National Party
NATCentre-right party focused on economic growth, lower taxes, and personal responsibility.
Policy Positions
National's Cost of Living Policy
National focuses on reducing inflation through fiscal discipline, cutting wasteful government spending, and reducing regulatory costs passed on to consumers. They removed the fuel excise duty reduction and instead focus on long-term economic management to bring down living costs.
Simple explanation
Cut government spending to reduce inflation, deregulate to lower business costs, and manage the economy carefully so prices stabilise.
National's Housing Policy
National proposes to increase housing supply through RMA reform, fast-track consenting, and enabling more medium-density housing in urban areas. The party supports infrastructure bonds to fund development and aims to reduce construction costs through deregulation.
Simple explanation
Make it easier and cheaper to build more houses by cutting red tape and reforming planning rules. Fund new infrastructure to open up more land for development.
National's Health Policy
National proposes to reform Health New Zealand, improve hospital wait times through performance targets, expand GP access, and use public-private partnerships for elective surgery. They aim to reduce bureaucracy in the health system and restore locally-based decision-making.
Simple explanation
Set clear targets for hospital waiting times, use private hospitals to clear backlogs, and reduce management layers to get more money to frontline health services.
National's Education Policy
National has introduced structured literacy and numeracy programmes in primary schools, with a focus on returning to phonics-based reading instruction. They propose restoring charter schools, setting achievement targets, and reducing compliance burden on teachers to focus on core skills.
Simple explanation
Teach reading through proven phonics methods, bring back charter schools, set clear achievement targets for students, and let teachers focus on teaching.
National's Taxation Policy
National has introduced income tax threshold adjustments to compensate for bracket creep, increased the Independent Earner Tax Credit, and provided Working for Families top-ups. They oppose a capital gains tax and wealth tax, and aim to return to surplus through spending restraint.
Simple explanation
Adjust tax brackets so workers keep more of their pay rise, help working families with tax credits, and oppose new taxes on wealth or investment gains.
National's Economic Policy
National focuses on returning the government's books to surplus, attracting foreign investment, reducing business regulations, growing exports, and restarting offshore oil and gas exploration. They support free trade agreements and public-private partnerships for infrastructure.
Simple explanation
Cut government debt, attract overseas investment, reduce red tape for businesses, grow exports, and allow oil and gas exploration to boost the economy.
National's Immigration Policy
National supports managed immigration to address skill shortages, with an emphasis on attracting high-skilled migrants. They have increased employer-assisted visas, maintained the points-based residence system, and support immigration that fills genuine gaps in the labour market.
Simple explanation
Welcome skilled workers to fill job shortages, keep immigration well-managed, and make it easier for employers to bring in the workers they need.
National's Climate Policy
National supports the Emissions Trading Scheme as the primary tool for reducing emissions. They propose to reverse the previous government's ban on offshore oil and gas exploration, emphasise agricultural technology over regulation, and review climate targets to ensure economic impacts are considered.
Simple explanation
Use market-based carbon pricing to reduce emissions, allow offshore gas and oil exploration again, and avoid farming regulations that would hurt farmers.
National's Environment Policy
National has repealed parts of the Natural and Built Environment Act and the Spatial Planning Act, replacing them with a revised RMA. They support freshwater reform reviews, oppose certain conservation restrictions on farming, and aim to balance environmental protection with economic activity.
Simple explanation
Simplify environmental laws, review freshwater rules that affect farmers, and find a balance between protecting nature and allowing economic activity.
National's Crime & Justice Policy
National has introduced tougher sentencing, reinstating the three strikes law, boot camps for young offenders, more police officers, and gang suppression legislation. They focus on consequences for crime and supporting victims.
Simple explanation
Bring back three strikes sentencing, create boot camps for young offenders, hire more police, and crack down on gangs.
National's Transport Policy
National has reinstated road building as a government priority, reviving the Roads of National Significance programme. They have reduced public transport subsidies, axed the Auckland light rail project, and increased the fuel excise duty. They support road user charges for electric vehicles.
Simple explanation
Build more roads as a national priority, focus transport spending on roads rather than light rail, and make electric vehicle owners contribute to road funding.
National's Infrastructure Policy
National established the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission and passed fast-track consenting legislation to speed up large infrastructure projects. They support public-private partnerships, fiscal responsibility in infrastructure investment, and a national infrastructure pipeline.
Simple explanation
Speed up big infrastructure projects, bring in private investment to help fund infrastructure, and build a long-term national infrastructure plan.
National's Employment Policy
National supports flexible labour markets, opposes the Fair Pay Agreement system introduced by Labour, and has repealed the FPA legislation. They support 90-day trial periods for all employers, reducing compliance costs on businesses, and linking benefits more clearly to work obligations.
Simple explanation
Make it easier for businesses to hire workers with trial periods, remove industry-wide wage agreements, and require beneficiaries to look for work.
National's Small Business Policy
National focuses on reducing compliance costs, faster GST and tax refunds, digital government services for businesses, cutting red tape, and maintaining 90-day trial periods. They aim to create a more business-friendly regulatory environment to help SMEs grow.
Simple explanation
Cut red tape for small businesses, get them their tax refunds faster, improve online government services, and keep the rules simple.
National's Agriculture Policy
National has exempted agriculture from the Emissions Trading Scheme, opposed farm-level emissions pricing, reduced freshwater regulation affecting farmers, supported irrigation schemes, and repealed the ban on gene technology to enable precision agriculture in NZ.
Simple explanation
Protect farmers from carbon charges, ease freshwater rules, support irrigation, and allow gene technology so farmers can grow better crops.
National's Mฤori Affairs Policy
National has taken steps to review co-governance arrangements, repeal the Mฤori Ward provisions, and conduct a Treaty Principles referendum debate. They support Mฤori economic development but have been critical of what they term race-based policies in public services.
Simple explanation
Review Treaty co-governance arrangements, hold a public debate on Treaty principles, and support Mฤori economic development while opposing race-based public service policies.
National's Foreign Policy
National supports strong alliances with traditional partners (US, UK, Australia), the Five Eyes intelligence arrangement, AUKUS observer status consideration, free trade agreements, and maintaining New Zealand's nuclear-free status. They support a strong defence capability and Pacific engagement.
Simple explanation
Strengthen alliances with the US, UK and Australia, maintain our nuclear-free status, pursue more free trade deals, and invest in our defence capability.
National's Energy Policy
National has lifted the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration, supports fast-tracking new energy generation, opposes early closure of the Huntly coal-fired power station, and is reviewing the renewable energy target. They focus on energy security and affordable prices.
Simple explanation
Restart oil and gas exploration, keep coal power available as a backup, ensure electricity stays affordable, and fast-track new power stations.
National's Social Welfare Policy
National has introduced stronger work obligations for beneficiaries, tightened eligibility for Jobseeker support, maintained NZ Superannuation at age 65, and linked benefit increases to inflation rather than wage growth. They focus on reducing welfare dependency and moving people into employment.
Simple explanation
Require able-bodied beneficiaries to look for work, keep the retirement age at 65, and focus welfare on helping people become self-sufficient.