The Green Party is calling for the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) to ban herbicide-tolerant swedes that are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of dairy cows, after a report into their use told farmers to either not use them, or to be cautious about their use. “DairyNZ’s recent report into the safety of herbicide-tolerant swedes makes several recommendations that include not using the product, which begs the question that if it’s so harmful, why is it still being sold?”...

The Government’s intention to introduce recreational fishing parks is an attempt to mask the fact it has left New Zealand huge Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) to be plundered by oil and gas and seabed mining interests, the Green Party said today. “The Government thinks it can buy off recreational fishers with these two parks, which still allowing commercial fishing for scallop, crayfish and paua,” said Green Party environment spokesperson Eugenie Sage. “The proposed new Marine Protected Areas law, outlined in...

New information released by the Green Party today shows the number of reported toxic algae sites has increased 43 percent on last year. “We are calling on the National Government to investigate the worrying rise in the number of toxic algae blooms infesting New Zealand’s rivers and lakes,” said Green Party water quality spokesperson Catherine Delahunty. “The reported number of toxic algae blooms around the country has risen from 21 different rivers and lakes last summer to 30 this summer....

Refugees coming to New Zealand need better support than what they’re currently getting, the Green Party said today.

The New Zealand Government must halt its free trade discussions with Saudi Arabia after the latest in a long line of very public human rights atrocities. Green Party Co-leader James Shaw said that New Zealand was sending a distressing signal by continuing to negotiate for a free trade agreement giving preferential treatment to Saudi Arabia while they continued to execute people, often with the flimsiest of evidence. “When you have a free trade agreement with a country, you’re giving that...

The Independent Police Complaints Authority (IPCA) has written to the Green Party confirming that it will investigate its complaint about police actions that led to unlawful search of journalist Nicky Hager’s home. The Green Party received a letter this afternoon from the IPCA confirming that it will investigate, after the party wrote to the authority on Monday. A High Court judge last week found that the police warrant and search on Mr Hager’s home, which followed the publication of his...

The Green Party has written to the Independent Police Complaints Authority (IPCA) formally asking it to investigate the decisions made by the police which led to the unlawful search of journalist Nicky Hager’s home. A High Court judge last week found that the police warrant and search on Mr Hager’s home, which followed the publication of his book Dirty Politics, were unlawful. “There are many unanswered questions from the Dirty Politics scandal, and why the police made the decision to search...

The Government’s continued underfunding of Kiwirail is driving it into the ground and contributing to it losing major contracts, such as its Tranz Metro Wellington passenger rail contract today, the Green Party said. “The National Government has driven Kiwirail into the ground and now Kiwirail’s lost its important Wellington passenger rail contract,” Green Party Wellington issues spokesperson Gareth Hughes said. “Ultimately, people who want to travel by clean public transport will lose out if Kiwirail’s viability is threatened by the...

A Ministry for the Environment (MfE) report shows New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions are on track to reach record levels in the next 15 years, meaning the National Government’s promises at the Paris Climate Conference last week are ringing hollow, the Green Party said today. MfE’s Second Biennial Report shows climate damaging emissions in New Zealand are on-track to increase 96 percent above 1990 levels by 2030. This comes less than a week after the Government pledged to cut its greenhouse gas emissions...

Economic growth fuelled by high migration rates is not sustainable, the Green Party said today. Stats NZ released Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures for the September 2015 quarter today showing that the economy expanded by 0.9 percent. When adjusted for population growth, per capita GDP for the September quarter expanded only 0.4 percent, undoing the previous two quarters of negative per capita GDP growth. “High levels of migration are driving a lot of the current growth we’re seeing in our...