This is the text of a Joint submission from Metiria Turei and Kennedy Graham on the 2010 draft Energy Strategy and energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy

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Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei congratulates the Australian Greens on their electoral success, pointing out that if Australia had a truly proportional system, the Australian Greens would have gained sixteen more seats in the lower house. This is a clear example of why all of us should vote to keep MMP here in New Zealand!

Whatever the final result of the Australian election, the advantage of New Zealand's proportional voting system MMP is very clear, said the Green Party today.

The outcome of the Australian election is not yet known, because like in the UK earlier this year, the election has resulted in a ‘hung' parliament. The two major parties together received 78 percent of the vote, and neither of them has a majority.

"New Zealanders can look to the Australian result to see why we need to vote to keep MMP next year," said Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei.

Paula Bennett's demand that Maori leaders take responsibility and front up with money to help pay for child abuse support services is a form of institutional racism and will do nothing to help the cause of at risk children, said Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei today.

The Coastal Coalition's billboards are divisive, dishonest and not helpful for resolving an important Treaty issue, the Green Party said today.

"John Ansell's bill boards are designed to scare instead of educate," Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei said.

A major report was released today.

There was an interesting report on Friday about the links between life expectancy, inequality, and smoking which revealed some pretty scary findings: the rich are living longer, the gap in life expectancy between rich and poor is growing, and so is the gap in life expectancy between Maori and non-Maori.<