Political parties that want to negotiate with the Green Party must come to the table with much faster, bolder climate action, co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson emphasised in their State of the Planet speech today.
“Make no mistake: 2023 will be a climate election. Only the Green Party will confront the climate emergency with the urgency it demands and take action to build an Aotearoa that works for everyone,” co-leader of the Green Party, James Shaw said.
“I am proud of what we have achieved with the governments we have been given. I am proud that over the last five years we have taken more action on climate change than the past 30 years of Governments combined.
“But it’s not enough. I do not want another generation to have to bear the burden of slow progress.
“To any political party that wants the Green Party’s support to form a government after the election, let us put it as simply as we can: the Green Party will not accept anything less than the strongest possible climate action. The stakes are too high, the consequences of failure too great.
“Over the next seven months, the Green Party will set out a plan for Aotearoa to cut climate pollution and improve our communities. Our message will be simple: To get the government Aotearoa needs, we need more Green MPs in Parliament and Green Ministers sitting around the decision-making table. That is how we can best influence the next government.
“A government with a strong Green voice at its heart will take action to lift every family out of poverty; and confront climate change with the urgency it demands,” says James Shaw.
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson added:
“There is nothing more important than a warm, safe, affordable place to call home, with food on the table, and the people we love, on a healthy planet.
“For many people right now, the struggle to put food on table, to pay the bills, is the concern that rises above all others.
“The Green Party is clear: we can address climate change and inequality at the same time.
“The only way to confront big problems we face with the urgency they demand is to have more Green MPs, and more Green Ministers in the next Government.
“2023 is the greatest opportunity Aotearoa will ever have to elect a government that will create a liveable future for all of us,” says Marama Davidson.
