Any measures to stop the sale of Christchurch’s assets, including the proposed Common Sense Plan, should be carefully considered by the Christchurch City Council, the Green Party said today. “Christchurch residents have been telling us that they absolutely do not want asset sales,” said Green Party Christchurch spokesperson Eugenie Sage. “They recognise asset sales for what they really are – short-term, stop-gap thinking – and know they will do little to secure Christchurch’s long-term financial future. “There is a groundswell...

Today’s record low inflation figure of 0.1 percent for the year to March 2015, well below the Reserve Bank’s target band, gives the Bank scope to cut the Official Cash Rate later this month but it is unlikely to given National’s failure to address Auckland’s housing crisis, the Green Party said. A lower Official Cash Rate (OCR) would likely to lead to lower domestic interest rates which would lower the costs of borrowing to help businesses, exporters, and those with...

The Government must drop its early childhood attendance targets as evidence mounts that they could be doing more harm to children than good, the Green Party says. Reports today show that thousands of children might be at risk in low quality ECE services as the Government is recruiting Maori, Pacific and low income children for enrolment in order to bolster its 98 % attendance targets. “The Government is putting its targets ahead of the safety of children,” Green Party education...

Evidence that the Key Government recklessly approved a GCSB spying operation to intercept Chinese diplomatic communications between offices in Auckland will pointlessly damage our relationship with China, the Green Party said today. The latest Snowden documents detail plans by the New Zealand spy agency, the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), to tap Chinese diplomatic communications between their two consular offices in Auckland. The papers don’t reveal if the operation, a joint project with the US National Security Agency (NSA), went...

Four nominees have put their hats in the ring to replace Russel Norman as Green Party male Co-leader, the party announced today. 

The Green Party whole-heartedly supports the Chief Human Rights Commissioner’s call for a cross-party accord on housing, and it’s time other political parties put their petty differences aside for the good of New Zealanders, the Green Party said today. “It’s time to stop playing politics with housing. New Zealanders want affordable, accessible, healthy housing now, and they’re looking at us, their elected politicians, to make that happen,” said Green Party housing spokesperson Kevin Hague. “As the Chief Human Rights Commissioner...

Christchurch City Council’s announcement that it has engaged Cameron Partners to provide financial advice on asset sales casts doubt over the value of the consultation process for its Long Term Plan, the Green Party said today. “Mayor Lianne Dalziel is insisting that no decision has been made on asset sales and that the decision will occur only after the consultation has concluded,” said Eugenie Sage, the Green Party’s Christchurch spokesperson. “If that is the case, why on earth would Christchurch...

Political parties need to stop cherry-picking their housing policies and adopt a package of new and wide-ranging measures to help New Zealanders into their first home, the Green Party said today.

The New Zealand government should stop providing intelligence assistance to Bangladeshi security agencies that are known to systematically engage in human rights abuses, said the Green Party today.

John Key needs to recognise his government’s policies are driving up house prices and instead adopt the Reserve Bank’s recommendation to introduce a Capital Gains Tax, the Green Party said today. “The Reserve Bank today said John Key’s policies are preventing Kiwis from owning their own homes and that a Capital Gains Tax is needed to stem the demand created by tax-free gains on property investments,” said Green Party housing spokesperson Kevin Hague. “It’s time for the Government to do...