By Russell Palmer of RNZ
The second day of the New Zealand First convention continued with more policy remits, and speeches from a union rep and an opponent of “trans ideology”.
Party leader Winston Peters outlined what he said is New Zealand First’s unequalled record of political success, during his keynote speech to the party’s conference in Hamilton.
The theme of his address was, “as promised we are taking back our country.”
The speech was interrupted by Palestine protesters.
“Our policy is to oppose genocide, and not to come along and make a nuisance of ourselves, and stop the cause, so just go home,” Peters said in response.
The protestors continued to shout “free, free Palestine” before being escorted out of the convention.
“Isn’t it amazing… they think that’s a day’s work,” Peters said to the crowd, which then erupted in appaluse.
“Not the days, and weeks, and months, and years of struggle. They think that’s work. And that they’ve somehow appeased their social conscience.
“Bet they haven’t done a finger to help anyone in Palestine in terms of money. Bet they haven’t given a cent.”
Peters also announced that New Zealand First wants to set up what it calls a New Zealand future fund, to provide financial security for the future.
Peters pointed to the economic success of countries including Singapore, Ireland, Croatia and Iceland.
He said they have managed it by offering taxation incentives to international investors.
Peters said his party’s fund would also deliver economic security.
He said the party voted “to investigate the development of a ‘New Zealand Future Fund’ of up to $100 billion to invest solely in a multi-decade infrastructure build, to ensure our future infrastructure security and to enable future economic growth and social enablement”.
“It’s a brilliant remit.”
Peters said the future fund would have to be ring-fenced from political interference.
Peters told the audience that its achievements include introducing the Gold Card, setting up the Provincial Growth Fund and increasing the minimum wage.
He also launched an attack on his party’s former coalition partner, Labour, saying it suffered its worst defeat in 50 years at the last election and described its MPs as a middle-class elite.
Union leader attacks Uber policies
Earlier, First Union general secretary Dennis Maga delivered a presentation about the dispute between unions and Uber about whether its drivers are contractors or employees.
He said the government’s approach, driven by ACT Party deputy leader and Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden, was “one of the most dangerous laws we’ve seen as a union since the Employment Contracts Act”.
“What Uber brings to New Zealand is certainly not profits… but substandard, oppressive, unethical labour practices that would severely render New Zealand workers’ work conditions precarious and insecure. It would ruin the foundation of the New Zealand economy and New Zealand labour practices.
“Uber’s global tax structure is designed to deprive governments of much-needed tax revenue to fund schools, hospitals, roads, public transport and other essential services. This is true in New Zealand, as it is in countries around the world.”
He said it was clear Uber’s lobbying had been successful in getting ACT to change contract law.
“Brooke van Velden’s proposed law changes would not bring certainty to existing contracting arrangements, but it could make certain that some employers would seek to reduce permanent employment in their businesses and encourage a take up of precarious contracting arrangements, where workers lack the pathway to challenge their misclassification. And wages, conditions and job security would go out the window.
“Please, let New Zealand First live up to its values of being a party that calls out bullcrap and sees through a scam, see through what the ACT Party wants to do in reducing our national sovereignty and emboldening exploitative employers.”
Some of Maga’s union colleagues were in disbelief that he would speak at the NZ First event, he said, but he was encouraged that one party in the coalition was open to listening and collaborating “while the other two parties chose to disregard its presence and existence”.
He later told reporters he had been surprised by the support and willingness to listen from New Zealand First members he had spoken to.
Speaker takes aim at ‘trans ideology’ with claims
The other guest speaker for the day was Speak Up For Women’s Ro Edge, who said New Zealand First seemed to be “the only political party who has the courage to stand up for the reality over ideology”.
She claimed everyone would have agreed “seven or eight years ago” there were two sexes.
“Trans ideology is a recently emerged belief system that is based on nothing but twisted words and meanings,” she said in her speech, which made several claims about transgender people.
“There is no sense in which a trans woman is actually a woman, right? Except linguistically. Because no matter how many drugs you take… or how many surgeries you have males are still males. Humans cannot change sex, we are not clownfish.
“Puberty blockers stop children from going into and through puberty. Physically, it’s bad for their bones… bad for their brain, as it stops the brain growth spike during puberty, but it also keeps their sex organs and their sex responses in a state of childhood.”
She claimed the “ideology” had been introduced by stealth into nearly every aspect of government, and celebrated Sports Minister Chris Bishop’s direction to Sports NZ last week to review and update its guidelines for the inclusion of transgender people in community sport.
“Females should never be forced to share their sports or changing facilities with males, regardless of how they identify. But unfortunately, these guidelines are representative of many workplace policies throughout New Zealand now.”
Her speech was one of the most cheered at the event.
Party leader Winston Peters was set to deliver his main speech to the party faithful at 2pm, expected to include a policy announcement.
Remits passed on day two of the annual convention included:
• investigate developing a long-term military and foreign policy focus that enables the NZ Defence Force to better support the New Zealand and Pacific region, including a greater ability to respond to natural disasters.
• consider reforming local government processes to eliminate fraudulent voting
• investigate the introduction of a national food security plan
• consider legislating that would ensure New Zealand citizens are prioritised in the queue for social housing and social services ahead of non-citizens
• investigate better safety mechanisms for social media platforms for users under the age of 16
• consider legislating that it be a criminal offence liable to imprisonment for everyone who intentionally vandalises any place or object registered as a historic place, historic area, wahi tapu, or wahi tapu area
• investigate the retention of NZ’s built heritage by advocating and legislating for changes to the existing laws so as to provide for greater and more effective heritage protection and greater heritage funding
• investigate a policy to provide income tax offsets (deductibility) for private healthcare premiums
• investigate policy so retained profits of registered charities operating a business be subjected to tax just as any other business
• consider a review of the regulation of charitable trusts in receipt of public money to ensure that funds received are spent for the purpose given
• investigate a review of the Charities Act 2005 with a view of improving the accountability of receipt of public money, the application of profit to charitable purpose, and provide the Charities Board more certainty over the definition of charitable purpose.