Minister for the Environment missing in action in Budget 2025

Budget 2025 makes it crystal clear that this Government has no interest in protecting nature or securing a liveable future for our tamariki.

Budget 2025 makes it crystal clear that this Government has no interest in protecting nature or securing a liveable future for our tamariki.

“Our environment is in crisis. This Budget proves the Government simply does not care,” says the Green Party’s spokesperson for Environment, Lan Pham.

“They have no understanding that their so-called ‘laser-focus’ on the economy makes them blind to the indisputable fact that there is no economy without a functional environment.

“Not only is there no new funding in Budget 2025 for environmental protection, but they’ve taken cuts further than we even thought possible. They’ve raided the waste levy and initiatives which were designed to provide at least some basic level of protection for te taiao.

“While our communities are crying out for action, the Minister for the Environment is nowhere to be seen. 

“We needed bold investment and courageous action today. Instead, we got cut after cut after cut. 

“It doesn’t have to be this way. Our Green Budget, with our Green Jobs Guarantee and expanded Jobs for Nature package, would provide credible support for green infrastructure, oceans, native forests, conservation, and climate resilience, allowing nature to flourish and thrive. 

“A better path was possible today. Instead, the Government chose to plunder our whenua and hand it to the highest bidder,” says Lan Pham.

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