The future of local government must empower the young people who will live with the decisions made today, by enabling them to vote, and strengthen our national commitment to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the Green Party said today.

Today the Government announced a new whānau-centred Māori pathways programme in the Hawke’s Bay Regional Prison.

The Green Party is welcoming the Government’s announcement that bank deposits up to $100,000 will be protected under new rules.

Former employees of Government security and intelligence agencies should face at least a five-year stand down period before taking up private sector security contracts, the Green Party said today.

The Green Party welcomes the major healthcare reforms announced today by the Minister of Health, including the creation of a Māori Health Authority – Manatū Hauora Māori as we call it.

Research released today reinforces the need for significant changes to our social safety net, the Green Party says.

I tēnei tau i Waitangi, I whakahua ake te Tira o Te Mātāwaka o te Pātī Kākāriki i tā rātau aronga matua, ki te waihanga I tētahi Manatū Hauora Māori, mā Māori te kawe, mā Māori ngā whakahaere. Ko tā te tira; Kua rongohia ngā karanga a ngā Tangata Whenua, e hiahia ana ki tētahi Manatū me tōna anō motuhaketanga, hei āpiti atu me tika te hora o ngā rauemi.

During Waitangi this year the Green Party’s Te Mātāwaka caucus announced their priority for an independent Māori Health Authority. We have heard the call from Tangata Whenua wanting any authority to be independent, and properly resourced.

The Greens welcome $6.6 million from the Government’s $455 million programme to increase access to mental health and addiction services for our Pasifika communities in Auckland and Wellington.

The Green Party is putting a Member’s Bill into the ballot today which will be a significant step towards overhauling the Social Security Act by embedding a tikanga Māori framework into the welfare system.