‘‘In fiscal terms, I’m so far to the right of Mr Bush’s government that it’s not funny.” Dr Michael Cullen, deputy prime minister and finance minister of New Zealand, is proud of the fiscal surplus he has built up in the three years he has been in his job, a surplus which will give the NZ Labour Party a strong card to play as it faces new elections this year.
The white-haired and bespectacled Mr Cullen works alongside the prime minister, Helen Clark, in the Beehive, as the seat of government is known. The elegant, round building sits at the foot of one of the mountains that girdle the capital city, Wellington.
