Labour's vow to set up a Parliamentary Budget Office won’t be pretty, but it's the right call

PremiumOpinionOpinion byMarcus GanleyNZ Herald·25 Aug, 2026 02:00 AM5 mins to readMarcus Ganley is a public law specialist with firm Franks Ogilvie. He was previously a ministerial adviser to the Helen Clark Labour government and held senior roles with Labor ministers in the Australian and South Australian parliaments. Labour leader Chris Hipkins announces Labour’s new slogan “Better Starts Now” in Christchurch, New Zealand. August 24, 2026. Photo / Anna Heath. A promise to establish a Parliamentary Budget Office, as Labour made on the weekend, is the sort of idea that sounds straightforward until you try to establish one.

I know because in 2011 and 2012 I worked on the establishment of Australia’s PBO. While it is