PRIME Minister John Key's pre-Budget KiwiSaver speech was all about softening us up for the bad news before it drops.
But what is going to drop with it is New Zealanders' confidence in KiwiSaver as a retirement savings vehicle that successive governments will not meddle with.
Also likely to drop when employeecontributions to the scheme are increased are the numbers joining KiwiSaver, while workers on lower incomes will be more likely to take "holidays" from their retirement payments. This could have a significant impact on retirement savings in regions such as Hawke's Bay.
National has been careful to signal that the changes - a reduction in the $20-a-week tax credit and an increase in employee and employer contributions - will not kick in until after this year's election. In so doing, Mr Key can argue he has not broken any promises from his last election campaign not to tamper with KiwiSaver.
In reality, National struggles to keep its hands off the previous Labour Government's creation with the pending changes being its second to the rules for KiwiSaver inside three years.
The $880 million committed to KiwiSaver tax credits was just too tempting a target for Mr Key and Finance Minister Bill English as they search for ways to cut the nation's huge deficit.
And there is an argument that if the nation must borrow that money in the first place to place it in KiwiSaver accounts, then we are collectively saving nothing.
But one crucial thing that $880 million is doing is helping change New Zealanders' attitude to saving for our future. It is incentivising us to change the bad habits of several lifetimes and start putting our own money to work for our retirement.
While no one disputes that the Government needs to get on top of our national fiscal woes and present healthier books to the world, meddling with a savings scheme that so many of us have put our faith in is a questionable way to go about it.
