National needs to do an about-face on climate change if we want New Zealand to stop setting new records for the hottest year ever, the Green Party said today. The National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) predicts that 2016 will be the hottest ever recorded in New Zealand, breaking the previous record set in 1998. The record confirms the longer-term global trends of climate change. “2016 is going to be the hottest year on record and things are...

The supposedly "business-friendly" National Government is out-of-step with the growing number of New Zealand companies that want stronger action on climate change, the Green Party said today. More than 50 businesses, leading New Zealanders, and non-governmental organisations today presented an open letter to Climate Change Minister Paula Bennett calling for action on the issue. The call comes just days after New Zealand’s climate policy was given the lowest ranking of ‘very poor’ in the international Climate Change Performance Index. “Major...

National's two Fossil of the Day awards for hypocrisy on climate change shows it’s not doing much better than climate denialists like Donald Trump, the Green Party said today. At the international climate conference in Marrakech, New Zealand received two Fossil of the Day awards – presented by environmental NGOs to countries obstructing action on climate change. New Zealand received one award for calling on other countries to end fossil fuel subsidies, despite continuing to subsidise oil and gas exploration in...

Global climate experts have exposed an enormous credibility gap between the National Government's rhetoric on climate change and its actions, the Green Party said today. New Zealand’s response to climate change has today been labelled ‘inadequate’ for the fourth year in a row by Climate Action Tracker – an international group of climate science researchers. New Zealand is ranked below the European Union, China, USA and India. "Climate experts are effectively calling out the National Government for greenwashing," said Green...

New Zealand and other countries must step up and take the lead on climate change action following Donald Trump’s election, the Green Party said today. Donald Trump has previously said he would take the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement, and rescind President Obama's executive actions on climate change. “Now more than ever, we must put our planet’s future first, and ensure the progress we’ve made on climate change doesn’t go to waste," Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei said....

The Paris Climate Agreement coming into force is a triumph for ordinary people around New Zealand and the world who have demanded politicians take action to stop climate change, the Green Party said today. The Paris Climate Agreement will come into force today after crossing the threshold of at least 55 countries, responsible for 55 percent of global emissions, joining the agreement. “Around the world there’s a real desire for action on climate change, and I think we’ve seen that shift here...

2 November 2016   The National Government must stop relying on dodgy accounting loopholes in order to continue avoiding responsibility for real reductions in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions, the Green Party said today. Under its Paris Agreement obligations, the National Government plans to change the way it accounts for greenhouse gas emissions in 2020. But a new report released today by the Morgan Foundation reveals that the timing of this change means the Government will avoid liability for a huge...

The National Government has had eight years to take action on climate change and marine protection but has let New Zealand’s oceans decline to a sorry state, putting our economy and native species at risk, the Green Party said today.

National needs to be straight-up with farmers and make it clear that business-as-usual farming can’t continue if we are to maintain a safe climate for this and future generations, the Green Party said today. The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment (PCE) released a new report today on agricultural greenhouse gas emissions showing that no scientific silver bullet to eliminate agricultural emissions is on the horizon, and that large-scale tree planting and land-use change is needed. “National isn't doing farmers any...

The National Government’s refusal to cancel out fraudulent Russian carbon credits by using the surplus authentic carbon credits it holds, puts the integrity of our international climate commitments at risk, the Green Party said today. Climate minister Paula Bennett is continuing to refuse to cancel bad carbon credits purchased from Russia and the Ukraine between 2013 and 2015 to offset the carbon emissions of New Zealand businesses. It was subsequently found that approximately a quarter of those carbon credits were...