So what should they do? Should they take a band-aid approach and pretend that this is just a temporary thing? Should they say to New Zealand, "Hey, look, it's only going to hurt for September, October, and November, so we've got a little payment just to make it OK."? Well, we say that is disingenuous in the extreme, because New Zealanders deserve to know that this cost of living crisis isn't temporary. It's not a three-month thing. It is going to go on for years. In November, we will christen Grant Robertson "Mr Christmas", because do you know what the Grinch will deliver for Christmas? He'll take away the temporary payment. He will say—Mr November will say—"Now, now. Labour's done all we can. We gave you back a little bit of your own money for a little while and we didn't like how it felt. I've got more spending to do. It all stops now." Will New Zealanders be better off? No, they won't, because they'll be looking forward to more inflation, higher prices. They will be looking forward to slipping further behind each week. 