The newest form that New Zealand detainees are being asked to sign makes them liable for removal costs despite assurances to the contrary by both the New Zealand and Australian Government, the Green Party says.

The National Government’s desperate attempts in the final hours of the Paris climate negotiations to ‘buy the right to keep polluting’ shows their two-faced approach to climate change, the Green Party said today. “The Government should be applauded today for supporting the more ambitious target to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but it’s embarrassing to watch them continue to undermine global efforts at the same time,” said Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei. New Zealand negotiators have focused...

The National Government should immediately promise the funding needed by the Department of Conservation (DOC) to save Northland forests from being destroyed by possums, the Green Party said today.    

Latest data proves the Government's hands-off approach to obesity, and refusal to limit the junkfood industry's influence, has had devastating impacts on childrens' health, the Green Party says. The Ministry of Health's annual health survey, quietly released this afternoon, found one in nine children aged two to 14 were obese and adult obesity rates had massively increased over the past three to four years. "This is the latest in an ever increasing pool of proof that the Government's kowtowing to...

With unemployment rising and the economy going off on the wrong track, cutting the Official Cash Rate (OCR) was the right decision to help small and medium-sized businesses invest to create jobs and bring mortgage payments down for families, the Green Party says today.

The news that Native Affairs, an award winning show on Māori Television, is to be cut down to half an hour and to a sole presenter is disheartening and a step in the wrong direction, the Green Party said today. “I have been on this show many, many times, and have enjoyed the robust exchange of viewpoints. People need the space to have these important conversations about the issues that confront our communities,” Green Party Māori Development spokesperson Marama Davidson...

The Serco contract should be immediately cancelled rather than merely just not being renewed, the Green Party says.

Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, and Canterbury lakes are under threat this summer as poor water quality management has led to toxic algal blooms that make even wading and boating unsafe for human health, the Green Party said. “Summer’s barely begun and already we’re seeing too many waterways that aren’t even safe for boating and wading, let alone swimming,” Green Party fresh water spokesperson Catherine Delahunty said. “So much toxic algal bloom this early in the summer is a clear sign that...

A new report released overnight by Germanwatch and Climate Action Network Europe shows the National Government is going backwards on climate change, the Green Party said today. The report assessed 58 countries on their emissions and efforts to cut climate pollution. New Zealand slipped seven places overall from 35th last year to 42nd, and received an overall mark of ‘poor’, with the effectiveness of the Government’s policies to tackle climate change given the worst possible ranking of ‘very low’. “It...

The Ombudsman’s finding that Ministers’ offices interfered in their departments’ Official Information Act (OIA) releases must signal the end of the Government’s abuse of the OIA, and a new era of public accountability, the Green Party says. The Ombudsman’s office today released its long-awaited report into OIA practices adopted by central government agencies for the purpose of compliance with the Official Information Act 1982. The report found several Ministers’ offices interfered in the release of official information, and made wide-ranging...