This year is our chance to turn the tide on growing inequality in New Zealand with a change of government, the Green Party said today. A report released this afternoon by Oxfam outlines the growing inequality gap around the world, and coincides with the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos. Oxfam New Zealand has released analysis of this afternoon’s report that shows two New Zealanders have more wealth than the poorest 30 per cent of the adult population. “This...

Finance Minister Steven Joyce is failing to show any moral or political leadership by continuing to allow Government-owned funds to invest New Zealanders’ money in some of the world’s most polluting companies, the Green Party said today. Radio New Zealand reported this morning that the New Zealand Superfund has $77 million invested in 47 coal companies that the Norwegian Government’s Pension Fund – the largest sovereign fund in the world – has blacklisted. “The National Government signed the Paris Agreement...

Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter will be standing in the Mount Albert by-election to be held on 25 February, said the Green Party today. Well-known for her strong advocacy of the City Rail Link and ways to cut congestion in Auckland, Ms Genter said she was looking forward to a positive campaign with the Labour Party candidate, with a focus on policies that will make Auckland fairer and greener. “New Zealanders have a big choice to make in 2017, to stick...

The Green Party is deeply saddened by the passing of Archbishop William Brown Turei ONZM (Ngāti Porou), who served as the Bishop of Aotearoa – the Tikanga Māori Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in New Zealand, Aotearoa and Polynesia.

The Green Party is deeply saddened by the passing of Ngāti Awa rangatira Joseph Harawira QSM, who led the Sawmill Workers Against Poisons (SWAP) organisation. 

The National Government has failed to stop high income earners from avoiding paying their fair share of tax, the Green Party said today. IRD released aggregated tax data last week which shows a suspiciously high number of people last year declared their income just before the top tax rate threshold at $70,000. The (highlighted) spike is strong evidence of tax avoidance behaviour. (The lower spikes represent welfare and superannuation payments.) “National’s 2010 tax cuts for high income earners were sold...

KiwiRail’s plan to replace its electric locomotives with a dirty diesel-powered fleet is backwards and bad news for New Zealand, the Green Party said today. The Green Party understands that KiwiRail will today announce a plan to phase out its 16 electric locomotives responsible for freight between Hamilton and Palmerston North. The electric locomotives will be replaced with Chinese-made diesel locomotives. “We are very disappointed by KiwiRail’s decision to abandon our electric freight trains and infrastructure. Many New Zealanders will...

The Green Party is calling on the Government to front up to iwi after learning that, going right back to the Ngāi Tahu settlement in 1997, the Right of First Refusal (RFR) clause in Treaty settlements has actually meant right of first refusal for charities, not iwi.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) must stop its light-handed approach to fish dumping by commercial operators or we risk further declines in fish stocks, the Green Party said today. The comments come on the back of figures that reveal MPI has only prosecuted four commercial fishers for fish dumping since 2009. “Fish dumping is widespread amongst commercial fishers, which not only wastes a precious resource but also puts our fish stocks in jeopardy,” said Green Party fisheries spokesperson Eugenie...

The New Zealand Government needs to recognise what is happening in Syria right now as a humanitarian crisis and increase its refugee quota to take in more Syrian refugees, the Green Party said today.  "What we are seeing in the media about Aleppo demands a humanitarian response, and New Zealand can do that by increasing the refugee quota to help save people’s lives," Green Party immigration spokesperson Denise Roche said.  "When the New Zealand Government recently increased the refugee quota...