The National Government’s water standards are a murky mess that won’t protect our rivers, lakes and aquifers, the Green Party said today. The comments comes on the back of news this morning that the Government hasn’t released information to scientists clarifying how the standards will improve water quality. “If even our freshwater scientists aren’t being given the full picture of how the so-called Clean Water package actually makes our water cleaner, how are the public meant to know?” said Green...

It’s time for a moratorium on new dairy farms and to start thinking about how to reduce the number of cows on our paddocks to halt water pollution, the Green Party said today. “Even Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy has admitted that there’s no room for more cows because of the impact they have on our rivers, lakes and aquifers,” said Green Party primary industries spokesperson Eugenie Sage. “The Government has all the reports it needs to show the...

Increased infrastructure spending must focus on the best ways to fix the housing and transport problems in Auckland, not just a few more expensive and ineffective highways, the Green Party said today. “The most serious infrastructure problems Auckland faces are in transport and housing, and National has spent the last nine years showing that they have no idea how to fix either of them,” Green Party Auckland Issues spokesperson Julie Anne Genter said. “The full trains and overflowing buses every...

The Green Party’s Māori Caucus is excited to be launching a national outreach tour to engage with Māori communities, kicking off in Northland today.

Present and future generations are suffering the consequences of National’s weak moves to prevent pollution from entering our rivers, lakes and aquifers, the Green Party said today. The comments follow the publication of Our Freshwater 2017, a report by Statistics NZ and the Ministry for the Environment, which shows how Aotearoa New Zealand’s water and the species that depend on it are affected by urban, pastoral and industrial pollution. “Water quality in rivers in farmed areas is declining fast, but...

A new report highlighting the causes of the runaway growth in the prison population released today is further proof we need a cross-party consensus on justice issues, the Green Party said today. JustSpeak’s new report ‘Bailing out the Justice System’ shows that new laws introduced in 2013 reversed the longstanding decline in prison numbers and forced the Government to spend a billion dollars on a new prison. “This report makes clear that morally and economically, we can’t afford to keep...

The ‘secure care’ that children are experiencing whilst in Oranga Tamariki custody is barbaric and must stop immediately, the Green Party said today. The widespread use of seclusion and restraint practices on children, mentally ill people, and other adults across New Zealand’s detention facilities is highlighted in a United Nations-funded report released today, ordered by the Human Rights Commission. Over the six months that the report looked into, 20 children aged between 11 and 15 in Care and Protection residences...

Weak forestry regulations proposed by the National Government will do little to prevent forests being planted on steep, erosion-prone country, or avoid forestry debris harming streams, the Green Party said today. The comments come on the back of news that Northland’s Mangakahia River has been clogged with forestry debris from plantation forests in the catchment. “With heavy rain from more intense storm events as a result of climate change, care and thought around plantation forests is important to protect our...

A draft National Party Bill will put more barriers in the way of women seeking to be paid fairly, the Green Party said today. “This Bill will scrap the Equal Pay Act and in effect overturn the Terranova court ruling. That ruling established the right to look outside of the affected industry for a comparable job”, says Green Party women’s spokesperson Jan Logie. “This means it will be harder for women to make a case for the gendered underpayment of...

New Zealand appears to have pushed for a trade deal that could undermine Pacific Island countries’ ability to support their local economies and restrict their right to regulate in their own interests, the Green Party said today. “New Zealand and Australia are being accused of pushing a trade deal to advance their own commercial interests at the expense of Pacific Islands’ national interests,” Green Party trade spokesperson Barry Coates said. “The fact that the Pacific’s two biggest economies, Fiji and...