Category: New Zealand Labour Party

Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal.

That ruling should spur the National Government to do more to back international legal efforts to end the war in Gaza and find a peaceful solution in Israel-Palestine.

Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said the ICJ ruling was a damning indictment of Israel’s occupation and would further isolate the Netanyahu government which is under investigation at the ICJ and the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Gaza.

“Successive New Zealand governments have called out Israel’s occupation as illegal, including in 2016 when the then-National government co-sponsored Resolution 2334 at the UN condemning Israel’s illegal settlements.

“Now the ICJ has confirmed that the occupation of the Palestinian Territories since 1968 is illegal.

“International law has a critical role to play in resolving this conflict. That’s why we are again calling on the Government to intervene in South Africa’s-led genocide case against Israel’s war in Gaza at The Hague and send our top legal experts to make submissions.

“The Government has sent defence personnel to take part in the US-led operation against Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, supposedly to defend the rules-based order, but doesn’t have much to say about Israel’s war crimes in nearby Gaza.

“It doesn’t seem to be a case of one international law for all.

“The Luxon Government talks a big game on the international rules-based order but is strangely muted when it comes to Israel’s violations of international law.

“There was no indication that the Prime Minister raised Israel’s war crimes in Gaza, and the US’ unconditional support for Israel’s war, when he met President Biden last week.

“It suggests New Zealand’s independent foreign policy has been replaced with a highly selective and unbalanced one,” said Chris Hipkins.

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National Party policies which promised to put “downward pressure” on rents are having the opposite effect.

The latest figures from Stats NZ saw rents increase another 4.8% in the year to June.

“Christopher Luxon and Chris Bishop have both said landlords will pass on any gains they make from National Party policies to reduce rents,” Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said.

“But the dip in inflation is not going to help people pay soaring rates up 9.6%, or insurance premiums, up 14%. And it’s certainly not going to help make renting more affordable.

“The Government has made claims that they are trimming the fat, but all they are doing is pushing costs like water on to rate payers. Refusing to help the councils will only mean higher rates.

 “This affects homeowners and renters, everyone who needs a roof over their heads. Just this week I met a retired man who has had to sell his house because the rates bill had become too high. If the Government thinks this is an isolated incident they are kidding themselves.

“Scrapping the First Home Grant, which makes it harder to get into a first home and leaves people renting for longer, isn’t helping either. Nor is cutting back the public house build programme so there aren’t as many homes being built.

“The fact is, Christopher Luxon and Chris Bishop are making changes that drive rates and rents up. It’s only going to get worse,” Kieran McAnulty said.

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National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods.

“All the good work Labour did in government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ensure we meet our climate targets is being undone,” said Megan Woods.

“It’s irresponsible, shameful and shows how out of touch National and their coalition partners are about the climate emergency we find ourselves in. They’re leaving our kids and grandkids to pick up the tab.

“Under this plan we’re going to blow our budget by 17 million tonnes – the equivalent of 153 million car trips from Wellington to Auckland.

“Every tonne of emissions we blow our budget by, we have to pay for overseas.

“They’ve left New Zealanders in the lurch by cutting $3 billion in climate-related work in the Budget, and cut programmes such as the Clean Car Discount that encouraged sustainable transport, and the Government Investment in Decarbonisation Industry that helped large emitters transition to renewable energy.

“They say Labour wasn’t doing anything for climate yet they’ve spent their first seven months repealing climate policies. It is complete arrogance to claim you care about climate change when you’ve spent the first seven months of government undoing the previous government’s climate progress.  

“It’s more short-term thinking from this government for a long-term problem,” said Megan Woods.

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Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged.

Emails show the Minister’s office invited the heads of three mining companies to dinner in Westport four days before the event, but the Minister previously said that the meeting was “very much a last-minute thing”.

Shane Jones told media in May that “I meet people, mate, randomly, all over New Zealand. And to be in the middle of nowhere, which is largely the majority of Te Tai Poutini [West Coast], and decide to have a dinner is not a capital offence”.

“Shane Jones is being disingenuous at best about meeting with industry representatives like this,” said Labour resources spokesperson Megan Woods.

“Far from a ‘last minute thing’, the Minister used his Ministerial office to arrange this dinner and then hid it from public scrutiny.

“Shane Jones would have understood that Stevenson Group would use the meeting to ask for their Te Kuha coal mining project, which has been declined in the past, to be approved under his government’s fast tracking legislation.

Shane Jones’ office also offered the invitation to Bathurst Resources chief executive Richard Tacon, and Federation Mining vice president Simon Delander who both attended the dinner.

“The Prime Minister needs to ask Shane Jones why he failed to declare the meeting in the first place, and why he misled the public about it when challenged,” Megan Woods said.

“If the Fast Track Approvals Bill is passed in its current form, it would make him one of the decision makers on projects that these people he secretly met with want to see given the green light.”

Tell the Govt why you oppose the Fast Track Approvals Bill

“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said.

“A Ministerial Advisory Group is not an urgent solution to an urgent problem. That $3.6 million could be spent on crime prevention, supporting victims, rehabilitation and stopping reoffending right now.

“Just saying you’ll be tough on crime doesn’t stop crime. We need evidence-based solutions that work, so it’s time to stop playing politics and start working together to build a safer community.”

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“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said.

“Under the last National-ACT model, charter schools received preferential funding, they didn’t have to teach the NZ Curriculum, didn’t have to employ registered teachers and cost up to $48,421 per student annually – six times the average funding spent on students in state schools.

“Charter Schools cost more than public schools and do not get better results. They exist not for the children, but to funnel public money into private hands. Labour has abolished charter schools before, and we’ll do it again,” Jan Tinetti said.

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“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said.

“If Simon Watts believes his plan is as he has described – comprehensive or ambitious then New Zealand is in real trouble. This three-page document is flimsy and backward looking. I can’t help but wonder if the government is scrambling to get ahead of the climate commission’s report card on emission reductions that is due in the coming days.

“Instead, we have seen $3 billion cut from climate initiatives in Budget 2024, including cuts to the work of the Climate Change Commission and stripping down the Warmer Kiwi Homes which led to lower energy bills for Kiwis and made homes more efficient.

“More than seven months into the Government’s term, there is still no concrete plan to reduce our emissions, meet out climate targets, or ensure we have a resilient future. This lack of action will put at risk kiwi jobs and New Zealand’s international reputation,” Megan Woods said.

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Health New Zealand’s recent quarterly performance report shows the public health system is going backwards under the National government.

In the first full quarter under the new Government: 

• The number of people waiting for a procedure increased by 4000, a jump greater than any of the previous recorded quarters. 
• After a substantial reduction in people waiting more than one year for a procedure under Labour, this number is now increasing. 
• The number of patients waiting for a first specialist appointment has gone up by nearly 10,000 in a single quarter. 
• The number of people being treated in less than 31 days for cancer has fallen to 3.1% below the target, and the report notes staffing vacancies are part of the cause. 

“It’s disturbing to see substantial increases in waiting lists. The number of people waiting for surgeries for over four months is on the rise after progress was made to bring waiting lists down under the Labour Government,” Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said.

“What’s inexcusable is the number of people on a waiting list for more than 365 days. As Minister, I made it my priority to see this list reduce, and the list dropped by a thousand people in a quarter. Shane Reti gave officials a pass on meeting this target and now the number of people with unacceptably long waits is increasing.

“The worst performing districts, which are in the South Island, did not report, so the picture is probably much worse there. 

“Since this data was collected, recruitment to frontline roles has been restricted and the health budget has been set below the level required to keep up with the cost of inflation and population growth. 

“The report notes the National Government’s desire to achieve a surplus from Health NZ, and the pressure of staffing costs. The health system won’t achieve more work without funding for the workers to do it. This Government has the wrong priorities,” Ayesha Verrall said.

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