.... Our objective must be the creation of 100,000-plus new jobs in our first three years in office."

"Mr Jennings and Mr Douglas can fool some of the people some of the time but not the good folk of Taranaki-King Country. They know when Mr Douglas left office, unemployment had soared to a record 161,000 plus. Fewer than 29,000 new jobs were created nationwide.

"Mr Jennings also talks of quality health services for everyone, while Richard Prebble wants to wipe out the free doctors visits for children under six and Mr Douglas wants Health spending cut by 80 per cent. Is Mr Jennings in the right party?"