He said although Kiwis are working hard, they have still not been able to “fundamentally change our standard of living”.
“We want to build a proposition where people say there is an awesome future here.”
Luxon said two of the biggest things holding Kiwis back from that future were efficient access to healthcare and feeling safe in the country.
He said the key to his plan was ensuring the education of young people and growing the workforce with skilled workers.
Luxon said it was not going to be a quick fix, something a band-aid could just be put over – rather he had a long-term plan in place to make New Zealand a desirable place for Kiwis to stay.
“In recessionary times, people will go overseas where they have better opportunities.”
He argued the number of young people leaving is skewed because of the “post-Covid bubble” of people off on their OE all at once.
He also said the more the economy grows, the more Kiwis would be likely to stay. He argued the Reserve Bank slashing the OCR by 25 basis points to 3.25% yesterday was evidence the economy was moving in the right direction.
“What we are seeing now, is by getting on top of the wasteful spending, having financial discipline – it’s not sexy stuff.”
He told Bridge he would not resign in 2028 if they did not have a surplus budget and said he got “criticised either way”.
Luxon also said he was unsure if he had lost support with women in internal polling with the election looming next year.
“I am more worried about doing the right thing [for this country].”