The Green Party has abandoned its policy of quantitative easing - otherwise known as printing money - after almost a year of punishing backlash from political opponents.
Co-leader Russel Norman is due to formally announce the policy retreat later this morning.
The policy was announced in October last year as a way of bringing down the New Zealand dollar and replenishing the depleted Earthquake Commission fund.
It is a policy being followed by major economies such as the United States, Britain and Japan. But the Green policy has been derided as a "snake-oil solution" and a move that could undermine the savings of New Zealanders.
It has also allowed the Government to link the policy derisively with any Labour-led Government, and Labour finance spokesman David Parker recently called it "unhelpful."
Whilst it's great that the Greens have seen sense, it will also be hugely embarrassing to them to have to back away from something that they have railed so strongly in favour of.
I guess that Green Party members are seeing the realities of having to put politics in front of principles. We look froward to Dr Norman's explanation.
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