The Government's decision to waste nearly $20 million on subsidies for big business to burn tyres is further evidence of their mismanagement of the waste sector, the Green Party said today.

Police Association members have come out swinging at the Government’s failure to take meaningful action on illegal possession of firearms, the Green Party said today. The Police Association’s election year policy document shows that frontline staff support stricter control on firearms flowing into New Zealand, following a Select Committee investigation earlier this year. “We agree with the Police Association that Minister Bennett has missed a crucial opportunity to prevent further violence and threats to public safety by taking real action on...

The Government needs to ensure that all new babies have access to a wahakura safe sleeping device, the Green Party said today.

This World Refugee Day, the Green Party is committing to welcoming 5,000 refugees per year to New Zealand, to ensure we are doing our bit to help people who have been forced to flee their homes around the world. The Green Party will increase the refugee quota to 4,000 places over six years, provide an additional 1000 places for church and community sponsorship, and create a new humanitarian visa of up to 100 Pacific people displaced by climate change every...

The Government should step up to ensure mental health support workers are paid more, the Green Party said today.  “Mental health support workers do important and difficult work in our communities. But because the workforce is largely female, they are not paid enough,' said Green Party women’s spokesperson Jan Logie.  The PSA and E Tū unions have lodged an equal pay claim on behalf of mental health support workers, following the historic care and support equal pay settlement, which didn’t...

NZ First has chosen to put political game playing ahead of the safety of children by proposing a referendum on the ten year old amendments to the Crimes Act. NZ First MP Tracy Martin said on Q&A this morning that her Party wants to hold a binding referendum to repeal the 2007 amendment to section 59 of the Crimes Act. “I think it's appalling that NZ First is willing to remove a basic protection for our kids in the hope...

The OECD’s 2017 Economic Survey of the New Zealand has highlighted a significant need to green New Zealand’s economy if we want to sustain our current growth into the future, the Green Party said today. The OECD found that short-term growth was being driven by tourism, migration, and construction activity, however the longer term was being undermined by our low productivity, the pollution of water from farming and urbanisation, and high and growing greenhouse gas emissions. “Securing New Zealand’s long-term...

The Green Party is calling on Television New Zealand (TVNZ) to uphold its commitment to Māori programming and rethink their proposal to axe the dedicated Māori commissioner.

14 June 2017   The Government's dairy climate announcement is a small step in the right direction but lacks a serious commitment to actually reducing climate damaging pollution from the dairy industry, the Green Party said today. “Paula Bennett should have used today to set a firm date for when the dairy industry will need to start paying for the pollution it emits, just like other businesses have to in New Zealand,” said Green Party Co-leader James Shaw. “Instead, she...

Bill English’s apology for condemning illegal Israeli settlements shows that New Zealand will not have an independent foreign policy under a National-led Government, the Green Party said today Bill English is reported to have written a letter to Israeli officials saying that he regretted "the damage done to Israel-New Zealand relations as a result of New Zealand co-sponsoring Security Council resolution 2334". “The Prime Minister's decision to write and ‘express regret’ to Israel for condemning its illegal settlements shows that...