Treasury report on Covid-era spending

The story so far

A Treasury briefing said the previous Labour government spent $66 billion responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, and that officials had warned it to reduce non-urgent spending.^{7 Aug 2025} The briefing, the Treasury's 2025 Long Term Insights Briefing, said the government overspent against official advice, and that the prolonged spending had a lagged economic impact and contributed to rising debt.^{7, 8 Aug 2025} Labour leader Chris Hipkins dismissed the criticism as "Treasury spin".^{8 Aug 2025} Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson defended his Covid-era economic decisions, accused Treasury of rewriting history, and rejected claims that Labour lacked real-world experience to lead the country.^{19 Aug 2025}

Latest

Grant Robertson has defended his pandemic-era decisions and accused Treasury of rewriting history.^{19 Aug 2025}

Key moments

1. 7 Aug 2025Treasury briefing says previous government spent $66 billion on pandemic response.
2. 8 Aug 2025Chris Hipkins dismisses Treasury's overspending claims as "Treasury spin".
3. 19 Aug 2025Grant Robertson defends Covid-era spending and accuses Treasury of rewriting history.

Written from the stories below; each sentence links to its sources.