The BFD | ACT’s Week in Action

ACT Party

This week, ACT gets tough on crime with our second Honest Conversations document, we fight back against so-called “white privilege”, the Honest Conversations Tour rolls on with record attendance and we reveal the Secret Service’s not so secret rebrand.

In the news

Law and Order Document

Parliament is in the middle of a three-week break, but that just means we have more time to deliver policy and get out and listen to New Zealanders.

This week we released our Honest Conversations Law and Order document.

Every major media outlet reported on our sensible and practical policies to make New Zealanders safer.

We would:

Introduce Gang Injunction Orders
Increase Police numbers in line with population growth
Review the Independent Police Conduct Authority
Introduce a no-rehab no parole policy
Remove Labour’s target to reduce the prison population
Put gang members who receive welfare on electronically monitored spending

You can read all the details here:

Media Watch

This week ACT revealed that the Government is extending its tentacles into nearly every area of media with an offer too good to refuse for each outlet, and it has rapidly reached absurdity with taxpayer money spent on journalism to promote Government expenditure of taxpayer money.

According to a NZ On Air press release, it has awarded:

‘Whakatupuria Te Moana A Toi, Radio Bay Of Plenty, up to $97,000. A radio-based, multimedia project that will report on the $200m worth of Provincial Growth Fund projects in the Eastern Bay of Plenty.’

In other words, we apparently need taxpayer-funded media to promote the use of taxpayer funds.

Meanwhile, Newsroom has received $50,000 to upskill two graduate journalists. As one qualified journalist said, ‘there was no need for that when I graduated, if they need $25,000 worth of upskilling immediately after graduating, they should ask for their tuition fees back.’

You can ready more here: Mike Yardley: David Seymour has struck a chord again

COVID polling

ACT also revealed that the Government has spent $250,000 on polling and focus groups about its COVID-19 response, which left us asking:

Did Jacinda Ardern decide to exclude RSE workers from COVID-free countries because of the risk of COVID-19 spreading or because it suited a narrative?

“Will future decision making, like when to reconnect with the rest of the world be driven by focus groups or scientific advice?

“Did she go back and forward on mask-wearing because of scientific advice or polling?

You can read the story here: Covid 19 coronavirus: Government spends $250,000 polling United Against Covid-19 branding and campaign

The Curious Case of the SIS rebrand

Taxpayers will be scratching their heads about why we’ve paid tens of thousands of dollars to rebrand our secret service.

ACT has revealed that the SIS spent $45,163 on a rebrand in the 2018-2019 financial year. Why are we spending tens of thousands of dollars on branding for a secret agency?

At a time of rising costs for New Zealanders the Government should be trying to find ways to give the taxpayer a break, not commission new rebrands and renovations for Government departments.

Is this a secret only all New Zealanders can know, or maybe they used invisible ink?

You can read the story here: New Zealand Security Intelligence Service NZSIS spy agency spends more than $45,000 on rebrand

White Privilege

After ACT revealed school kids were being taught about “white privilege”, we can now reveal that more than half of the Education Ministry has also been through a course about it.

“There are 4,000 staff at the Ministry of Education and since 2018, 2,516 have attended the course “Courageous Conversations about Race” according to Written Parliamentary Questions asked by ACT.

“The Ministry of Education courses have cost taxpayer $670,000.

You can listen to David on Newstalk ZB here: ACT Leader: Diversity courses are old fashioned profiling, racism, discrimination

Stickers sell like hotcakes

Our ACT Approved, “Legitimate Ute Driver” bumper stickers are selling fast. Secure yours for $5 before they all go.

We also have T-Shirts, lapel pins, David’s book ‘Own Your Future’ and Jackets.

Check out our online shop

AROUND THE COUNTRY

Honest Conversations Tour

Our Honest Conversations Tour has exceeded all expectations. On Wednesday night more than 200 people in Hastings came out to hear David Seymour, Mark Cameron and Damien Smith.