Michael Cullen exposed as a real dick after "toll tax"

All week Cullen has been attacking Key, saying he is unfit to be Prime Minister based on his employment at Merryl Lynch more than six years ago. He said Key had a short-term profit maximising mentality that brought Merrill Lynch to its knees.

"Do you want someone like that running the economy when we are going to be going through a difficult period. Mr Key has put forward his Merrill Lynch credentials as part an important part of his narrative. That doesn't look such a good qualification any longer for running New Zealand's economy.

That's a bit like saying Helen Clark is responsible for Labour's heavy loss in the 1990 election and is therefore unfit to be Prime Minister.

But the very same day we found out that Cullen got screwed $570 million for his train set.

What a dick! So much for financial management.

In late 2006 officials valued the New Zealand’s rail system at $120 million. That's $570 million less than the government paid for the business in July this year. In December ONTRACK made an offer of $350m - but this was bumped up to $690m.

And you paid for it.

To put it into perspective, $570 million equals the amount paid in the two biggest treaty settlements - the Treelords and Sealords deals. And $570 million is three and a half times more than Cullen budgeted in the last budget to boost elective surgery and reduce waiting lists.

It is $70 million more than the amount spent in the growth of the core bureaucracy over the past three years ; it equals the total amount the Crown put into KiwiSaver to date. It is the the amount Transit invested in developing and improving state highways last year. It's $70 million more than income splitting for tax purposes would cost each year, and it's equal to the Crown’s Kyoto liability over a five-year period (assuming a price of $15 per tonne). And it is more than the Government paid to bail out Air New Zealand in 2001.

Cullen said yesterday that the Government paid a reasonable and fair price for his train set.

I bet Toll thought so. I bet those missing out on elective surgery didn't. Neither would those who have to take their kids from their 20 hours "paid for" childcare and to take them to the doctor only to find out that doctors visits aren't as free as the Government makes out.

All Treasury documents were posted here today .