The Government’s plan to reduce the operating allowance from $2.4 billion to $1.3 billion is the smallest amount of new spending in a decade.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis has decided to make departments metabolise their own spending in order to get books back into surplus.

New Zealand Herald Political Editor Thomas Coughlan talks to Heather du Plessis-Allan about the ‘big’ decision, KiwiSaver subsidies and Tory Whanau dropping out of the Wellington race.

LISTEN ABOVE.