It is hard to put the case against National’s privatisation plans for ACC better than the CTU or Maryan Street. In short,  if it ain’t broke why fix it? The PWC review has assessed the scheme as being in good health, is providing excellent coverage and gets people back to work in a timely way.

What has caught my attention  today has been the reaction of Business New Zealand.  Phil O’Reilly is praising the policy, but two weeks ago this is what Buisness New Zealand had to say.

Business New Zealand employment expert Paul Mackay said there was no demand for a move back to a competitive ACC market among employers “and we certainly have not argued for it”.

“Our internal thinking is that the issues that flow from doing it probably outweigh the benefits … and the upheaval outweighs the big three for businesses, which are political certainty, financial certainty and economic stability.”

What has changed?  Did someone put the hard word on BNZ to support the policy?

It is easy for people of my generation to not understand the fundamental importance of ACC in our lives. We have grown up with a comprehensive, universal, no fault scheme.  A scheme, the architect of which Sir Owen Woodhouse said had to be run by the state because the motivations of private insurers- minimising liability and maximising profit- would compromise the model. It is to just that place that National’s proposal would lead us.