Table of Contents
ACT Party
Parliament was back this week and there was a lot to cover after a three-week break. Damien Smith had the luck of the Irish with his Member’s Bill drawn from the Ballot. The latest Poll saw ACT continue to soar and Labour back-pedalled on its cycle bridge.
In the News
ACT on the rise… again
This week started with a Newshub Reid Research poll, showing ACT with our best result ever in this poll.
ACT was on 11.1%, while David Seymour was on 8.6% for preferred Prime Minister.
The real story is this – ACT and National were both up and together we’re on 51 seats two years out from an election. That’s game on for a change of Government and, with a strong ACT, a change of direction.
Government Gets It Wrong on Transport
The Government seems to be back-pedalling on its Auckland cycle bridge. This is what happens when you go cycling, you get cold feet. In this case, that’s perfectly fine.
ACT revealed in June that the Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) of the cycle bridge is estimated at 0.4-0.6. If a project’s BCR is less than 1.0, the project’s costs outweigh the benefits, and it should not be considered.
It should have been blindingly obvious at that point that the bridge should be axed. But as is usually the case with Labour, it waits for public backlash before it acts. In this case, it took dropping almost 10 per cent in a poll to take the back-pedal seriously.
Meanwhile, ACT is supporting a coalition of Wellington organisations called Progress Wellington who are standing up against Let’s Get Wellington Moving. The depth of feeling from Wellington businesses couldn’t be clearer, it’s time for Let’s Get Wellington Moving to start listening.
At the moment Let’s Get Wellington Moving does the exact opposite to what it says on the tin.
ACT absolutely positively supports Progress Wellington. It’s time to actually get Wellington moving.
In the House
Member’s Bills, lucky for Damien but not for David
Damien Smith had the luck of the Irish with his Member’s Bill being drawn from the Ballot on Thursday. Damien’s Bill will reduce barriers to investment from other like-minded countries improving the quality of life enjoyed by all New Zealanders. New Zealand has highly restrictive laws which put up needless barriers to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) with the overall impact of reducing investment and making us poorer.
The status quo is not working and is contributing to a significant investment deficit seen in housing, transport and private sector productivity. Foreign investment is overwhelmingly good for the economy and will help build New Zealand’s reputation as a business-friendly country around the world. His Bill will make it easier for investors from OECD countries to come to New Zealand and invest while fostering stronger trading links.
Meanwhile, David Seymour’s Regulatory Standards Bill was voted down in Parliament. It’s a sad day for New Zealand when the Government shows it doesn’t care about lifting the standards of law-making in this country. The good news is, National voted in favour of the Bill – so it could be brought back to life at a later date. David’s Bill would have meant that individuals or groups could have sought a declaration through the courts to check due diligence had been carried out.
This would not have invalidated the law, but it would have embarrassed the makers of bad laws. It would have embarrassed them into fixing their mistakes, or even stopped poor laws being made in the first place.
Gay Conversion Therapy Debated
The ACT caucus agreed to support the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill at first reading, but there are serious concerns about the current state of the Bill.
ACT agrees that nobody should be forced into treatment to try to change their sexuality. Those practices are wrong and should be outlawed. This law should stick to addressing that issue.
Instead, this Bill overreaches. In its current state, it says parents are unable to have a say in whether their pre-pubescent children take hormone blockers if they want to change their gender.
Justice Minister Kris Faafoi has been unable to say whether parents will be criminalised if they stop their own child from taking medication that would take a huge toll on their bodies.
Parents should be able to parent their children without the threat of being criminalised. We’ll be seeking those changes when the Bill reaches Select Committee.
Check out Nicole McKee’s speech in Parliament here:
Around the Country
Honest Conversations
The tour is still going and continues to pack out halls. We had 80 in Taupo on Thursday night and 80 in the Coromandel on a Friday afternoon. Tonight, David will be in Mt Maunganui.
Check out our upcoming events here: https://www.act.org.nz/events
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