Will the Scheme buy Socialism ?

If the $250 million that will go into the scheme annually is used to develop New Zealand industry, then it will be simply a subsidy for local capitalists. This may have minor side benefits for New Zealand workers, but their money will be going to increase the power of the owning class, and this is not usually considered a socialist strategy. Some of the money could go to building adequate health services and more schools. If so it would be a diversion of expenditure away from what the insurance companies would do with the money and so might bring welcome social improvements. But these social services do not earn money to pay the interest on contributions in the fund, and there would thus be less in the individual accounts.

Even if the money were used to buy ships, or build state industry there is no guarantee that these assets would not be sold at bargain prices by some member of a future National Government. Only an essential change of control in society can guarantee that state enterprises of this kind will continue to benefit the people. Labour has no such policy for essential social change. Any attempts to use the money for socialist ends are thus unpredictable, to say the least.