He lost faith in the Government and its "silly, jokey politics" a long time ago.
A professional musician, he had lost much work in the resort’s bars in the past year or two, and the couple were now surviving on income from her part-time work as a seamstress.
Their home, a rented caravan with a permanent lean-to, costs $220 a week.
"We’re just making enough to live on."
Although he would check the details, he doubted that new tax thresholds and changes to the eligibility criteria for the accommodation supplement — for people living in Queenstown, Arrowtown and Wanaka — would help.
He gave his first vote to the National Party nearly a decade ago — "because my Dad told me to" — and had regretted it ever since.
"We’re disenfranchised," he said.