National’s Austerity Disaster is Plunging NZ into Recession

In the hallowed halls of New Zealand's Parliament, where grand visions are meant to translate into tangible economic relief, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has presided over a year of economic despair that would make even the most stoic Kiwi reach for the smelling salts.

Remember the halcyon days of the 2023 campaign, when Luxon, with the earnest zeal of a corporate retreat facilitator, pledged a "laser focus" on the cost-of-living crisis? "We'll get New Zealand back on track," he intoned, promising tax relief and a booming economy to ease the squeeze on households battered by inflation and stagnant wages.

Fast-forward to September 2025, and that laser focus appears to have been swapped for a funhouse mirror: distorting reality while delivering nothing but hot air. The latest Stats NZ figures paint a grim portrait: gross domestic product plunged 0.9 per cent in the June quarter, a sharper contraction than the paltry 0.3 per cent dip forecast by the Reserve Bank. Annual GDP is down 1.1 per cent, per capita output has nosedived 1.1 per cent, and the economy has now shrunk for three of the last five quarters. This isn't a blip; it's a full-throated recession, broader and deeper than the Global Financial Crisis in per capita terms.

Enter Finance Minister Nicola Willis, ever the loyal deputy, clutching at straws with the veracity of a rabid pit bull. In the wake of the June quarter's dismal data, having worn out National's usual blame Labour spin, she pinned the blame squarely on Donald Trump's tariffs, decrying them as the villainous force derailing New Zealand's fragile recovery.

Yesterday, RNZ reported:

Economy contracts sharply as GDP falls 0.9% in June quarter

The economy had a worse than expected slump in the middle of the year as weaker manufacturing, construction, and agriculture activity fell sharply, backing the case for further interest rate cuts.

Stats NZ data shows gross domestic product (GDP) - the broad measure of economic growth - fell 0.9 percent in the three months ended June, to be 1.1 percent lower than a year ago.

Expectations had been for a quarterly contraction of about 0.4 percent, although growth for the previous quarter was revised marginally higher to 0.9 percent.

"GDP has now fallen in three of the last five quarters," Stats NZ spokesperson Jason Attewell said.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis was pinning the blame for the economy's slump on global turmoil and uncertainty driven by the United States' tariff roll-out.

In a statement, she said the US announcement resulted in firms and households putting off spending decisions.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis cried foul, claiming Trump's tariffs "disrupted my momentum" as if U.S. protectionism single-handedly sank New Zealand's economy. But the facts paint a different picture. The 0.9% GDP contraction hit in the April–June 2025 quarter, with economic activity tanking well before the full impact of Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs, announced on April 2, 2025.

While a 10% tariff on Kiwi exports took effect on April 5, with a hike to 15% delayed until August, the economic sting from these measures lagged, hitting exporters months later. Willis' attempt to pin the blame on Trump is just another dodge, sidestepping the harsh reality that her government's own policies have been the true wrecking ball.

Today, RNZ reported:

Nicola Willis rejects accusations she is doing nothing for a 'tanking' economy

An economist says the finance minister has not been a responsible manager for the country's finances.

But Nicola Willis is shrugging off calls to resign, saying Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has confidence in her and the plan to revive the economy.

And at a media briefing on Friday, Luxon threw his full backing behind Willis to carry on as minister of economic growth.

"I don't think there's a single New Zealander that could do a better job than Nicola Willis," he said.

"Nicola Willis is the best finance minister New Zealand's ever going to have, she's an outstanding person, she's an outstanding person, she's an outstanding finance minister, economic growth minister, she's doing an exceptionally good job in a very tough situation.

"I totally back her. I'm very very proud to call her my friend, I'm very very proud to have her in the role that she is and she's outstanding."

Luxon blamed the dip in the economy in the June quarter on the global situation saying one in four of New Zealand's jobs were tied to trade.

"The good news is that that's in the past, we're growing now, we're projected to grow more strongly going into the next quarter."

Luxon said he had a very short conversation with Willis after the criticisms, telling her she had his full backing and that everything was "full steam ahead".

Willis was the best person to be finance minister and economic growth minister in the country, he said.

"Nicola's done an outstanding job of you know getting our fiscals in shape in terms of that's lead to low inflation, lower interest rates, it's going to get the economy growing, it's going to get people back into employment again which is fantastic, but we also keep talking all the time - what more can we do?"

Luxon called criticisms from former minister Sir Roger Douglas that Willis was not up to the job "absolute rubbish".

Since National slithered into power in late 2023, the coalition's austerity playbook has been as predictable as it is punishing. Public sector redundancies have ballooned to over 10,000 jobs axed, from Health New Zealand's 2,042 cuts (including 500 confirmed redundancies) to the Ministry of Education's 303 fewer full-time equivalents by July 2025. These aren't faceless figures; they're nurses, teachers, and administrators whose departures have hollowed out essential services.

Funding cuts have followed suit: baseline budgets frozen or trimmed across ministries, with the 2025 Budget delivering a $1.1 billion gouge in spending allowances. Add in the repeal of fair pay agreements, the cancelling of 3000 state house builds, the axing of the Clean Car Discount, and a bonfire of infrastructure projects like Wellington's public transport upgrades, and you've got a cocktail of downward pressure that's left the economy sputtering. Manufacturing and construction have shed over 18,000 jobs in the past year alone, while businesses shutter at the fastest rate in a decade.

Broken Promises, Broken Economy: Nicola Willis’ Fiscal Train Wreck

📍OPINION: Finance Minister Nicola Willis, who once promised to transform New Zealand’s economy with a surplus by 2027, has instead driven it into a mire of contractionary austerity and unfulfilled commitments.… pic.twitter.com/gjRTSaQ1sP

— Kelvin Morgan 🇳🇿 (@kelvin_morganNZ) September 18, 2025

And here's the rub: while Willis wails about Trump's tariffs, nations far more exposed to the U.S. trade bazooka aren't reeling like we are. Australia, our trans-Tasman twin, clocked 0.6 per cent growth in the same quarter despite similar tariff headwinds, buoyed by diversified exports and less draconian fiscal pruning. Japan and South Korea, slapped with 25 per cent duties, still project OECD growth above 1 per cent for 2025, their supply chains more resilient than our austerity-ravaged one. Even the U.S. itself, epicentre of the tariff storm, eyes 1.6 per cent expansion this year, per OECD forecasts, down from 2.2 per cent pre-tariffs, but hardly a nosedive. New Zealand's woes? Homegrown, courtesy of a neoliberal government more keen on tax breaks for the wealthy than actual stimulus.

The chorus of discontent is growing, even from the right's own choir. Commentators like Matthew Hooton and Roger Douglas, hardly the bastions of the left, have piled on, bewailing Willis' fiscal folly and Luxon's inertia amid self-inflicted recessionary headwinds. Whispers in Wellington's corridors suggest even insider Tories are fidgeting, with calls for Luxon to boot Willis before she drags the ship under. Small wonder: Luxon's approval ratings are in freefall, slumping to a net -7 in April's 1News-Verian poll, his preferred PM score dipping to 19.6 per cent in the latest RNZ-Reid Research poll, his lowest in two years. Labour's Chris Hipkins, for all his post-election torpor, now outpolls Luxon as preferred leader. Luxon doesn't have any solutions, just spin: National's propaganda machine churns out tales of "momentum" and "green shoots" while families ration the Weet-Bix and retailers bolt the doors.

Ah, but that "laser focus" on the cost-of-living crisis? What a joke, a punchline delivered with the straight face of a man who's never queued at a supermarket let alone stood in line at the food bank. National's FamilyBoost flagship, meant to hand 21,000 households $150 fortnightly, has flopped spectacularly: a year on, just 153 families have claimed the full whack. The rest? $7 a week, not even enough for a block of butter. Luxon's rhetoric ignores the shuttered shops, the tens of thousands of young Kiwi emigrants fleeing to Oz for a brighter future, the quiet desperation etched on people's faces from Kaitaia to Bluff. This isn't leadership; it's a sleight of hand that leaves Kiwis holding an empty wallet.

As the austerity deepens New Zealand's economic malaise, one can't help but ponder: if Luxon's plan is this threadbare, what hope is there for a recovery while National are in power? The emperor's wardrobe is in tatters, and the court jesters, Willis chief among them, are entirely out of valid excuses.

The Numerous Bad Takes About Tom Phillips' Death

The death of Tom Phillips, shot by police in a violent confrontation on 8 September 2025 in rural Waikato, is a heartbreaking chapter in a saga that has gripped Aotearoa for nearly four years.

Phillips, a fugitive father who vanished with his three children in 2021, met a tragic end after a shootout that also left one police officer critically injured. The loss of life, the trauma inflicted on Phillips’ children, and the pain endured by their whānau is nothing short of devastating.


Yesterday, RNZ reported:

 

Questions about the Marokopa children as Tom Phillips killed after four-year search 

 

The police shooting of a man after a burglary in Waitomo on Monday morning brings to an end one of the most unsettling incidents in recent New Zealand history: the disappearance of Tom Phillips and his three children from remote Marokopa.

For nearly four years Phillips lived in hiding, slipping in and out of sight across remote farmland and bush, while his children - Jayda, Maverick, and Ember - grew up in isolation from their friends, their family and community.

Their mother, Cat, described it as a living nightmare.

"They are who I am, and since they've been gone, I've lost my way. I'm not me. I'm lost. I'm lost without them."

 

Unfortunately, in the wake of this tragedy, a chorus of “cookers” and self-styled commentators have flooded the discourse with wild theories and baseless claims, showing a callous disregard for the families and children at the heart of this ordeal.

Among the most egregious voices is Cameron Slater, a blogger notorious for his inflammatory and false rhetoric. Slater has peddled the absurd notion that police deliberately laid a trap for Phillips, intent on gunning him down, ignoring the fact that only one police officer was initially involved. 

Slater's claims aren't only baseless but reek of the conspiratorial paranoia that has long defined his scribbling. But what makes these false claims even more telling is Slater's past posts, where he's defended the police shooting of Māori men, even in cases where the victims were unarmed, framing such incidents as necessary for public safety.

Cameron Slaters' selective outrage, cheerleading lethal force against Māori while crying foul over Phillips' death, exposes a hypocritical streak that undermines any shred of credibility the right wing propagandist once had.

The suggestion that police orchestrated a fatal ambush ignores the reality shown in the released photos: Phillips, armed with a rifle, shot a lone police officer in the head at close range, forcing the police officer to respond.

At time of writing, it appears that Phillips attempted to murder a police officer in a bid to escape and continue to hide in the bush with his three children, all of whom will be significantly traumatised by their ordeal. If Phillips' actions don't justify the Family Courts' initial decision to provide custody of the children to their mother, Catherine, I don't know what will.

Equally reckless is Martyn “Bomber” Bradbury, whose commentary on Twitter and The Daily Blog has veered into the absurd. Bradbury argues that the police were unjustified in returning fire, even after Phillips critically wounded an officer. This is lazy blogging at best, if not downright delusional.



On Monday, The Daily Blog posted:

 

The predictability of shooting Tom Phillips and the whitewash that will follow

The sad predictability of the shooting of Tom Phillips like a dog in front of his own child should surprise no one.

This Blog has predicted this very outcome for several years now.

The only blessing is the Police managed to not shoot the remaining children.

The current scramble by the cops in getting their story straight is helped by Journalists who never ask the hard questions.

We don’t even know how many shots were actually fired.

Bomber's claims defy logic. A man who appears to have initiated a shootout, endangering lives, including the lives of his children, cannot reasonably be painted as a victim. Bradbury’s fixation on the number of shots fired, demanding precise details as if they unlock some grand conspiracy, details that won't be available until forensics are completed, is particularly nonsensical. Such speculation fuels mistrust without evidence, distracting from the gravity of the incident and the trauma of those involved.

The media, too, has not escaped the trap of sensationalising this tragedy. Reports claiming Phillips “riddled” a police vehicle with bullets have been published by Stuff, yet only four bullet holes were found in the vehicle (five according to The Herald). The description of a “high-powered rifle” has also been reported, despite no specific details on the weapon’s model or calibre being released by police.


Yesterday, Stuff reported:

What the images tell us about Tom Phillips’ last moments

A police car riddled with bullets sits in the middle of a rural road, surrounded by bush.

Its driver and right passenger doors are wide open, the boot lifted. At least four bullets have pierced the front window.

Tom Phillip’s body lies on the tarseal of Te Anga Rd just metres away.

His quad bike is pulled to the side of the road, nestled against the bush. It’s loaded with what looks like buckets and supplies.

This sloppy reporting inflates the narrative, painting a picture of a one-sided gunfight that obscures the chaotic reality of the encounter. It's likely that the police officer, who is still in hospital for ongoing treatment, was shot before trying to retrieve his gun from the boot of his vehicle. That's the story the photos tell. The initial lone confrontation and critical injuries categorically show that this wasn't a police trap to gun down a fugitive.

Embellishments about Phillips' weapons or the police intending to shoot Phillips dead are clearly not required, and do a disservice to the public and, more critically, to the families grappling with the aftermath. Phillips’ children, now aged 9, 10, and 12, have endured years of isolation and uncertainty, only to lose their father in a violent clash, a tragic ending that the eldest child likely witnessed.

Their mother has spoken of her relief at their safe recovery but also her profound sadness. The whānau, already burdened by years of public scrutiny, deserve space to heal, not a barrage of conspiracy theories and exaggerated headlines. The officer’s family, too, faces an agonising wait as he undergoes multiple surgeries.

This tragedy underscores a broader failure: a society quick to sensationalise rather than reflect. The cookers, bloggers, and media outlets peddling half-truths and wild claims are exploiting other people's tragic events for clicks. Aotearoa deserves better...a discourse grounded in facts, empathy, and respect for those whose lives have been irrevocably altered.

National Government Gaslights over Economic Downturn

New Zealand’s economy is languishing, and the National-led coalition, with Finance Minister Nicola Willis at the helm, has been quick to point fingers at Labour’s Covid-19 spending.

The problem for the coalition of chaos is their narrative is a masterclass in gaslighting, deflecting blame from their own disastrous economic policies while misrepresenting the past. Let’s unpack their mess, because the truth is far uglier than the coalition’s polished spin.
 

Earlier this month, Stuff reported:

The $66 billion Covid spend up: Treasury asks if the Government went too far

Finance Minister Nicola Willis was quick to draw attention to the Tresuary’s conclusions. She has long blamed current economic challenges on the previous Labour Government.

She said this report proved that, as she has said previously, the Labour Government was fuelling inflation.

“Unfortunately, the Labour government ignored [officials’] advice. The consequence was undisciplined spending that pushed up inflation, eroded New Zealand’s previously low public debt position, and fuelled a cost-of-living crisis,” she said.

“The lesson from Labour’s mishandling of the Covid response is that while there are times when governments have to increase spending in response to major events, the fiscal guardrails should be restored as soon as possible,” she added.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Labour, under Jacinda Ardern and Chris Hipkins, rolled out a lifeline to keep businesses afloat and workers employed. The Wage Subsidy Scheme alone, costing $18.3 billion, ensured millions of Kiwis kept their jobs, while the $70.4 billion Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund (CRRF) propped up health, aviation, and small businesses.

This was no reckless spending spree; it was a calculated response to a global crisis, with Treasury initially urging broad-based support like wage subsidies to stabilise the economy. The result? New Zealand’s unemployment rate dropped to a 40-year low of 3.2% by December 2021, and GDP rebounded faster than in any other OECD country. Labour’s spending wasn’t perfect, but it kept the nation afloat when the world was drowning.

 

In 2021, Stuff reported:

NZ dollar tipped to head higher as economy rebounds from Covid

The New Zealand dollar is heading higher as the economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, which will make exports more expensive and imports cheaper.

Fitch Solutions on Wednesday lifted its forecast for the currency, and now expects it to average US74.34 cents over the remainder of this year, having averaged US71.84c over the first five months. The kiwi was at US72.52c around midday on Wednesday.

Economic growth would probably pick up by 3.6 per cent this year after a 1.2 per cent contraction last year, which would encourage investment flows into the country and tighter monetary policy, pushing the currency higher, Fitch said.

“We attribute the New Zealand dollar’s robust uptrend in recent months to the country’s strong economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic,” Fitch said.

Enter the National Party, clutching a Treasury report that claims Labour blew $66 billion. Sounds damning, right? Except it’s a sleight of hand. That figure includes general government expenditure, not just Covid-specific measures, inflating the narrative of Labour’s supposed recklessness while Willis has been borrowing even more than former Minister of Finance, Grant Robertson.

National’s comparison of New Zealand’s Covid spending to other countries while Labour was in power is equally dishonest, as those nations often exclude general expenditure from their Covid budgets. It’s a classic case of cherry-picking data to paint Labour as profligate while ignoring the global context. This isn’t analysis; it’s propaganda from a dishonest government that can only blame others for their own economic failures.

Meanwhile, the coalition of chaos has embarked on a slash-and-burn mission. Since taking office in 2023, they’ve axed 10,000 public sector jobs, including 2,000 in health, and imposed 7.5% cuts across ministries. Wellington, the public service hub, is reeling, with house prices down 6.8% and 19,500 jobs lost since January 2025. The downturn in the capital city is palpable.

 

In May, Reuters reported:

New Zealand's budget cuts punish public sector, business and workers

"We were told survive until 2025 and it will get better. Well, we're now in May 2025 and it doesn't feel better," said Thomson, who is currently doing paid freelance work.

New Zealand's conservative coalition government releases its annual budget on Thursday and is expected to continue to push fiscal discipline with many ministries not expected to see budget increases.

Spending cuts since December 2023 have been felt across the wider economy but perhaps most acutely in Wellington, a city of nearly 210,000 where the government has historically been a major employer.

House prices in Wellington have plunged 6.8% over the past year, far exceeding the national decline of 1.1%. Population growth stagnated in 2024, contrasting with a 1.7% increase nationwide. Consumer and economic sentiment in the city remains lower than in many other regions, with businesses and residents expressing concern over the city's prospects.

In Auckland, businesses are folding at twice the rate of last year, surpassing even the 2008 GFC failure rate. The coalition’s austerity obsession is sucking confidence out of the economy, leaving workers and businesses stranded and tens of thousands of young New Zealanders heading overseas to find a brighter future.

Worse, National’s policies are hammering the most vulnerable. Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden’s 1.5% minimum wage increase to $23.50, well below the 2.7% inflation rate, is in real-terms a pay cut. Welfare cuts and increases in the cost of living further erodes people's purchasing power, hitting the elderly and disabled hardest. Even for people with a little bit saved, nobody is spending because nobody feels confident in the current government's economic agenda.

With household costs up 5.4% in the year to June 2024, driven by a 9.0% rise in rent, an 8.7% increase in mortgage interest payments, and higher food and energy prices, Kiwis are struggling to keep up. These pressures, that even the RBNZ's tweaks are not addressing, compounded by a projected 5% rent increase and persistent inflation in 2025, are bleeding many households dry. This isn’t fiscal discipline; its economic sabotage, draining demand and ensuring an increase in business closures due to reduced cash flow.

 

Earlier this month, RNZ reported:

A boom in businesses going bust

New Zealand is riding its highest wave of company liquidations in more than a decade, with thousands of businesses folding and countless livelihoods caught in the crossfire.

Many more are holding on, but just.

In the first half of this year alone, 1270 businesses have shut their doors - a 12 percent increase on this time year.

It's now anticipated that the total number of liquidations for the year will surpass 2024's 10-year high, when 2500 companies folded. That was an increase of nearly 700 compared to 2023. 

Wellington economy shrinks as 177 businesses shut in a year – does Nicola Willis accept some blame?, via @nzherald https://t.co/TyMqKqrn3Y

— Jan Renwick (@nettieg3) August 26, 2025

Nicola Willis, the architect of this misery, has the gall to blame Labour while implementing austerity on the poor and pushing policies that fuel inflation. Treasury forecast inflation would be as low as 1.8% in 2025, but National’s policies have kept it at 2.7% and climbing.

National, and their coalition bedfellows, are becoming increasingly desperate, and are throwing everything they can to prop up their golden goose, the floundering housing market. Foreign buyers might make the numbers look good on paper for a while, but they'll do nothing to ensure New Zealanders quality of life improves through increased home ownership rates.

The coalitions much-touted Fast-Track Approvals Bill, now being spruiked as an economic saviour for families unable to afford basic food items, offers zero cost-of-living relief for everyday Kiwis. It’s a sop to developers, corporates and the existing supermarket duopoly, not families facing skyrocketing bills at the checkout.

Willis’ rhetoric about cleaning up Labour’s mess is pure gaslighting, obscuring the fact that her austerity is deepening the economic downturn.

The coalition of chaos is driving New Zealand into an economic abyss, while they attempt to cloak their failures in Labour-bashing and dodgy numbers. The Covid hangover is real, but it’s Willis’ heartless cuts and misguided priorities that are keeping the economy on its knees.

Curriculum Tweaks Won't Solve Learning Slump

New Zealand’s education system is in a slow-motion crisis, with student achievement sliding relentlessly. PISA 2022 results reveal a grim picture: mathematics scores plummeted to 479 (down 15 points from 2018), reading to 501 (down 4), and science to 504 (down 5), marking a 20-year decline equivalent to a year of lost schooling. The National-led government, in power since late 2023, points fingers at cell-phones, curriculum woes and truancy, but these are sideshows. The real culprit, child poverty, is being ignored, and National’s policies are once again making things worse.
 

On Tuesday, RNZ reported:

 

Education Minister Erica Stanford on raising writing achievement

Education Minister Eric Stanford is announcing the government's new Writing Action Plan to supercharge writing achievement and better set Kiwi kids up for success

The announcement comes the same day as a new study shows only a quarter of children at the end of intermediate school were writing and doing maths last year at the level expected by new curriculums introduced this year.

The Curriculum Insights study tested children in Years 3, 6 and 8 last year and results were released on Tuesday.

The study found children were doing about as well as in previous years.

But it found few were performing at the level expected by the incoming maths and English curriculums.

Just 22 percent of Year 3 children, 30 percent of Year 6 children and 23 percent of Year 8s were doing maths at the expected level.

And in writing 41 percent of Year 3s, 33 percent of Year 6 children and 24 percent of Year 8s were at the level expected of their age group.

 

Until poverty is tackled head-on, our kids will continue to struggle, no matter how many curriculum tweaks or attendance crackdowns we see. Poverty’s impact on learning is undeniable. Hungry children can’t focus; insecure housing breeds stress and illness. Research shows 14% of students skip meals weekly due to financial hardship, leading to score drops of 42–76 points across subjects, equivalent to 2–4 years of lost learning.

In 2024, child poverty metrics worsened: material hardship rose to 13.2% (152,000 children), up from 12.5% in 2022/23, with Māori and Pasifika children hit hardest. National’s austerity measures, slashing minimum wage growth and freezing welfare adjustments, have deepened this crisis.

Real-term cuts to benefits amid rising costs have left many families scrambling, with 20% of households with school-age kids unable to afford healthy food. The government’s policies, significantly skewed toward high earners, and cuts to school lunches, that have largely become inedible, offer no relief to struggling families, ensuring more children are hungry, unable to learn.

🚂 In today’s gift that keeps on giving, otherwise known as the train wreck that is the school lunches programme, Minister in charge David Seymour continues to minimise the ongoing problems, Minister of Education Erica Standford enters the fray demanding answers and instead gets… pic.twitter.com/Yzir0aGXYa

— Kelvin Morgan 🇳🇿 (@kelvin_morganNZ) March 4, 2025

Poor housing is another anchor dragging down children's achievement. Overcrowded, damp homes, common across New Zealand, lead to health issues like respiratory problems, with hospitalisation rates for poor children 2–3 times higher than their peers. These conditions lead to students missing school, disrupt sleep and study, compounding stress and reducing focus. Limited access to resources, like internet or school supplies and uniforms, further isolate low-income students.

The current neoliberal government in New Zealand has also made housing for anyone who rents less secure, scaled back social housing investment and made it harder to attain emergency housing. This retreat from housing support entrenches instability, leaving many thousands of kids in environments hostile to learning.

National’s apparent indifference, prioritising landlord tax breaks over beneficial housing reforms or housing programmes, signals a disregard for the conditions that shape educational success. In particular, the National-led government's archaic policies appear to be largely targeted at Māori children, with a return to the bad old days of banning te reo Māori from school literature, even though it's a proven effective tool for learning.

 

Yesterday, The Guardian reported:

Why is the New Zealand government cutting Māori words from some school books?

A shake-up of New Zealand’s curriculum has resulted in Māori words being scrapped from a selection of books used to teach five-year-olds and a decision not to reprint a well-loved book for young readers because it contained too many Māori words.

The changes have sparked widespread criticism from academics, teachers and authors, who have called it “an assault” on Māori identity and the latest in the coalition government’s efforts to prioritise English over the Indigenous language – criticisms the education minister has strongly rejected.

...

Why have the changes sparked criticism?

Principles, academics and authors have criticised the decision, saying it undermines the place of the Indigenous language and children’s ability to learn both English and Māori.

“It’s not only harmful from a cultural identity perspective, but it also gives very little faith in our children that they can grasp these very few, simple words,” said Dr Awanui Te Huia, associate professor at Victoria University of Wellington’s Māori studies department, Te Kawa a Māui.

Curriculum reform and attendance policies, while not irrelevant, are secondary to the social conditions required to provide effective learning. The current curriculum’s lack of clarity in subjects like science and outdated literacy approaches do need fixing, and low attendance (only 58% of students attended school more than 90% of the time in 2024) is a concern. But National’s obsession with structured literacy mandates and penalising poor families with truancy fines entirely misses the point.

A child who’s hungry or sick won’t learn, no matter how rigorous the curriculum or how often they’re dragged to class by parents afraid of further financial penalties. These measures distract from the root issue: poverty inhibiting children's potential to learn.

The coalition of chaos’ policies betray a wilful blindness to what matters. Instead of investing in things that work, like school lunch programmes, proven to boost engagement and achievement, they’ve slashed funding for Ka Ora, Ka Ako by $107 million annually, reducing per-student lunch budgets from $6.99–$8.90 to as low as $3, compromising meal quality for over 244,000 students in 2025.

Instead of expanding health services or social housing, they’ve cut social housing investment and restricted access to numerous social services, while funnelling $153 million to charter schools with no proven benefit. This isn’t just neglect; it’s a deliberate choice to let inequality fester while wasting taxpayer money on pet projects already proven to be failures.

Following the appalling results of his school lunch cuts, his ineffective school attendance strategy & his hated Treaty Principles Bill, charter schools are set to be yet another significant failure for David Seymour.

To date only 6 schools have expressed interest in converting. pic.twitter.com/fSES3xiHp5

— Nick (@StrayDogNZ) April 26, 2025

In 2024, Stuff reported:

Charter school agency staff paid average salary of $158,889

The new charter school agency is paying its staff an average salary of $158,889 - much higher than Ministry of Education staff and more than 50% higher than the public service average salary.

The agency has 18 staff members and sits within the Ministry of Education. But it pays more than staff there, where the average salary is $112,300, according to the public service commission. Charter school agency staff are also paid 56% more than the average public service salary, which is $101,700. 

 

In April, Stuff reported:

Charter schools: David Seymour defends $10 million for 215 students

David Seymour is defending the $10 million budget for charter schools when seven have been operating since February this year with only 215 students enrolled in them.

By averaging the cost across the 215 students, it equates to roughly $46,500 per student and is significantly higher than the core funding per student at a state school, which is just above $9000.

The evidence is clear: poverty drives educational decline, and the coalition of chaos' austerity policies are only making the situation worse. If we want kids to thrive, we need a government that ensures they’re fed, housed, and able to be healthy, not one that punishes them for their circumstances. Until then, no amount of classroom tinkering will close the gap.

Chris Luxon: Part-Time Prime Minister

Christopher Luxon's tenure as Prime Minister has been marked by a troubling pattern of absence when leadership is most needed. From international crises to domestic unrest, from parliamentary debates to national commemorations, Luxon has consistently found reasons to be somewhere else when the hard conversations need to happen.

What we've witnessed isn't merely political miscalculation or scheduling mishaps...it's a systematic abdication of the responsibilities that come with holding New Zealand's highest office. Where previous Prime Ministers understood that leadership means showing up for the difficult moments, Luxon appears to have redefined the role as one of selective engagement, choosing comfort and optics over confrontation at every critical juncture.

The most recent and perhaps most damning example came when Luxon chose to skip a virtual meeting with numerous European leaders including Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron. The Prime Minister cited the meeting being at "1am New Zealand time" as his excuse for non-attendance, yet this reasoning falls apart under even an iota of scrutiny. For a leader who holds no portfolios and maintains a deliberately light schedule, adjusting sleep patterns for critical international diplomacy should be standard practice and certainly was under Luxon's predecessors.
 

Yesterday, RNZ reported:

PM skips Coalition of the Willing meeting

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon did not dial in to the latest Coalition of the Willing meeting because of time zone differences.

French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer co-chaired the virtual meeting about 1am New Zealand time.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky also joined the talks, that focused on support for Ukraine and next steps in peace negotiations.

...

Speaking at his weekly post Cabinet media conference Monday afternoon, Luxon confirmed he did not attend Monday morning's meeting.

"I have tried to make them, wherever possible. This one was at 1am in the morning. It goes for two or three hours and then I'm on a media round this morning and obviously down here for Cabinet this morning as well."

He rejected suggestions he did not join the Coalition of the Willing meeting because he didn't think it was important enough.

Luxon prioritising his regular appearance on Mike Hosking's breakfast show, where he delivered his pre-prepared zinger about opposition leader Chris Hipkins needing to "get out from under his rock" regarding the Covid-19 inquiry is a complete failure of leadership. For this part-time Prime Minister, scoring political points on talkback radio apparently trumps engaging with world leaders on matters of war and peace.

The right wing propagandists have been quick to make up a number of excuses that don't hold any water, but the sad fact of the matter is that Luxon chose his own floundering political career over the lives of civilians caught up in the Ukraine and Gaza conflicts.

The hypocrisy is breathtaking. Luxon has been vocal in claiming that Hipkins is trying to "politically gaslight" New Zealanders by not appearing at the Covid-19 Inquiry, demanding accountability from the opposition leader, even though Labour leaders both past and present have provided all the evidence the second inquiry requested. Yet when it comes to his own responsibilities, Luxon routinely finds excuses to avoid the hard yards required of a functioning Prime Minister.

This pattern of absence is even worse when looking at domestic issues. When the controversial Treaty Principles Bill was being debated, Luxon conveniently found himself needing to discuss Trump's tariff wars with world leaders and could apparently only phone them up from Auckland, a transparent dodge that fooled no one. The Prime Minister who demands others show accountability has become a master of avoiding his own.

In April, Stuff reported:

Why Christopher Luxon won't be at the Treaty Principles Bill debate

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will fly to Auckland while Parliament holds what should be its final debate about the Treaty Principles Bill.

Opposition leaders have criticised Luxon for avoiding the Treaty Principles Bill debates, saying his absence shows a lack of leadership. But Luxon says his position on the bill has been clear and he has no regrets about how this ill-fated proposal has played out.

...

Who said what

Luxon said he would be spending Thursday afternoon in a series of calls with world leaders to discuss the global trade war as US-President Donald Trump made moves on tariffs.

But he said he wanted to make those calls from Auckland.

 

It would have been just as easy for Mr Luxon to make those phone calls from Wellington while he also attended the Treaty Principles Bill debate.

Claire Trevet at the NZ Herald tried to put a positive spin on Luxon's absence:

Forget about David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, PM Christopher Luxon’s Trump tariffs crisis could be the making of him

At the same time, Luxon was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was on the blower – a can of Pepsi Max on his desk – calling other leaders around Asia and in Europe to try to cobble together a united front and shore up the existing free trade agreements.

 

Luxon was absent from Parliament yesterday as MPs debated the bill, which had hung over the coalition parties since it was agreed as part of their legislative agenda after coalition negotiations following the 2023 election.

 

He spent his time speaking to world leaders about the global trading environment in the light of United States President Donald Trump’s tariff scheme that caused chaos in financial markets this week. Luxon made calls to leaders including Philippines President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr, Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Unfortunately for New Zealand, Luxon has often failed to engage meaningfully with voters on the issues that matter most to them. Instead of working to fix the countries numerous problems, Luxon appears to be too busy attacking previous administrations to actually give a damn!

When he's not blaming Labour for his own administrations failings, Luxon is shirking his responsibilities and dodging the difficult questions. Take the country's largest hikoi in New Zealand for instance, protesting the Treaty Principles Bill, the Prime Minister was notably absent from any meaningful dialogue.

Last year, 1 News reported:

Prime Minister on why he did not meet hīkoi at Parliament

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has explained why he didn't meet yesterday's Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti at Parliament.

There were extraordinary scenes yesterday when a crowd estimated by police to be as many as 42,000 marched through Wellington to Parliament, many of them voicing opposition to the Government's Treaty Principles Bill.

The Bill's architect David Seymour, alongside ACT MPs, made a brief appearance on Parliament's forecourt during the hīkoi, however the Prime Minister did not front it.

On Breakfast this morning, the Prime Minister was asked why he chose not to face the hīkoi when so many people were outside his office.

Luxon explained: "The real reason was that a lot of the organisers were Te Pati Māori. They have an opportunity to interrogate me in the House each and every week.

Similarly, when hospital protesters in Dunedin sought to voice their concerns about healthcare cuts, reports emerged of Luxon sneaking in a side door to avoid accountability.

Last year, The Otago Daily Times reported:

'Cowardly': Luxon sidesteps protest by using back entrance

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has been called "cowardly" after hurrying in a back door to avoid a hospital protest in central Dunedin.

A group of about 30 protesters chanting, carrying placards and wearing 'They save We pay" t-shirts were waiting to greet Mr Luxon at the entrance to the Dunedin Public Art Gallery.

But Mr Luxon's motorcade stopped instead in Moray Place, at the back of the art gallery.

This isn't leadership; it's political cowardice. A Prime Minister who lacks the backbone to face legitimate protest about his unpopular policy decisions is one who fundamentally misunderstands the democratic compact between the government and the governed.

Luxon's pattern of avoidance perhaps peaked with his decision to skip Waitangi Day 2025 altogether. Despite being personally invited by Māori leaders who expected him to show some leadership during a time of division over the Treaty Principles Bill. Luxon claiming that he wanted to "celebrate Waitangi Day around New Zealand with different iwi" rings hollow when viewed against his government's divisive Treaty policies and unrepentant attack on Māoridom.

As Pita Tipene noted, "kāwanatanga and rangatiratanga need to have conversations, as heavy and as challenging as those conversations may get." But Luxon fled from precisely these necessary discussions. By abandoning Waitangi during one of the most politically charged periods in recent memory, he demonstrated that when true leadership is demanded, he simply doesn't show up.

Christopher Luxon loves to exaggerate his habits to sell voters on his superhuman stamina — barely sleeps, never stops, always on. Then he skips a 1am meeting for beauty sleep. That credibility gap fuels his unpopularity.https://t.co/D1LB5FTtsL

— Ms WonderOutLoud (@MsWonderOutLoud) August 18, 2025

However, the timing issue regarding the Ukraine meeting reveals something even more concerning about Luxon's priorities. He noted the call went for hours, suggesting he was fully aware of its duration and importance beforehand. Yet rather than adjust his schedule to accommodate this critical international engagement, he chose to maintain his comfortable routine of friendly media appearances.

Luxon's absence during critical moments extends to a pattern of conveniently being elsewhere when domestic controversies are likely to occur. At the first reading of the ACT Party's Treaty Principles Bill, a moment that captured international attention and symbolised the deep division his government's policies have created, Luxon was at the APEC summit. Given that the government largely controls parliamentary timetabling through the Leader of the House, this scheduling conflict was entirely foreseeable and avoidable.

Parliament suspended after floor-shaking haka by Te Pāti Māori pic.twitter.com/K6FJkNLL7T

— Nick (@StrayDogNZ) November 14, 2024

Instead of ensuring he was present for such a significant constitutional moment, Luxon allowed the most controversial bill in his government's legislative programme to proceed in his absence in order to protect his particular brand from further valid accusations of racism. From Peru, he dismissed the parliamentary disruption with a clear lack of understanding of its cultural and constitutional significance, resorted to procedural falsehoods and once again demonstrated a Prime Minister more comfortable engaging with safe audiences than confronting the difficult conversations his own policies have necessitated at home.

This speaks to a deeper problem with Luxon's understanding of what being the Prime Minister entails. He appears to view the role as a part-time position...one that can be managed around his preferred schedule and media commitments. The reality is that being Prime Minister requires sacrifice, including the sacrifice of convenience and comfort when duty calls.

New Zealand deserves better than a part-time Prime Minister who picks and chooses when to show up. The country faces significant challenges, from cost of living pressures to international tensions, that require active, engaged leadership. Luxon's pattern of absence and excuse-making suggests a leader fundamentally unprepared for the demands of the office he holds.

When future historians examine this period, they will likely note that New Zealand had a Prime Minister who was present in title but absent in practice. The question facing New Zealanders is whether they will continue to tolerate such part-time leadership. The evidence suggests that Chris Luxon has already answered that question for them...through his actions, or more accurately, his inaction.

National's Health Cuts Leave NZ Exposed

New Zealand finds itself woefully unprepared for another Covid-19 outbreak, with the coalition government's systematic dismantling of healthcare capacity, cavalier approach to public health messaging, and ideological opposition to evidence-based policy leaving the nation vulnerable to future health crisis.

The warning signs are unmistakable. While the incidence of Covid-19 decreased in 2024 compared with the previous two years, partly driven by the lack of an expected wave over the 2024-25 summer, experts caution this pattern may not continue. But rather than using this respite to strengthen our defences, the current administration has pursued policies that actively undermine public health preparedness.

Perhaps most concerning is the government's abdication of responsibility for coherent public health messaging. Where previous administrations maintained clear communication strategies, the coalition of chaos has offered a vacuum of leadership that has been filled by misinformation and conspiracy theories, conspiracy theories that are sometimes promoted by government MPs and their associates. This messaging crisis has precipitated a dangerous decline in vaccination rates, leaving vulnerable people exposed as new variants emerge.
 

Today, Stuff reported:

 

Five deaths a week and dozens of hospitalisations show Covid hasn’t gone away

A new strain of Covid-19 is making itself known in New Zealand.

XFG, or Stratus as it is nicknamed, was classified by the World Health Organisation as a “variant under monitoring” in June, one month after first showing up in wastewater testing here.

According to wastewater analysis from PHF Science (formerly ESR), Stratus has been on the rise for the past two months. In the week ending August 3, it was the second-most detected strain of Covid, after NB.1.8.1, or Nimbus.

“I've seen in other countries that XFG has out-competed the NB.1.8.1 variant and sort of taken over,” said University of Canterbury professor and expert modeller Michael Plank.

“We haven’t seen that happen in New Zealand so far, which is maybe a little bit surprising. And it could happen, you know, in the months ahead. But at the moment, it's the NB.1.8.1 that appears to be dominating.”

 

The human cost of this negligence extends far beyond acute infections. Risk of long COVID remains high, yet the government has no coherent policy framework to address this growing health burden. Long COVID sufferers, already marginalised by a healthcare system struggling to understand their condition amidst chronic staff shortages, face an uncertain future with diminishing support and recognition.

However, most damaging is the government's systematic defunding of healthcare infrastructure, with the health sector underfunded by approximately NZ$1.5–1.9 billion annually. Nearly 10,000 public sector jobs have been axed as Finance Minister Nicola Willis imposes annual spending cuts as part of the government’s 6.5–7.5% cost-saving mandate, which has had a significant impact on our health sector.

Approximately 2,165 health sector roles have been eliminated, particularly in data, digital, and public health teams. Critics, including the Public Service Association, argue these cuts weaken COVID-19 preparedness and health system resilience.

The coalition's health policies, or lack thereof, demonstrate a fundamental misunderstanding of pandemic preparedness. Funding has been woefully inadequate creating or worsening conditions of severe under-staffing. In fact Budget 2024 committed more new money to funding security guards for A&E departments compared to training new medical staff. This speaks volumes about a neoliberal government who are more concerned with managing system failure rather than addressing its root causes.

Furthermore, the dysfunction within the coalition itself raises serious questions about its capacity to manage health crisis. Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters's inflammatory rhetoric and apparent sympathy for anti-vaccination sentiment, reflected in his choice of press secretary, sends dangerous mixed messages at a time when clear, science-based communication is still essential. It doesn't bode well when government minister's are consistently undermining public health measures that actually worked and whose offices often struggle with basic media relations.

The current coalition of chaos campaign against the previous Labour led government for its Covid response is also endemic of an administration with no clear plan for the future. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, flanked by his sanctimonious coalition cronies, have unleashed a venomous tirade against former Labour leaders Jacinda Ardern, Chris Hipkins, and Grant Robertson for opting out of the second, non-mandatory phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into New Zealand’s COVID-19 response, smugly accusing them of shirking accountability.

There was no rational reason to have a 2nd phase of the #NZ Royal Commission on #COVID_19 when the original Commission brought down a comprehensive & objective report. It seems even clearer now that phase 2 was always intended to be a witch-hunt. #nzpol https://t.co/2cW8GRA2pw pic.twitter.com/5wJjo0dJSZ

— Helen Clark (@HelenClarkNZ) August 14, 2025

Luxon, in a blatant display of political grandstanding, even falsely claimed the Labour leaders defied a summons to appear in person, a lie swiftly debunked by the inquiry chair, Grant Illingworth KC, who confirmed that no such requirement existed and that private testimony, like Ardern’s three-hour interview, was entirely sufficient.

This disingenuous attack by the Prime Minister and others, with Seymour sneering at Labour’s absence, reeks of a calculated campaign to vilify the previous administration’s world-leading response, which saved an estimated 20,000 lives. The National-led government’s relentless and expensive pursuit of political point-scoring undermines the inquiry’s purpose and makes a mockery of their claim that the second Covid inquiry wouldn't be used as a political weapon.

Can we get a better Prime Minister? One who understands plain english?https://t.co/nvNpMiNWqv

— Greg Presland (@GregPresland) August 14, 2025

The coalition government's retrospective criticism of Labour's pandemic spending, which was recently misrepresented by Treasury, reveals another profound misunderstanding of both epidemiology and economics. Those early investments in health infrastructure, wage subsidies, and public health measures prevented a catastrophic loss of life and economic collapse, economic collapse that the current government's archaic policies appear to be trying to initiate.

Despite the success of New Zealand's Covid response and recovery, the coalition has fervently criticised the previous administration while systematically dismantling the capacity within our health system, which is currently struggling to even deal with things like the current flu season, while offering no alternative strategy for future outbreaks.

The healthcare system is already under severe strain, with thousands of New Zealanders still waiting unreasonable amounts of time for treatment. When the next pandemic arrives, these same hospitals will be expected to manage surge capacity while operating with reduced staff and constrained budgets, potentially reducing the effectiveness of whatever response measures the National-led government can cobble together.

New Zealand's COVID response was once the envy of the world, built on scientific rigour, clear communication, and decisive action. Today, we face the prospect of another wave with a fragmented government that seems ideologically opposed to the very measures that once protected us. The question isn't whether we will face another COVID surge, but whether the current government will make that surge far more devastating than it needed to be.

The coalition's approach represents not just policy failure, but a fundamental abandonment of the government's duty to protect public health. As epidemiologists keep watch, New Zealanders deserve leaders who will listen to science rather than pander to conspiracy theorists, invest in healthcare rather than cut it, and prepare for the challenges ahead rather than pretend they don't exist.