Nick Mills: The Government's $60 million hand out will open the flood gates

EDITORIAL: When I first heard this story, I thought this is not right, this is not fair, and I didn't think it fitted with what the coalition government stood for.  What am I talking about? Of course, I'm talking about the $60 million hand out.  I have to say, if you'd asked me whether I'd ever see a centre-right government stepping in to financially support a publicly listed company, I would have said with a smile, "No chance."   Not because governments shouldn't support business, but because I always believed governments like this preferred to let the market decide who succeeds and who fails.  Yet here we go.  The Government is preparing to provide financial support to Fletcher Building, one of New Zealand's biggest companies, through a deal designed to keep local cement production alive at Golden Bay Cement in Whangārei.   Fletcher Building isn't some small family-owned business that's fallen on hard times.   It's one of New Zealand's biggest publicly listed companies, listed on both the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges, with thousands of shareholders and operations across the country and Australia.  Now, before anyone says this is about jobs, I completely understand that argument.   Hundreds of people work there directly and indirectly, and New Zealand does need a reliable supply of cement.   It's a critical product. I get all that.  We need it to build houses, schools, hospitals, roads and major infrastructure.   You don't want to wake up one day and realise we're completely dependent on imported cement if global supply chains are disrupted.  Chris Bishop said Golden Bay is an exceptional case and of national interest.  But here's the question I can't get past.  When did governments start picking winners?  Because that's exactly what this feels like to me.  This coalition government talks constantly about reducing government intervention, letting markets work, encouraging competition and creating a level playing field.   Those are all principles I generally support.   If you're prepared to step in and financially back one of the country's biggest listed companies, where does it stop?  What about every other manufacturer battling high energy prices?  What about forestry? Steel? Food processing? Hospitality? Retail?   Plenty of businesses have faced enormous cost pressures over the past few years without anyone offering them a government lifeline.  Why is this one different?  If this is genuinely about New Zealand's strategic resilience and making sure we continue producing cement here, then tell us that. Be upfront about it.   Make the case that this is about national infrastructure and supply security.  But don't pretend this isn't government intervention.  Because it damn well is.   60 million, cash hand out. It's not having to be paid pack.  Governments have every right to protect strategically important industries if they believe it's in the national interest.  But once taxpayers' money starts flowing towards large, publicly listed companies, the public deserves a very clear explanation of why this company qualifies, what safeguards are in place, what taxpayers get in return, and where the line is drawn.  This isn't just about cement.  It's about the role of government in the economy.  More importantly to me it's about fairness.  And it's about whether this Government is practising the free-market philosophy it campaigned on, it sung from the rafters—or whether, when push comes to shove, it's prepared to back the biggest players while everyone else is left to fend for themselves. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.